Annihilation
2018
****
Director: Alex Garland
Cast: Natalie Portman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gina Rodriguez, Tessa Thompson, Tuva Novotny, Oscar Isaac, Benedict Wong, Sonoya Mizuno, David Gyasi
Lena's husband returns with his memory and body in tatters from a disastrous mission inside the Shimmer, an expanding force field that has a strange effect on all living organisms. Lena, a cellular biologist, and a team of female scientist attempt to travel to the source of the Shimmer. Like his debut Ex Machina, Alex Garland's second feature is a smart and atmospheric science fiction drama. This one is based on Jeff VanderMeer's novel. The film has a consistently oppressive mood and it offers a lovely combination of brainy sciency plotting and lowbrow scares.
