“Arrival” pulls from the human instinct to search for deeper meaning in language and science, building a story of love and loss through the lens of a manipulated perception of time.
Based on Ted Chiang’s 1998 novella “Story of Your Life,” Denis Villeneuve’s 2016 film “Arrival” is about a linguist who is tasked by the U.S. military to translate the language of a newly discovered alien species that has landed on Earth. As the linguist works with the aliens to break down the language barrier between them, she quickly discovers that learning the language alters one’s perception of time.
I admire everything about “Arrival.” From my favorite themes of space and time to memorable dialogue and a main character performance that will stick with me for eternity, this film encompasses everything I could ever ask for when watching the television screen.
It resonated with me so deeply that I talked about the film in my LSU Discover Day 2025 research paper, “The Emptiness is Bearable: An Analysis of Other Worlds and Shamanism in Sci-Fi Film.” What I talked about in the paper is what I also wish to speak about in this review, although it will be from a movie lover’s perspective this time around.
In the paper, I discussed Amy Adams’ character, the linguist, and her role as a shaman. When I defined the concept of a shaman in my paper, I referred to it as, in simpler terms, a traveler between worlds who embarks on a journey toward a greater attainment of knowledge.
Louise Banks, the linguist, is attributed perfectly to the definition because of her learned knowledge of the alien language, which is what causes her to perceive time as nonlinear. This means that in the language, time has no beginning or end and is rather a wraparound, occurring all at once.
While I focused on the spiritual and real-life connections to the fictional world of “Arrival” in my paper, my review is now focused on the storytelling and the themes of grief and love.
The movie begins with a shot from Louise’s home, looking out the windows to a body of water. She is narrating to her deceased daughter, explaining humans and their attachment to time, while also talking about how she is not sure about beginnings or endings anymore.
I view this initial narration as crucial because it serves as a sort of hook to an essay. Louise is clearly speaking to her daughter, but the way she speaks is ambiguous, and it leaves the audience wondering what led to her change in belief, as well as who are the “they” in which she is referring to.
As the film progresses, there are flashbacks to memories with Louise and her daughter, some memories which help her solve problems in the film’s present. The way the film cuts back and forth to these present moments versus these memory-like visions frames the feeling of confusion that Louise feels, and it confuses the audience with what is present versus past.
However, as it is revealed by a plot twist, the visions with her daughter are not past memories– rather they are the future. In fact, it is also revealed how the physicist that Louise is paired with for the mission, Ian Donnelly, is her future husband and the father of her daughter. Although, in Louise’s mindset, there is no past, present or future any longer within her life.
I do realize that a lot of audiences do not like if a story is confusing on purpose because it requires more thinking rather than casually watching a film for fun, but my favorite movies are the confusing ones that leave me with questions and frantic searches on the web for deeper meanings.
Every time I rewatch “Arrival” and these plot twists unravel, my love grows stronger and stronger for this film. In these plot twists, the movie dives into a philosophical question: if it was possible to see the entirety of your life and you had the power to change it, would you? Louise knows from the visions that her daughter will die young, and despite that tragic fact, she chooses to live with the choices she makes up to that point anyway.
She chooses to love Ian and that love brings forth her daughter, whom she then loves until she cannot anymore.
The question of changing the future boils down to our values and what makes humans human. Our values can change depending on what we experience, and our humanity can either falter or stand strong when faced with life’s endless difficulties.
The movie then ends with a shot similar to the opening–looking out into the water from Louise’s house. It reflects the movie’s theme of time having no beginning or end. Even the name of Louise’s daughter reflects this, as Hannah spelled backwards is still Hannah. I love parallels.
Now that we have moved into the new year, the film will celebrate its 10th anniversary in November. When I was about 11 or 12, I vividly remember putting the film on the TV to fall asleep to because it was one of the only free movies on OnDemand. I never watched it all the way through until about three years ago, but maybe I subconsciously knew the impact it would have on me.
Perhaps then I even began to view time differently, perceiving my love as a wraparound. There is no beginning or end to the love I possess for this film. Instead it has always existed.
