Annihilation (Alex Garland, February 23, 2018) Movie • Page 8

One thing I didn’t realize while watching the movie, but clicked after reading a couple reviews and links from this thread - is the tattoo(s). Lena comes out with the outboro/infinity tattoo. Where else do we see that? Apparently it’s on one of the corpses on the pool wall? Is that the same guy who’s abdomen is cut by Kane?

About to start reading the trilogy.

 

It will be for the UK and other countries. Not the US, Canada, or China.

 

Don't we see that on the paramedic too on her left arm? That's something I forgot to ask about. Did Lena have that going in? At first I thought it was put on anyone part of the mission.

 

I don't think it was there at the start. I was looking for it once I noticed it in the interrogation flash-forwards.

 

I noticed the tattoo thing right from the start. The paramedic definitely had it the whole time. Lena only had it at the end, but throughout the movie she keeps looking at her forearm because there's a "bruise" forming.

 

Gina Rodriquez's character has it from the start. I kept an eye out on the second watch. I'm assuming it was part of the refraction. I'd be curious to know if anything else from the others lived on in her.

 

I fuckin loved this, gotta go see it again asap

 

Yeah re: the tattoo, I also assumed it was being refracted by the Shimmer from Gina Rodriguez to the others. Lena's "bruise" was actually the tattoo being refracted onto her. Definitely agree with this.

 

I was hoping the book would clarify another thought I had, but it didn't. Would you all agree your attitude in the Shimmer kind of determines your fate as far as refraction goes? Lena is determined and therefore able to make it to the end game. Josie seems to decide to become apart of it and find peace, Anya is ripped apart after freaking out etc.

 

I feel like if anything it would be the reverse, others' attitudes would be refracted onto you

 

I didn't really see that happening though- it seemed to me that despite the worry they would be fundamentally changed, they stayed true to themselves.

 

So Gina and that soldier had the exact same tattoo? Or was his different?

 

If that's the case I would be inclined to see it as a plot inconsistency, but I also haven't read the book so can't comment there

I feel like though the characters' emotional motivations remained unchanged, parts of their personality were amplified and others diminished and that in the end each identity sort of disintegrated in its own way

 

What about this scene?

 

Not sure, I only saw it once and don't remember exactly what the soldier's one looked like.

 

Read the book about 5 years ago so I didn't remember a lot of the details going in, so had to read the book's plot summary after I got out of the movie. The stuff they left out would have been pretty un-filmable in my opinion, and I think Garland's version makes for a much tighter movie than a more literal adaptation would have.

 

This was incredible. I found it endlessly intriguing and haven't stopped thinking about it since I saw on Sat.

 

Yeah for sure. I'm honestly leaning towards the movie being better than the book, especially when I look at the book series as a whole. Book 1 I really enjoyed, book 2 I didn't care for much, and book 3 was fine but nothing special. Just felt like a lot of wasted opportunity for a premise I was very excited for.

 

Agree completely. First book was great, but honestly books 2 and 3 were rough to get through and totally failed to capitalize on the anticipation built up by the first book. Vandermeer can sure craft a sentence, but I wanted more of the Crichton-esque survivalism of the first book as opposed to the bureaucratic slog of the final 2 books.

 

As I was reading the first book all I could think about was how it should be taught in high schools, honestly. It's not just a damn good book but it can also teach a lot about tension, descriptive language, the unreliable narrator, the benefits of using a first-person perspective, etc.

 

I loved that scene with the alligator :')

 

Saw this today. I had read some crazy positive reviews and this still surpassed any expectations I had. The third act was stunning.

 

Holy shit this movie. I had the bear scene spoiled for me on facebook but it still caught me all the way off guard. Gonna be thinking about this for some time

 

Hopefully finally catching this tomorrow

 

Also, my theater was pretty damn packed considering this was a film its studio dropped the ball on and it was a Monday. Amazing I got as good of a seat as I did, in hindsight