This thread will be about the plot of the new Arrival movie, so spoilers are ahead.
Any and all thoughts and opinions for this movie in general would be appreciated, not just those associated with the plot details. Thanks for reading as always.
To very quickly summarize the movie for those who have seen it (skip the next spoiler if you don't need a refresher):
With that.... I'm trying to make sense of the general plot that resulted. Please let me know if what I'm concluding on these matters makes sense.
First, when in direct contact with the aliens on their side of the plexi-glass wall at the end of the movie, Lousie is exposed to gases which seem to grant her access to the 'weapon' the aliens described. This 'weapon' is the power to see the future. It seemed as if she was granted this power toward the beginning of her time on the site, meaning that she perhaps gained this power the first time she took her suit off in the craft. Previous flashbacks of her daughter, that took place before she shipped out to Montana, seemed to not be memories but glimpses only for the sake of the audience, as there is no way she had access to the future-seeing power before getting there.
These supposed 'flashbacks' of her daughter and her missing father turn out to be glimpses of the future with Ian, the man who she was working on the site with. She directly caused Ian to leave the relationship by telling him their daughter would contract the cancer virus and die as a result. She willingly accepts this future before ever getting together with Ian, knowing exactly what would occur as a result.
Lousie directly salvages the Earth-to-alien relationship by seeing a glimpse of the future where she meets with the Chinese Prime-Minister, the man leading the fear-based retaliation against the aliens. In this conversation, he reveals to her his private number and a personal secret. Using these 2 pieces of information, and her ability to speak fluent Chinese of the proper dialect, she is able to convince him to call off his attack. The rest of the Earth follows suit. This ceasefire seems to lead to a peace that results in further communication advancement until a complete translation is completed, utilizing the collective information from all 12 sites.
The purpose of the Aliens arrival turns out to be a need of Humanity's assistance in the distant future. By interacting with Humanity as they did, they accurately forged a path to direct communication, proven by the flash-forward of Lousie's publishing of a book about translating the alien language to any human language, and thus secure their own futures. Apparently, 3 millennia from now, the aliens will need the help of humanity and this was their best option to secure their own future.
So did I get everything right? Did Lousie's visions of her future daughter only start after she first took her suit off in the space craft? Were previous visions of her daughter not meant to be interpreted as memories? Did her call to the leader of China instill world peace and a constant line of communication to the aliens in the future? Did this established line of communication provide the aliens with the help they needed from humanity?
1. Aliens arrive on Earth in 12 locations around Earth, each brandishing a craft over a quarter-mile tall in the shape of half-3 Dimensional oval, or half-ellipsoid.
2. All aspects of the arrival appear friendly and the aliens even offer a direct interface with the local humans. This is done by offering access to the craft every 18 hours where, behind a solid plexi-glass wall, humans can see and interact with the aliens.
3. After weeks and months of simple communication advancement, patterns emerge and hints of conversations begin. This leads to the possible interpretation of the phrase 'use weapon' which seems to be discovered by multiple countries across the world, instilling fear and causing retaliations plans to be initiated.
4. Lousie (Amy Adams), who originally translated 'use weapon', finds a method to finalize the human-to-alien translation, quells all animosity toward the aliens around the world and sets up a future where peaceful interaction and communication will be possible with the aliens. Not to mention... worldwide peace seems to be thrown in as well.
2. All aspects of the arrival appear friendly and the aliens even offer a direct interface with the local humans. This is done by offering access to the craft every 18 hours where, behind a solid plexi-glass wall, humans can see and interact with the aliens.
3. After weeks and months of simple communication advancement, patterns emerge and hints of conversations begin. This leads to the possible interpretation of the phrase 'use weapon' which seems to be discovered by multiple countries across the world, instilling fear and causing retaliations plans to be initiated.
4. Lousie (Amy Adams), who originally translated 'use weapon', finds a method to finalize the human-to-alien translation, quells all animosity toward the aliens around the world and sets up a future where peaceful interaction and communication will be possible with the aliens. Not to mention... worldwide peace seems to be thrown in as well.
First, when in direct contact with the aliens on their side of the plexi-glass wall at the end of the movie, Lousie is exposed to gases which seem to grant her access to the 'weapon' the aliens described. This 'weapon' is the power to see the future. It seemed as if she was granted this power toward the beginning of her time on the site, meaning that she perhaps gained this power the first time she took her suit off in the craft. Previous flashbacks of her daughter, that took place before she shipped out to Montana, seemed to not be memories but glimpses only for the sake of the audience, as there is no way she had access to the future-seeing power before getting there.
These supposed 'flashbacks' of her daughter and her missing father turn out to be glimpses of the future with Ian, the man who she was working on the site with. She directly caused Ian to leave the relationship by telling him their daughter would contract the cancer virus and die as a result. She willingly accepts this future before ever getting together with Ian, knowing exactly what would occur as a result.
Lousie directly salvages the Earth-to-alien relationship by seeing a glimpse of the future where she meets with the Chinese Prime-Minister, the man leading the fear-based retaliation against the aliens. In this conversation, he reveals to her his private number and a personal secret. Using these 2 pieces of information, and her ability to speak fluent Chinese of the proper dialect, she is able to convince him to call off his attack. The rest of the Earth follows suit. This ceasefire seems to lead to a peace that results in further communication advancement until a complete translation is completed, utilizing the collective information from all 12 sites.
The purpose of the Aliens arrival turns out to be a need of Humanity's assistance in the distant future. By interacting with Humanity as they did, they accurately forged a path to direct communication, proven by the flash-forward of Lousie's publishing of a book about translating the alien language to any human language, and thus secure their own futures. Apparently, 3 millennia from now, the aliens will need the help of humanity and this was their best option to secure their own future.
So did I get everything right? Did Lousie's visions of her future daughter only start after she first took her suit off in the space craft? Were previous visions of her daughter not meant to be interpreted as memories? Did her call to the leader of China instill world peace and a constant line of communication to the aliens in the future? Did this established line of communication provide the aliens with the help they needed from humanity?
Any and all thoughts and opinions for this movie in general would be appreciated, not just those associated with the plot details. Thanks for reading as always.