The science fiction genre has always been one of the more creative avenues to tell a story. Regardless of the medium, writers of the genre have always had complete power to create whatever world they see fit. Characters, aliens, even how to bend the laws of nature, all become tools of the writer to realize their story. For these reasons, it is no surprise that many modern science fiction movies are starting to become more philosophical and eldritch, rather than the simple alien invasion dramas of years past. Films like “Interstellar” and “Gravity” are all using the creative freedom that the genre of science fiction affords to convey a thought larger than sheer entertainment and force the audience to think. “Arrival,” starring Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner is the newest of these modern philosophical space movies, fully embraces this freedom, creating something that even veterans of science fiction will find foreign. However, at its heart, while it is certainly outlandish, the question remains. Is “Arrival” a good movie?

In short yes, though before I properly begin with this review, I should point out the audience that the film was meant for. This is not a simple action movie like “Deadpool” or one of the numerous “Jason Bourne” pictures. Nor is it a comedy akin to “Ted.” Rather, “Arrival” is meant to make you think and (to be honest) slightly confuse you. You aren’t meant to have all the answers, and for some people that’s a negative. If you’re someone who likes to have everything explained, then I would recommend skipping “Arrival.” While there aren’t any real plot holes, some of the concepts are purposely left vague.

I understand why people wouldn’t like that. We as humans want don’t want to have loose ends. To put it in the words of horror novelist H.P. Lovecraft, “The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown.” The thought of having things left vague and outside our understanding makes us uncomfortable, but, as strange as this sounds, the vagueness of “Arrival’s” themes actually manage to makes the movie more enjoyable. Our species believes faster-than-light travel to be impossible, along with a lot of other things. Aliens that can move faster than light are already outside of our realm of understanding. They should be difficult to make sense of. It helps establish how small our planet truly is, and smaller still, our place in the universe.

In fact, it is “Arrival’s” the portrayal of the aliens that I found most fascinating about the movie. Their speech doesn’t sound like voices, neither is their text made of words. They are completely different beings from anything on Earth, or even what was created in other science fiction movies. This was a huge selling point for me. I confess that I rather enjoy philosophy, as well as H.P. Lovecraft’s eldritch stories, and “Arrival” sated by desire for both. There’s nothing wrong with simpler alien designs, making them humanoid or very similar to what we would see on our planet. However, with a genre saturated with aliens that somehow speak English and walk upright, I find the creatures in “Arrival” to be a breath of fresh air for me.

Moving onto plot, I again applaud the film on its willingness to take risks. More often than not, movies involving aliens have a certain us-versus-them mentality. Even if a story focuses on our diplomacy with aliens, such as “Star Trek,” it always takes place a significant time after first contact. “Arrival” is all about the first contact. The plot is focused solely the alien’s first time on earth, and how their sudden appearance effects humanity. It is a character driven story, and even though some characters only have minor speaking roles, the audience is never left to question anyone’s motives. Everything seems believable. Well, except for the aliens but that’s their whole point.

In all honesty however, the individual characters do not fare as well on their own, at least in my opinion. While they all do their part to contribute to the story and none of them are really badly written, there aren’t much stand outs. You have the gruff military man who doesn’t trust the aliens, the character who wants to be diplomatic with them, and the crazy guy whose first instinct is to blow them up. All of the actors do a fantastic job and the script is excellent as well, but it doesn’t shake the fact that many of their characters are stereotypes from other science fiction movies.

Now, I know I’m making it seem as though the characters in “Arrival” are horrible and bring the movie down. And while part of that is true, I can’t say that they are a big detriment to the quality of the movie, mainly because most of those stereotypes are how people probably would act if aliens suddenly landed. It’s easy to think of the characters as being trite, but I don’t think it’s really a bad thing for them to be familiar. After all, the rest of the movie certainly isn’t.

While “Arrival” does have some minor flaws and most certainly isn’t for everyone, it is nevertheless a fantastic movie. The plot is paced very well, the characters are believable, and the aliens seem other-worldly (as they should). It’s a film made for a specific audience who enjoy movies that make them think, not the masses. Not everyone will enjoy it, or even be interested in it, and that’s fine. However, for fans of mystical or eldritch storytelling, I can highly recommend “Arrival.”