The Arrival

Starring: Charlie Sheen, Lindsay Crouse, Richard Schiff, Ron Silver, Teri Polo
Directed by: David Twohy
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Science Fiction
1996

Times Seen:
Tim: 2

Summary: An astronomer (Charlie Sheen) discovers a radio signal from outer space but shadowy forces seem determined to keep the discovery quiet.

Review:

Tim: I first watched The Arrival shortly after its initial release, so maybe I was 15 years old. Not the most discerning age, but I remember being disappointed by it. It was decent, but not a movie I recalled fondly. I didn't watch it again for approximately 23 years. When I finally revisited it, it was exactly as I remember. It's a mostly lackluster film with a few key strengths. It's too forgettable, too weak to be very good. There's still some fun to be had with it, but not as much as it should be.

The story is a bit wonky, but there's some redeeming qualities, too. The film starts out strongly enough- Charlie Sheen's character is a radio astronomer who comes across a mysterious signal. This part of the film felt very believable- SETI has famously been searching for a signal from alien worlds for many years. It felt grounded in reality and was genuinely exciting. What would happen if a signal was detected? Who would want to control that information? What lengths would they go to in order to protect that information? The film does a good job of establishing the premise. As the movie goes on, the story is pushed too far and eventually becomes harder to stomach. The believability of the film takes a hit. That doesn't mean the basic story isn't good, because it's solid. There's a sense of mystery and intrigue that propels the plot forward.

David Twohy is a decent director, but this film is quite uneven. There's a number of compelling moments, but then there's much that goes wrong. Too many scenes feel like they don't hit the right notes. There's a scene where Sheen's character confronts a former employer and it just comes across as cringeworthy and forced. The played up drama in Zane Zaminsky's (cool name) relationship is equally weak. Some of this comes from the acting, much of it comes from the script.

The visual effects are decent, but appear a bit dated by today's standards (I did not hold that against the film). I remember the first time I saw the film, I had no problems with the visuals. I remember thinking the depiction of the aliens (and their leg joints) was especially cool. As a whole, the aliens do tend to be a bit blander than comparison movies, though. For a movie like this from the mid 1990s, the visuals are fine.

Charlie Sheen got a (deservedly) bad wrap for his bizarre and worrisome behavior roughly a decade ago, but it was fun to watch this movie back when he was at least a marginally respected actor. He doesn't give a great performance, but it's definitely a serviceable one. Sheen makes Zane at least somewhat unique and brings a few interesting quirks to the character. He certainly works hard to sell the performance. He's definitely the best of the cast. Lindsay Crouse is pretty bad. I just never believed her performance. I liked seeing Teri Polo here, although her performance was marginal at best. Richard Schiff was solid and Ron Silver added a good supporting performance here. The movie is really all about Sheen, though.

The Arrival touches on some important themes, namely, human-driven climate change. This aspect of the film was a bit forced, but it resonates powerfully (maybe even more in 2021 than 1996). I liked that the story tied the alien invasion to the climate crisis. As a whole, though, this is one of the more forgettable alien movies. It doesn't do anything spectacularly. It gives us mostly variations on themes we've seen before and have been done better. It's never a bad movie, but it has a number of ups and downs throughout the film. It's a decent movie, but one I certainly don't need to see a third time.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Contact, Stargate, Gattica