Arrival
Family FavoritePG-13

Arrival

Why are they here?

2016 • 116 min • Drama · Science Fiction · Mystery

Synopsis

Taking place after alien crafts land around the world, an expert linguist is recruited by the military to determine whether they come in peace or are a threat.

Our family guide

Best from age 13
94
Movie Knight Score
19654 reviews
  • 100 Reviewers · 12 · 75%
  • 76 Audience · 19642 · 25%

An expert linguist is recruited by the military to communicate with aliens who have landed on Earth. She must decipher their language to determine their intentions before global tensions escalate. The film explores profound themes of time, loss, and connection.

Violence & peril
2/10
Language
2/10
Drinking, drugs & smoking
1/10
Romance & sensuality
0/10
Scary moments
4/10

Heads up

  • Subtle, unsettling atmosphere
  • Explores complex emotional themes of loss
  • Some military tension and implied global unrest

What it models well

  • Communication is key
  • Empathy and understanding
  • Sacrifice for the greater good
  • The power of perspective

Talk about it after

  • How does language shape our understanding of the world?
  • The concept of linear vs. non-linear time
  • How we deal with grief and difficult choices
  • The importance of global cooperation

Written by the Movie Knight editorial team for Arrival. Our own words, our own scoring — always double-check against your family's standards.

Where to watch

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Top billed cast

Director: Denis Villeneuve • Crew: Eric Heisserer

Trailers & clips

The First Five Minutes

Dr. Banks Decodes Heptapod Language - Full Scene

First Contact with Aliens - Full Scene

Denis Villeneuve on ARRIVAL | TIFF 2021

Denis Villeneuve on the sets for his film ARRIVAL

Emma Roberts announces ARRIVAL for AFI Movie Club

Arrival (2016)- "Amy Adams" Featurette- Paramount Pictures

Arrival (2016) - "Eric Heisserer" featurette- Paramount Pictures

Reviewer notes

Recommended

Accomplished linguist "Louise" (Amy Adams) is drafted in by the US military to join an international team of scientists charged with trying to communicate with twelve spacecraft that have landed across the globe. Upon her arrival she encounters "Donnelly" (Jeremy Renner) and the pair work on finding a way to talk with "Abbott" and "Costello".…

Recommended

I loved the visuals in this, and Amy does a great job of carrying the cast. I am able to suspend my disbelief for 120 minutes when watching sci fi, so I will avoid the useless "but that's not what the military would do" comments. The movie has a great setup talking about language, culture, our perception of the world and how truly -alien- an alien life form would feel to us.…

Recommended

ok movie really boring at times. it was only interesting to the space craft and the aliens. other then that it was pretty dumb. working together and love is something the planet will never understand. well at least our leaders wont any way.

Recommended

**An excellent film, where the main theme is not what it seems.** In general, I'm not a big fan of movies involving aliens... in part because they seem extremely unlikely to me (I don't really believe there is another planet with intelligent and skilled living beings like humans, or at least not developed enough to see us visit).…

Recommended

This may be my new favourite film. I was so emotionally involved in this film, and I'd be lying if I didn't admit a few tears were shed towards the end.

Recommended

Arrival has created the most profound and seamless symbolism, notably through cinematography/imagery, that may have ever been achieved to date in film. On the surface, this appears to be a story about humans making contact with an alien species. For those with keen critical thinking skills, the seemingly foreign creatures at the beginning are not who we initially believed them to be by the end.…

Recommended

Well damn. I couldn't stop thinking about this one and may not for awhile. "Arrival" is one of the best Sci-Fi films I've seen in this year. Everything about this film was just top notch that I can't put into words without going all over. So let put it like this: Amy Adams was wonderful in this. A very grounded and real performance. Probably her best. Same thing that can said about Jeremy Renner.…

Recommended

Arrival is an attempt to take a more realistic approach to how an alien visitation would play out, especially within global politics. The main thrust is that Amy Adams has to find out what the aliens want before any other country can fuck it up and they did a great job in casting Amy Adams. I'm not usually any more than indifferent of Adams, but she does a great job here with what she's given.…

Recommended

"I have a brilliant idea for a movie so what we do is we watch scientists step-by-step learn to communicate with an alien species" "That's awesome but we need an emotional component or audiences will be bored" "Okay the main scientist's daughter is dead and we show clips of that every couple minutes" "Greenlight"

Recommended

**It was a perfect contact, but troubled at the communication.** The film was decent. Nowadays there are lots of altered versions coming that you won't easily say those are the remakes or reboots or spin- offs or whatever they call them in these days. Like 'Premotheus' to 'Alien', this film can remind you a few titles from the past, but 'Contact' is what the majority of us believes it got inspired.…

RecommendedTrusted family reviewers

Denis Villenueve offers a great film, but one that is exactly what the trailer put forth, this is not a Sci-Fi War film waiting to happen, or a modern-day horror. It's a character-driven piece about politics, life, humanity and communication. _Final rating:★★★½ - I strongly recommend you make the time._

Recommended

Prior to approaching this film, a word of warning that it is what many like to call a "thinking person's sci-fi". If you're going to watch this, I beg that you dedicate your utmost attention to it, as it is truly one rewarding experiences, one of the smartest, most well-constructed science fiction marvels of recent years. 'Arrival' is Villeneuve's magnum opus.…

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