Subject: REVIEW: THE ARRIVAL (1996)

From: [email-masked] (James Berardinelli)
Date: 4 Jun 1996 13:08:46 GMT

THE ARRIVAL
                       A film review by James Berardinelli
                        Copyright 1996 James Berardinelli

RATING (0 TO 10): 7.5
Alternative Scale: *** out of ****

United States, 1996
U.S. Release Date: 5/31/96 (wide)
Running Length: 1:55
MPAA Classification: PG-13 (Violence, mature themes)
Theatrical Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1

Cast: Charlie Sheen, Lindsay Crouse, Teri Polo, Ron Silver, 
      Richard Schiff, Tony T. Johnson
Director: David Twohy
Producers: Thomas G. Smith and James Steele
Screenplay: David Twohy
Cinematography: Hiro Narita
Music: Arthur Kempel
U.S. Distributor: Orion Pictures

     The biggest alien invasion picture of the summer of 1996 is 
INDEPENDENCE DAY.  But it's not the first.  THE ARRIVAL, with a 
significantly lower budget than Fox's July 3 release, has that 
distinction, and, while this particular film doesn't boast any radical 
or surprising ideas, it combines numerous familiar plot elements into a 
suspenseful, entertaining whole.  Best of all, perhaps, is the 
realization that some thought went into writer/director David Twohy's 
script.  This is not a dumb movie; in fact, with its heavy reliance upon 
real science, it's startlingly credible.

     When aliens can disguise themselves as humans, as in THE ARRIVAL, 
we're never sure who's a friend and who's a foe, and the best science 
fiction/horror films of this ilk continuously keep us guessing.  
Conspiracy lovers will have fun sorting through the layers of cover-up 
and treachery here.  And those who crave scary-looking, otherworldly 
creatures will get their fill from the aliens in their natural forms.

     The premise is rather simple.  The aliens hail from a planet 
orbiting Wolf-336, an unstable star located 14.6 light years from Earth.  
A colonizing force has arrived here incognito with the goal of readying 
this world for inhabitation.  That process involves accelerating the 
greenhouse effect -- intentionally polluting the atmosphere so that the 
global temperature rises, causing the polar ice caps melt.  

     Zane (Charlie Sheen) and Calvin (Richard Schiff), a pair of CETI 
radio astronomers, intercept communications between Wolf-336 and Earth.  
When they report this to their boss, Phil Gordian (Ron Silver), Zane is 
fired and Calvin suffers an unfortunate accident.  With the help of Kiki 
(Tony T. Johnson), a neighborhood boy, Zane begins investigating on his 
own, ignoring his girlfriend (Teri Polo) in his quest to determine who's 
out there.  But Zane isn't the only one observing strange goings-on.  A 
UCLA environmentalist (Lindsay Crouse) has noticed the alarming increase 
in global warming, and it's only a matter of time before she and Zane 
meet each other and compare notes.

     THE ARRIVAL is low key, which is refreshing at this time of year, 
and it's as much horror as pure science fiction.  This is the kind of 
movie that a director like John Carpenter might have made during his 
late-70s/early-80s heyday.  It's creepy and atmospheric, and, after a 
rather protracted opening forty minutes, well-paced. 

     Spectacled and bearded, Charlie Sheen is surprisingly effective as 
the paranoid protagonist.  He's more of an everyday sort of guy than a 
superhero, and, as a result, is easy to identify with.  Everyone else in 
the cast is basically a supporting player, including Ron Silver as an 
oily CETI executive, so the responsibility for the movie lies fully on 
Sheen's shoulders, and he carries the burden admirably.

     X FILES fans will discover a lot worth appreciating about THE 
ARRIVAL, which shares certain core similarities with the TV show.  This 
film, however, takes things much further.  Believability is a tremendous 
asset in a picture like this.  1993's FIRE IN THE SKY, supposedly based 
on a "true" story, was incredibly hard-to-swallow.  On the other hand, 
THE ARRIVAL, a completely fictional tale, is easy to accept.  David 
Twohy should be commended.  In a summer when tornadoes, impossible 
missions, and flying dragons are grabbing the headlines and the big 
money, his smaller effort has shown more creativity than any of those 
blockbusters.

- James Berardinelli
e-mail: [email-masked]
ReelViews web site: http://www.cybernex.net/~berardin