I went looking if someone already posted this, and here it is. This video just sums up what happened. The way I see it the writer wanted to leave it open to interpretation. The way he interpreted it might have been interesting however you're not gonna find that in this video. This is just a recap of the movie that I just watched 5 minuted ago.
Myles Thorne there is no actual known ending. Its been a while since i watched this movie but im pretty sure lena in the end scene isnt even lena. Its the alien. Meaning that the whole story and movie is being told through the alien and what we saw might not be what happened.
My interpretation was that the entire film is a metaphor for battling cancer; for facing one’s mortality. Each team member exhibits different stages: fear, denial, anger, and acceptance... And those who do survive are forever changed.
Leana had the alien in her too. When it smashed her up against the wall, we saw how some of it absorbed into her skin. So you now have a man and woman with the alien species in them. It also makes sense why she was so easily able to kill the doppleganger with a grenade. It found a host in her and will continue on, just not with the same approach as with the shimmer initially.
The shimmer is a celestial life form that has discovered how to duplicate, it cannot help duplicating matter, the being does not understand what fire is and learnt that the hard way, the being also does not know if its being deceived because its curious
Even the concept of deception is not something that exists to this life force. It's not like a living thing that has an agenda. It's just replicating and mixing genetic traits. Humans are the curious ones, so maybe it's mumicing human curiosity. It's just a thing that exists, and when we try to read a deeper meaning or look for its intentions, then maybe we are simply projecting our own intentions and agendas.
I feel like the ending (hell the entire movie) could be summed up differently. To me it's that we are cancer, we are self destructive. The movie even starts off and involves with talking about cancer. The shimmer isn't the real enemy - WE ARE. It's ridding the world of the cancer, but not just simply killing us, but giving us purpose through whatever means, even if through something horrible. (I.E. All 4 women (including her husband) had nothing to really live for, except one and that's the main character. For example the one who lost her daughter to cancer become a part of something again, the bear.) At the end I think it represents her doppleganger taking the self destructive side from her, and allowing self to be destroyed. Her husband also knew she was having an affair, and had nothing to live for, that's why he didn't come back. We only have one character make it back. What if instead of the typical evil entity making it out at end isn't to do something bad, but to create a world where humans aren't self destructive. Maybe starting with both of them, and the kids they have, and the kids that grow up to have kids etc. Also why does nobody mention the "tattoos" they suddenly all have after being in the shimmer? The ouroboros.
I kind of looked at it like they both were different people. That even though she knew it wasn't Kane in front of her, she also knew that she herself was no longer the same person. That even though her body was the one to make it out, her DNA was still changed forever and will continue to change.
I think that Lena actually killed the alein version of herself, but at the end she started to become the alien because she had shared blood with the alien. So Lena is herself but also not, she is no longer human but is still Lena
Nope ... ill give you advise Watch her arms closely when handing the grenade over and then watch her arms again when being asked questions by the scientist
@@Plard1337 the tattoo is on her left forearm in both scenes. When she hands the phosphorous grenade to alien Lena, you'll see the tattoo in its full glory on the alien's forearm, but also a slight bit of it on real Lena's forearm as well, it's just that it's on the inner side and we can see the outer side of her hand in that shot They've shot it from that perspective on purpose, so people who find it on close inspection will know and the rest who missed it will think she didn't have the tattoo yet. This will keep the debate going between the two types of people mentioned
I like *Gomodd's* post further down (about the theme revolving around various aspects of cancer), but I had a different take (maybe, like all good truly thought provoking stories, half of a story's "meaning" comes from us and what we bring into it): I saw the film as an alien making first contact. The Shimmer was slowly increasing it's size until it reached a being capable of intelligent communication and interaction. Until then, it would slowly "terra"form (for lack of a better word) the Earth into a mix of the alien's world and our own (ie a biological form of a universal translator, but instead of converting just speech or audio frequencies you are converting everything). This is why the humans were sending in various groups with various permutations of group members: all male, all female, all young or old, a mix of various degrees.. to see how the Shimmer would respond. The transformation of Cain (the brother who killed Abel and was evicted from Eden) was the only survivor. The events of the movie transpire, and I interpreted it as: the alien entity made a complete connection with Portman's character, which is why she was allowed to destroy the epicenter of the Shimmer: it's mission was complete. That mission was to allow any intelligent being on any target world it was converting the opportunity to prove it's sentience and stop the conversion from mass murder, but also to create a "middle man" to allow interaction between itself and what would be truly alien to it. Cain and Lena are essentially a new "Adam and Eve", who are a perfect mix of human and alien DNA. I was reminded of a scene in ENDER'S GAME, when Ender was having a dream where the Alien Queen was trying to speak to him, but couldn't because it had an insect's mouth.. so instead of trying to communicate verbally, it reached out mentally/psionically. I think that the alien entity in ANNIHILATION is similar in that it is about communication beyond sounds or words, but through biology and other means.
While I tend to agree, I do wish there was still *an* answer. Interpretation is great and all, but at the end of the day I want to know what tf is going on.
@@christopherballard1348 I think that's the point of this movie. There isn't exactly a be all end all answer. If you think about it, it's like the movie itself. You know what's going on, but simultaneously you don't.
People saying it's a bad movie just because they didn't understand it or it wasn't Hollywood enough for them. The same happened with Arrival. If it's action and an easy to digest plot you want go watch the Transformers franchise or something.
Arrival was great, but that was because the writing was actually really good. Annihilation is filled with good ideas that are written and executed terribly. Falling on cliche dialogue and horribly cliche character "development." Comparing this film to Arrival or Interstellar is questionable.
Dan Brown, I couldn’t agree more. Arrival is amazing and so is Interstellar. I’ve read Annihilation and enjoyed it immensely. Then I saw this movie and walked out pissed and very disappointed. They dumbed this movie down. The book is smart and well executed, this movie, not so much. And for those who claim the people who don’t like this movie are just not smart enough to understand...bull. There were no thought provoking moments in this movie. It’s all spelled out for you and it’s very clear as to what they wanted to let the audience see. They didn’t even bother to mimic the book which is a real shame because I thought anyone who can do the thing justice would be Denis Villeneuve, he’s brilliant, but he dropped the ball on this one. That’s just my opinion. It doesn’t matter anyway. I just wanted to say my piece.
Aaah , the usual ''if you didn't understand it , you're not smart and should watch an easy movie'' ... the movie had a great idea but was horribly executed
I believe the hypothesis about the fire destroying the lighthouse is incorrect. It doesn’t coincide with the theme of the rest of the movie. It’s Lena‘s inability to want to “self destruct” that drives the being to combust. When Kane kills himself with the grenade the being is unaffected, almost passionate to carry out the mission of finding Lena when told to by Kane. However, on the other hand when Lena passes the grenade to the being she is basically refusing to self destruct, something that differs from all the others that have entered the shimmer. This desire to persevere despite all of the challenges in her life and surroundings is what allows Lena to reach the lighthouse, something her team mates and those before her lack. This refusal of self destruction is what ultimately ends the being, destroying the shimmer, allowing Lena to persevere and defy basic human biology of the human cells self destructing over time. It’s almost like the being was sent to earth and created the shimmer to try to teach humans the lesson of refusing our basic biology of self destruction. All those that entered the shimmer, or the lighthouse allowed there basic human nature to take over and died over time, slowly giving in to there natural self destruction. Lena refused to die, handing the being the grenade and choosing to persevere. The being accepted this and destroyed the lighthouse, killing its self and the shimmer. The being almost appeared to be happy to watch Lena walk out of the lighthouse, almost like it’s mission of why it was sent to earth was complete. Finally being able to destroy the lighthouse and the shimmer. Teaching it’s lesson to Lena, she still encompasses those principles of perseverance, evidenced by the shimmer in her eyes in the last scenes of the movie. Lena and the mirror of Kane will continue to live there lives with the shimmer in their eyes, embodying the beings message of perseverance and the refusal of self destruction. Possibly being immortal for the rest of time.
The had a chunk of missing time - that was just an indication that they were starting to undergo/feel the effects of being in the Shimmer after such a short exposure - memories are formed by physical synaptic changes and new neural pathways. What do you think causes amnesia and other memory impairment (e.g. dementia). If they were clones, they’d have no memory prior to entering the Shimmer (like when “Kane” came home), and it would render the entire ending moot - complete with Ventress giving in and ‘disintegrating’ or assimilating or whatever they were depicting - and ESPECIALLY with the entity that was causing the Shimmer using a drop of Lena’s blood to create a clone. If everyone got cloned as soon as they fell asleep or entered the Shimmer, there would be tons of doppelgängers coming back out or wandering around the Shimmer in fugue states. The only time clones came into the picture was when they actually made it to the lighthouse and interacted with the source of the Shimmer. I’m guessing Ventress wasn’t cloned because her DNA was already too damaged by the cancer, but that’s just a supposition - they don’t give any reason or rationale for what happened to her.
This movie was a great mindfuck,the bear scene still freaks me out. Oh and the fungal corpse scene...I kept screaming at them "WHY ARE YOU IN THE WATER AND GETTING SO CLOSE??!! EWWWWW"
After husband return, mostly he answers at Lenas questions with "I don't know". When Lena is in quarantine she answers to the guy with the white suit questions with "I don't know". So they are both aliens
Lena isn't exactly all alien though. Shes I believe a bit different than kane. Notice how kane killed himself but the clone is the one that left. Lena didnt do that at all. She accepted what was happening, just like josie. She didnt fight it or run from it like she was doing initially. So she is lena, the real one, but because her clone self destructed not only itself but the shimmer near the lighthouse, she is lena, but not lena. Shes something new. The same lena, but more.
"It might not happen soon, but the primal coding that sends us towards self destruction remains as an inevitability that nobody and nothing will ever fully escape" "thanks for watching"
Lena and the rest of the team began to mutate the moment they entered The Shimmer. Notice that Alma's tattoo appears on Lena's arm, suggesting that their DNA or physical features gets mixed somehow. One of the close-ups of Lena's face during the interview is lit in such a way (and maybe digital effects?) and it appeared to me that her face now had features of the other women. I enjoyed the film...stunning effects, terrific performances, and plenty of mental stimulation. This and the plot of the novel (have not read it) strongly remind me of a SciFi novel I read in the late 80s with a similar concept: a meteor or other phenomena results in an area becoming infected with all sort of weird flora and eventually the protagonists figure out that some alien intelligence is "terra-forming" the Earth to suit their biology. Wish I could recall that title....
The love story is essential to the plot, its the reason she entered the shimmer in the first place. It gives her motivation. But i guess you just like cool effects and CGI in movies, thats okay too...
I just watched this and noticed that when Lena was in quarantine she had the same tattoo on her forearm as the lady that got killed by the bear. When they were in the boats it showed her forearm and the tattoo wasn't there.
My theory about the movie as a whole and the ending in particular: The main theme: Suicide is not the same as self destruction. You should know as a biologist, aren't all cells meant to self-destruct? Main concept: Fractals are effed up, yo. So basically, what would happen if a self-perpetuating fractal fell to Earth? First, it's very nature as an ever dividing thing would cause this "refraction projection" under which patterns repeat themselves endlessly, hence the lush profusion of evolutionary growth from different models. If you go with the theory that time is just space in motion, then the time displacement makes sense as the space is refracting, time is also duplicating or refracting. But because the area of effect is so large, the change isn't quick, which is why it was months vs weeks. What does this fractal want? Fractals got to fract, and maybe even frick. Duplication is the name of the game for a fractal, and a full duplication is the main purpose. Like a single-celled organism, this fractal is seeking for a way to divide... Which it does through invasion, like a virus, duplication, then replacement of the old cell structure with the new, as we see under the microscope. The difference is that humans have a consciousness from which to make decisions, where the fractal has full autonomy to control each cell. With their powers combined, it's invasion of the body snatchers! Dum dum daaaaaaah! But let's get into some nice, guilty self-destruction, shall we? Each of our characters is a lost soul, damned in a way, by their own actions or histories. A husband who doesn't want to face his wife's betrayal (possibly due to the effect of his perpetual absence) and would rather take a suicide mission. A wife, wracked with guilt, grief, and self-hatred, spurring herself to find some way to reclaim what her actions destroyed. And in smaller forms of other characters, loss, abandonment, self-immolation, self-confirmation, and cancer, cancer, cancer. Our own replicating cells that go haywire and kill us, the most literal form of self-destruction there is. While suicide is a conscious act, self-destruction, like cell replication, is not. It is the impetus of our id on our actions, the subconscious agony bleeding into the world through the decisions we make. Every person sent into the shimmer was self-destructive. Like cancer, this self destruction became literal. Loss of mind, loss of body, loss of cell structure, loss of control, loss of self. Each character had a different type of self destruction occur to them. So why didn't the psychologist metastasize into two beings like the husband and wife duo? If you look at her profile as a permanent loner, no kids, no spouse, no friends, you can see she did not cleave to anything or anyone. The goal of the fractal being was in direct opposition of her subconscious self. She could only be destroyed if she could not propagate. The husband wanted two things, to not remember his wife's betrayal and to start over, neither of which he could do, but which his fractal clone could - expunged of all history, guilt, and grief. So the original died, and the ideal version of himself lived. The wife wanted to save her husband and to destroy "herself". Not suicide, but the stupidity of having the affair, of destroying something good with her own hands instead of protecting it, of all the bad decisions she made in the past. She wanted to fight herself. She "owed" her husband restitution, protection, her self-punishment. Her goal, seeing that some version of him is alive, is to save him the way she couldn't before. Once she realizes her husband is dead, then that goal transfers to the only part of him left - his fractal duplicate. Her fractal duplicate becomes the unreasoning self she fights and ultimately destroys. She remains her original self....BUT! One fractal connected to and of itself collapses, which is why the destruction of the shimmer occurs from the original fractal as it burns. A separate, fully metastasized fractal shoot, like her clone hubby, and like her own divided cells in her body that are starting the metastization, are not connected to the main fractal colony. Wait! You say. But she isn't a full separate copy! That's true. But her hubby infected her with his fractal (lol) before she ever entered the shimmer. She is part of his fractal, which is why, despite refraction running rampant in her body, she maintains coherence. His fractal is rejecting the original fractal's control in order to obey the hubby's direction to go to Lena, which is why he is in intense organ failure, but gets better as soon as the original fractal colony collapses. After all, a cell that metastizes does not survive, it makes two new cells filled with its old bits. What do we have now? Two new cells, filled with bits of the old fractal. But they will not need a refraction field to multiply and divide. They can has bebbies. Because I am pretty sure her ovarian cancer has been cured with fractal power. That's my take on this movie ending.
Simple Ending Summary >>> Kane is alien copy. Lena is alien copy. Alien copy Lena pretending to be real Lena when she tells her lies/story during Q & A. Alien copies Kane & Lena Reunite :)
Iam i the only one thought that they just should have dropped people from above with a chopper too reach the center. Why go from the outside when you can drop from above. Yes the "bubble" expands outward but how did it take them so long too actually reach the center.
They also wanted to explore it and take data from it. I get what you're saying though, but it didn't need to be THAT logical. You could use that logic with just about any movie or show.
My first interpretation was that it was Alien Lena that survived, and was reunited with her alien partner or something. But on second thought, it would lie more in the nature of the Shimmer to actually change Human Lena, nice analysis ☺️
"...ultimately tied to an alien entity that we see take on humanoid form..." As mentioned below, I rather prefer the "cancer" theory better, and calling it an 'entity' invalidates that entirely. I'm not certain the film is supposed to be fully explained, and it's better that way, actually.
In the ending scene, Kane and Lena are the real Kane and Lena. Kane just doesn't know if he is Kane because he like Lena realizes he and every other thing in the universe spawned from the shimmer. The being at the end is not an alien. It is just a replica of Lena. It attacked Lena because Lena attacked it. In other words, it did the same things Lena did because it was a replica that even had the same thoughts as her. That is how she destroyed it. She thought about self-annihilation. Even when the replica held her against the door, it did it because she felt trapped. Kane said in the video that he thought he was a man. It seems that was Kane, but actually it was Kane's replica saying what the real Kane was thinking. This movie is about evolution and evolution started originally because of the shimmer, which as stated in movie, wants nothing because it does not have a conciseness. It does not have a self. The creepy part of the movie is at that the self is an illusion. Evolution started from the shimmer billions of years ago and we are no more special than an animal, a rock, or anything else. The reason Kane doesn't think he is Kane is because he has been enlighten to know the self is an illusion.
In the book there's not only the "border" or the "shimmer". The doppleganger of the biologist, the surveyor and the anthropologist return and are found in various areas aka "last memories" areas. The surveyor and the anthropologist areas after they are captured and taken in, month later open another entrance to Area X. They never say if it's the same area or a new one but it's another portal. In the second book, the biologist's doppleganger escapes capture and once found, she randomly gets sick and in her throwup that she spewed in a tidepool, there's a bright light, a portal. So they explain there are many ways into and out of Area X. if they are still there or not is the question.
quick word of warning to anyone wanting to read to novels The movie is a VERY loose adaptation of the books. It's my opinion that the movie is a refined and superior experience than reading the books, making it one of the few instances where "the movie was better". After reading all three books I felt the story was losing direction and momentum. The poor pacing made it hard to engage in the story, the characters are shallow and difficult to relate with, and there is no clear purpose to character motivation. There is very little conflict or character development, just ALOT of internal dialogue and frustration between companions and co-workers. Basically the novel and the film are polar opposites, Where the film illustrates a terrible/beautiful isolation from the world and overcoming dangerous obstacles through improvisation and communication , the novel has characters with no names or backstories enter a land under hypnosis and basically learn nothing as they eventually die one by one. The books lack most of the elements the make a story enjoyable and is only sustained by the uniqueness of its plot and narrative. tldr; The books sucked ass, the movie was a masterpiece.
zac jenk I agree with you about the books. I'll neverunderstand why the books got such attention and acclaim. I read all three hoping it would somehow resolve in some way that made reading it worth the effort. . . . . . NOPE . . .
The first book lost me with the therapist using hypnosis to erase memories. Although, I liked how the lighthouse was described in the book. The constant mutations are described very well in the book.
I loved the movie, liked the first book a lot, thought the second one was great sometimes, ok at other times, and I just started the third. But yeah, the book and movie are very different, it's almost unfair to compare them. idk.
It wasn't Dr Ventress singing on the alien throne under the lighthouse. It was one of the clones. That's why her face is green, has a dent instead of eyes, and luminesces.
Can you guys explain the ending of Infinity War once more? Didn’t quite get it the the first time and you guys haven’t done enough Infinity War so should do more guys.
It was nothing like the book. I understand the movie is a different medium, but the book's abstract nature is what made it so amazing in the first place.
Here is how it *really ends*! The author thought of the best ending that could puzzle readers thinking of the movie adaptation that could even paralyze viewers and make an anomalous echo in the movie industry that will lead websites and TH-cam-ers scratching their heads and having hard time explaining what it meant to be- Thus- THE ULTIMATE CREATION of a writer. To create an enigma. Well, after watching too many movies I could say everything is what it is, but when it comes to this movie - I HAVE TO ADMIT - It's mind-blowing and I hadn't recovered from it, YET 10/10 in AA VFX's scale
What about this theory: The Lena clone that burns inside the lighthouse is only the part of Lena that wants to fight the shimmer. The Lena that survives is the shimmers offspring/creation and final purpose.
The song which played at the very beginning and end of the film “Helplessly Hoping” by Crosby Stills and Nash is the key to the relationship between Lena Kane and the Alien They are one person They are two alone They are three together They are for each other
It's weird that they scientists at base camp didn't already come to the conclusion that mutations were happening. All they'd have had to do was grab a quick sample of grass or place an insect in a box at the outskirts of the shimmer and then check it. They could then have built suits for the soldiers to wear similar to space suits.
Its a movie about cancer in every way. Even destroying the primary tumor cant save an organism if some cells remain intact (lena and her husband). Even the Women represent all phases typical to cancer diagnosed patients (denial, rage, shame, acceptance etc). This in mind makes this one of the most pessimistic movies Ive ever seen. Exposion actual cancer patients to this kind of content is very scary, cause it can rob them a sometimes justified sense of hope, cause alot of people can be permanently cured. This makes this movie harmful like cancer itself in true way. I dont know if thats the work of an evil genious.
Gornodd this is a very interesting point. Although I don't know that I agree that it takes away any hope. I guess it might depend on if you think Natalie Portman's character is her or the alien at the end. If it is the real her, then to me that would imply that after beating cancer you become a different person than you were before. Which is understandable. If she was the alien at the end it might imply that you become a shell of what you used to be, since the alien just mimics to try to assimilate. But in both instances it describes survival of some sort. I think having the women during all the stages of grief die could be the process of getting past each stage until you reach acceptance.
Or it's about depression and self-destruction like both the author of the book and the director of the movie have said, but you should keep being offended by everything.
There's NO evidence that any inorganic matter is ever mixed with organic compounds. We ONLY see the intermingling of organic compounds. It's remotely plausible that the refraction of the EM energy might count as "non organic matter being jumbled," but the narrator specifically referred to the intermingling of organic and inorganic matter, not matter and energy. Anyway, I think that the narrator said this because she was referring to plant and animal cells mixing and she doesn't/ the script writer doesn't recognise that plant matter is ALSO organic matter.
I think to truly understand a movie like this, it is not just having a high IQ but also trying to understand how the world we live in might be like outside the physical world we live in such as what the spiritual world could be like or completely different. Because there were aspects in the movie which pointed to ignorance which lead to bad consequences. Its about waking up to yourself and not letting the void have control over our minds. It needs deep thinking from past experiences which makes it easier but also a good intuitive intelligence helps. Then again there are parts in the movie that can be enjoyed such as making change within yourself so that you dont get defeated by yourself but if you want to think on a deeper level then you can interpret the movie in many ways which is the beauty of it kind of like the matrix
Good point. In the Lovecraft story, The Color out of Space, the meteorite leaves behind a substance, that are of colors never seen by man and is only described in the story by way of metaphors. In the real world we live in, studies of the cones and rods of both humans and animals are shown to be not the same. The only color dogs see is green, with everything else in black and white and shades of gray, while birds and butterflies see a broader spectrum of colors that humans cannot. In the Bible, Jesus used metaphors to help explain to his hearers what the KIngdom of God is like. When Paul was taken to heaven by a means by what method he wasn't sure of if it was by dream or vision, he reported to have seen and heard things he could not relate to others. For what it's worth, there are accounts of near death experiences and other types of experiences of people having been taken to heaven, who reported having seen colors not seen on earth.
No body explains this movie right, what a shame. It’s never mentioned that every team was killed except one man and every team died untill they sent a women. This is like a new psychedelic Adam and Eve. this movie goes over everyone’s head. In the bed scene they debate it god makes mistakes Kane saying god does not make mistakes Lena saying god does make mistakes. The asteroid is god or the thing god sent down. Anyhow this movie is fun to talk about
I had had same thought so glad someone else thought the same do you think the shimmer version of her kind of “swapped places with her” in the lighthouse and that maybe she lied about her ending of the story or do you think it was the same woman I don’t because their eyes both were glowing BUT she seem to remember everything and her husband didn’t and we know for a fact he was the real Husband.. would love to hear your thoughts
theres something especially irritating and obnoxious about people who admit that a film is complicated and open-ended yet present their own subjective interpretation by saying 'god i cant believe how many people are WRONG about this movie'
Thanks for the review and explanation, Looper! I just finished the film. It was great (to me). Anyway, I appreciate the validation of my thoughts. Take care!
This was an amazing film about spiritual asension and how love breaks the mirror of fear, evolving past the ego into a higher state of consciouness (my opinion)
This "break down" should have been called "state the bloody obvious". It wasn't so much a break down, as it was a butchering of a very intelligently made and excellently delivered film. The film deals with a multitude of subjects that are very nuanced and masterfully done. An exceptionally brief run-through and half-hearted summation does it no justice at all.
So yall are she really wasnt the double and the shimmer just lived on inside her genes? Honestly this kinda makes more sense. Many speculate the double escaped and was lying to save herself. But it would make more sense that she still had it in her cells, and as a biologist was well aware that it was still in her blood, so when shes asked Are you Lena? She enters that "i don't know who i am" state that Kane was in in that video and so she isnt sure for a second. Then with the hug she decides to accept the piece of the shimmer so that she can have her husband back.
No one in the movie says, “It’s about cancer,” but it’s clear within the first fifteen minutes that the premise of Garland’s movie is basically, “What if the Earth-that is, the planet itself-got cancer?” And then the movie moves forward from that premise. The “plot” may be about a biologist, Lena (Natalie Portman), who, along with fellow scientists Dr. Ventress (Jennifer Jason Leigh), Thorensen (Gina Rodriguez), Sheppard (Tuva Novotny), and Radek (Tessa Thompson), heads into The Shimmer, an unexplained phenomenon, and searching for answers. But the movie is about is cancer, and you can see that consistently throughout. We immediately get it right from Lena’s first lecture at Johns Hopkins where she talks about cell division, and how cells rapidly divide and mutate
Hold on, am i the only one who getting the story right? It's not just another aliens movie, its actually how the cancer cells act. First, a mutation happenes by external force, any surrounding cells is being mutated, then it gets false clon of the orginal cell, then any new clon became worse than the previous one untill a perfect mutant cell is being created having the same image of the original cell but deadly. So basically, the mutants cell keeps cloning untill they have the perfect deadly clon then keep multiplying untill it leads to ANNIHILATION of all body cells ... Thats my opinion as a paramedic
LockwoodE3 Best part of this film was the very beginning on the Blue -ray disc...where it has “ play-settings-scenes-extras. Went down hill right after that. 2 minutes later, reached bottom. You kiddies haven’t seen too many movies have you. Hell, Progressive insurance commercials have more content than this waste of time.
Lena and Kane are the only survivors of the shimmer. However, they no longer exist in the world they lived before entering the shimmer. In the ending Kane and Linas DNA has been fused with alien DNA as they are now possessed by the entities of extraterrestrial beings.
Thanks for this. I watched the movie very confused. I don't mind it being artistic and somewhat metaphorical, just wasn't clear what the ending really meant. The shifting irises were the part most confusing. It makes sense now. Not a happy ending. Kind of fits the crappy Pandemic we are all in.
alien life adapts, . The transmutation of native dna resulted in the various combinations of extraordinary phenomena. This spontaneous and natural evolution occurring as the invasive species colonized its new environment. AWESOME concept, stunning f/x, altered humans weird each other out, loved it!
She doesn't have a tatoo on her right hand when she's in a boat with her team ,but later in the interview she has a tattoo of infinity symbol ♾️ on her right hand...does it mean the one who is being interviewed is not the real lena?
You are mistaken. Lena does NOT survive the battle with the shimmer and that conclusion is not ambiguous. The proof is in the “infinity” tattoo on her forearm. Lena didn’t have one. “Shimmer Lena” did, you can see it on her arm right before the grenade goes off. Lena died in the fire and “Shimmer-Lena” emerged.
In a bed scene of Lena and Kane , Lena said “God make a mistake , bcuz our DNA were designed to be aging and not perfect” .. well , another lesson , humans love to complaints , but can’t accept the changes or even make the changes .
you're wrong because she's still at the tattoo from the beginning the Shimmer doesn't create tattoos on humans or their scars so the tattoo confirms that she is the real Lena unless you're saying she Drew on herself with a sharpie
+Shantelle Lavea you're right I forgot about that but still I mean she had the tattoo at the end so she still the same person she's not the same person that entered the Shimmer she's altered but she's not the cologne of herself
@@jamesthomson14 I don't think that the tattoo is evidence of that because the clone is capable of replicating that too but I'm pre sure that in the end, it was the real Lena. But obviously, she came out as a different person because of the changes her cells went through whilst in the shimmer.
This movie had like no depth. I mean. What was the point? I like movies with meanings. This had.... nothing. Just an alien coming and changing DNA. Whoa...
i saw the movie as a celebration of our destructive impulse, which gives rise to the new and destroys the old. progress cannot come without destroying what is, and it is our destructive impulse that allows radical progress.
I find it hard to believe that the filmmakers didn't even want the audience to consider the possibility that the alien entity is some form of advanced tech...what with it being metallic and all
This movie handled horror elements better than most horror movies. Btw, try playing the songs "For those that follow" or "The Alien" from the soundtrack in a dark room. Have fun! Lol
Most misleading title I guess - good job telling stuff that's obvious from watching the film. Not sure you guys caught much of the deeper meaning, but why make this video then (especially with such a bragging title)
Everything that is engulfed in the light of the shimmer prism makes all the cells of all the organisms bleed into each other and merge together. Everything is becoming one. Why? I dunno, but my advice is to do unto others as you would have them do unto you. In a way I see the shimmer as sort of a mirror. I guess the alien entities knew that the best way to rid the planet of humans and all other earthly creatures is to turn us on ourselves. Why is Lena still alive? Is that even Lena tho? Perhaps a successful embodiment of the shimmer. The extraterrestrials want this thing to spread.
I can't tell you guys that this shimmer thing isn't from or of aliens, but I was thinking the whole time the shimmer was an intelligent force that drives evolution or in other words, creates life. Also, Lena wasn't a doppelganger in the end. Her husband was. She was just becoming one with her husband literally and figuratively. Figuratively, meaning their marriage is renewed and are one flesh as said about Adam and Eve in the Bible. Maybe this leads to the ending meaning they are the new Adam and Eve for a weird and new future. The bear and the woman it ate represent this becoming of one. The deer having plant like antlers is another example. This all points to the ending being about oneness. However, the shimmer being seemed to want to destroy itself or in other words become something new. Maybe the husband was himself, but just changed in a good way. Maybe the shimmer being with the husband in the video was the one blowing himself up.
So why the hell would he be certain if it him or not, unless he is a clone, but it is possible that he is a clone of a clone, but that idea isn't so strong cuz it needs to be 1,2,4, not three. What is the difference between a clone and a human, if it is a copy that isn't perfect so it's just a alien reflection, but the humans too have mutations, or there are none mutations just alien clones.
But, if the Shimmer was one huge interconnected being, completely imploding and disintegrating as Lena’s clone burns, shouldn’t any fragments of the Shimmer IN Lena be destroyed too? It’s shown the connection persists, as “Kane” stabilizes once the Shimmer is destroyed, but again, if he’s connected to, or part of the Shimmer, shouldn’t he have disintegrated as well? And since “Kane” was in fact a product of the Shimmer, why was his body failing (until the Shimmer was destroyed). Shouldn’t he have just continued to mutate or at least been some new anomalous creation? There are just too many inconsistencies. One video claims that in the quarantine Q&A, Lena’s glass of water “mutates” after she drinks it, but after the initial water scene with “Kane” I was specifically paying close attention and didn’t notice anything. And after watching that video, I went back and rewatched the scene a couple times, and so no mutation. I think the author of the video just mistook the natural refraction that occurs with a glass of water - like when you put a straw or pencil in it, and from certain views. It looks like it’s broken in two. I did notice when they zoom in on the glass, we see a mirror reflection of her arm and not just her arm through the glass, but again, there was no mutation there - I think just a photographic choice to emphasize the changing she’d undergone (if anything meaningful at all).
What other movies should we breakdown next?
Uhm maybe the Maze runner
Predestination ...
Mother
Looper take an break
Tully!
how is this "finally explaining" the ending? you just summed up the film....
Ik I just watched it and this tells me nothing
Welcome to looper lol
Exactly, video unliked and Looper unfollowed
I went looking if someone already posted this, and here it is. This video just sums up what happened. The way I see it the writer wanted to leave it open to interpretation. The way he interpreted it might have been interesting however you're not gonna find that in this video. This is just a recap of the movie that I just watched 5 minuted ago.
Myles Thorne there is no actual known ending. Its been a while since i watched this movie but im pretty sure lena in the end scene isnt even lena. Its the alien. Meaning that the whole story and movie is being told through the alien and what we saw might not be what happened.
My interpretation was that the entire film is a metaphor for battling cancer; for facing one’s mortality. Each team member exhibits different stages: fear, denial, anger, and acceptance... And those who do survive are forever changed.
That makes sense.
No its about battling self destruction with cancer being one of those forms.
@@maxpowers4436 You're correct, it becomes even more obvious in the books.
A movie about cancer. Cool story bro.
That mutated bear scene gave me anxiety.
freak me the fuxk out
Agree especially when it mutated sheppard' voice
HEEEELLPPPPPPPPPP MEEEEEE
loved that scene, soooo frikking creepy!
Kaz Kobb tripped me tf out
Leana had the alien in her too. When it smashed her up against the wall, we saw how some of it absorbed into her skin. So you now have a man and woman with the alien species in them. It also makes sense why she was so easily able to kill the doppleganger with a grenade. It found a host in her and will continue on, just not with the same approach as with the shimmer initially.
thanks dude this makes a lot of sense
i actually thought it was mating with her
Just realized the meteor’s smoke trail is shimmering as it had already begun its effects by simple touching our atmosphere.
The shimmer is a celestial life form that has discovered how to duplicate, it cannot help duplicating matter, the being does not understand what fire is and learnt that the hard way, the being also does not know if its being deceived because its curious
I feel like the duplication device in the lighthouse was originall a way of reproduction for a hypothetical alien spiecies
Even the concept of deception is not something that exists to this life force. It's not like a living thing that has an agenda. It's just replicating and mixing genetic traits. Humans are the curious ones, so maybe it's mumicing human curiosity. It's just a thing that exists, and when we try to read a deeper meaning or look for its intentions, then maybe we are simply projecting our own intentions and agendas.
"organic and inorganic" things blend? No. That doesn't happen in the movie. Doors and rocks aren't walking around.
The tattoo copied itself
@@DeCavalcante - the infinity tattoo on her arm at the end? where did that come from? was it on him and copied to her?
@@dougmoore4653 I forget her name, but the drug addict girl had the infinity tattoo. It copied itself onto Lena...somehow. LOL
what about the glassy trees
@@gentrykoda no the tattoo came from the creepy dead soldier with moving intestines
Valkyrie said, "I am Groot!"
CoD4Disturbed shut up
YAS lol
I see what u dis there lol
😂😂😂😂
@@estevansilva1591 what happen to rossie actually??
At least one thing is explained, it took Looper 3 months to understand the ending of the movie.
Which they still did not explain
I feel like the ending (hell the entire movie) could be summed up differently. To me it's that we are cancer, we are self destructive. The movie even starts off and involves with talking about cancer. The shimmer isn't the real enemy - WE ARE. It's ridding the world of the cancer, but not just simply killing us, but giving us purpose through whatever means, even if through something horrible. (I.E. All 4 women (including her husband) had nothing to really live for, except one and that's the main character. For example the one who lost her daughter to cancer become a part of something again, the bear.) At the end I think it represents her doppleganger taking the self destructive side from her, and allowing self to be destroyed. Her husband also knew she was having an affair, and had nothing to live for, that's why he didn't come back. We only have one character make it back. What if instead of the typical evil entity making it out at end isn't to do something bad, but to create a world where humans aren't self destructive. Maybe starting with both of them, and the kids they have, and the kids that grow up to have kids etc. Also why does nobody mention the "tattoos" they suddenly all have after being in the shimmer? The ouroboros.
I kind of looked at it like they both were different people. That even though she knew it wasn't Kane in front of her, she also knew that she herself was no longer the same person. That even though her body was the one to make it out, her DNA was still changed forever and will continue to change.
why who
cancer ♋️ cancer
I think that Lena actually killed the alein version of herself, but at the end she started to become the alien because she had shared blood with the alien. So Lena is herself but also not, she is no longer human but is still Lena
Nope ... ill give you advise
Watch her arms closely when handing the grenade over and then watch her arms again when being asked questions by the scientist
@@Plard1337 the tattoo is on her left forearm in both scenes. When she hands the phosphorous grenade to alien Lena, you'll see the tattoo in its full glory on the alien's forearm, but also a slight bit of it on real Lena's forearm as well, it's just that it's on the inner side and we can see the outer side of her hand in that shot
They've shot it from that perspective on purpose, so people who find it on close inspection will know and the rest who missed it will think she didn't have the tattoo yet. This will keep the debate going between the two types of people mentioned
How did the camera man survive
If camera people can survive reality tv filming, they can survive this
camera men are immortal.
still, how did he get out?
The alien let kane kill himself. Because remember before he blew himself up he told him to find Lena
Eric Cartman because he’s not human
I like *Gomodd's* post further down (about the theme revolving around various aspects of cancer), but I had a different take (maybe, like all good truly thought provoking stories, half of a story's "meaning" comes from us and what we bring into it):
I saw the film as an alien making first contact. The Shimmer was slowly increasing it's size until it reached a being capable of intelligent communication and interaction. Until then, it would slowly "terra"form (for lack of a better word) the Earth into a mix of the alien's world and our own (ie a biological form of a universal translator, but instead of converting just speech or audio frequencies you are converting everything).
This is why the humans were sending in various groups with various permutations of group members: all male, all female, all young or old, a mix of various degrees.. to see how the Shimmer would respond. The transformation of Cain (the brother who killed Abel and was evicted from Eden) was the only survivor. The events of the movie transpire, and I interpreted it as: the alien entity made a complete connection with Portman's character, which is why she was allowed to destroy the epicenter of the Shimmer: it's mission was complete.
That mission was to allow any intelligent being on any target world it was converting the opportunity to prove it's sentience and stop the conversion from mass murder, but also to create a "middle man" to allow interaction between itself and what would be truly alien to it. Cain and Lena are essentially a new "Adam and Eve", who are a perfect mix of human and alien DNA.
I was reminded of a scene in ENDER'S GAME, when Ender was having a dream where the Alien Queen was trying to speak to him, but couldn't because it had an insect's mouth.. so instead of trying to communicate verbally, it reached out mentally/psionically. I think that the alien entity in ANNIHILATION is similar in that it is about communication beyond sounds or words, but through biology and other means.
There should be more movies like this. Ambiguous, forcing the viewer to really think. Hollywood needs to stop spoon-feeding viewers.
Watch "Come True" released this year in 2021, ambiguous isn't the Word for that film lol
While I tend to agree, I do wish there was still *an* answer. Interpretation is great and all, but at the end of the day I want to know what tf is going on.
@@christopherballard1348 I think that's the point of this movie. There isn't exactly a be all end all answer. If you think about it, it's like the movie itself. You know what's going on, but simultaneously you don't.
My ass forcing to think , this is the shittiest movie I've ever seen
People saying it's a bad movie just because they didn't understand it or it wasn't Hollywood enough for them. The same happened with Arrival. If it's action and an easy to digest plot you want go watch the Transformers franchise or something.
Wobbly Greatsword spot on.
Put Interstellar down for that too.. normal audience is to closed minded for this sort of grand storytelling
Arrival was great, but that was because the writing was actually really good. Annihilation is filled with good ideas that are written and executed terribly. Falling on cliche dialogue and horribly cliche character "development."
Comparing this film to Arrival or Interstellar is questionable.
Dan Brown,
I couldn’t agree more.
Arrival is amazing and so is Interstellar. I’ve read Annihilation and enjoyed it immensely. Then I saw this movie and walked out pissed and very disappointed. They dumbed this movie down. The book is smart and well executed, this movie, not so much. And for those who claim the people who don’t like this movie are just not smart enough to understand...bull. There were no thought provoking moments in this movie. It’s all spelled out for you and it’s very clear as to what they wanted to let the audience see. They didn’t even bother to mimic the book which is a real shame because I thought anyone who can do the thing justice would be Denis Villeneuve, he’s brilliant, but he dropped the ball on this one. That’s just my opinion. It doesn’t matter anyway. I just wanted to say my piece.
Aaah , the usual ''if you didn't understand it , you're not smart and should watch an easy movie'' ... the movie had a great idea but was horribly executed
I believe the hypothesis about the fire destroying the lighthouse is incorrect. It doesn’t coincide with the theme of the rest of the movie. It’s Lena‘s inability to want to “self destruct” that drives the being to combust. When Kane kills himself with the grenade the being is unaffected, almost passionate to carry out the mission of finding Lena when told to by Kane. However, on the other hand when Lena passes the grenade to the being she is basically refusing to self destruct, something that differs from all the others that have entered the shimmer. This desire to persevere despite all of the challenges in her life and surroundings is what allows Lena to reach the lighthouse, something her team mates and those before her lack. This refusal of self destruction is what ultimately ends the being, destroying the shimmer, allowing Lena to persevere and defy basic human biology of the human cells self destructing over time. It’s almost like the being was sent to earth and created the shimmer to try to teach humans the lesson of refusing our basic biology of self destruction. All those that entered the shimmer, or the lighthouse allowed there basic human nature to take over and died over time, slowly giving in to there natural self destruction. Lena refused to die, handing the being the grenade and choosing to persevere. The being accepted this and destroyed the lighthouse, killing its self and the shimmer. The being almost appeared to be happy to watch Lena walk out of the lighthouse, almost like it’s mission of why it was sent to earth was complete. Finally being able to destroy the lighthouse and the shimmer. Teaching it’s lesson to Lena, she still encompasses those principles of perseverance, evidenced by the shimmer in her eyes in the last scenes of the movie. Lena and the mirror of Kane will continue to live there lives with the shimmer in their eyes, embodying the beings message of perseverance and the refusal of self destruction. Possibly being immortal for the rest of time.
They had no memory of setting up camp because they were all clones of the original people who went in and probably died very early in the shimmer.
The had a chunk of missing time - that was just an indication that they were starting to undergo/feel the effects of being in the Shimmer after such a short exposure - memories are formed by physical synaptic changes and new neural pathways. What do you think causes amnesia and other memory impairment (e.g. dementia).
If they were clones, they’d have no memory prior to entering the Shimmer (like when “Kane” came home), and it would render the entire ending moot - complete with Ventress giving in and ‘disintegrating’ or assimilating or whatever they were depicting - and ESPECIALLY with the entity that was causing the Shimmer using a drop of Lena’s blood to create a clone.
If everyone got cloned as soon as they fell asleep or entered the Shimmer, there would be tons of doppelgängers coming back out or wandering around the Shimmer in fugue states. The only time clones came into the picture was when they actually made it to the lighthouse and interacted with the source of the Shimmer. I’m guessing Ventress wasn’t cloned because her DNA was already too damaged by the cancer, but that’s just a supposition - they don’t give any reason or rationale for what happened to her.
Aliens love Dubstep.
Dubstep is for pussies.
-Cable
Your so dark are you sure your not from the dc universe
More like drum & bass
Dark ambience
That wasn’t an explanation.
It was a recap. The movie events are still inexplicable
This movie was a great mindfuck,the bear scene still freaks me out. Oh and the fungal corpse scene...I kept screaming at them "WHY ARE YOU IN THE WATER AND GETTING SO CLOSE??!! EWWWWW"
After husband return, mostly he answers at Lenas questions with "I don't know".
When Lena is in quarantine she answers to the guy with the white suit questions with "I don't know".
So they are both aliens
Fax
Lol it's nothing like that 🤣🤣
i think he’s an alien. but i don’t like lena is. i’m pretty sure her real self got out.
Lena isn't exactly all alien though. Shes I believe a bit different than kane. Notice how kane killed himself but the clone is the one that left. Lena didnt do that at all. She accepted what was happening, just like josie. She didnt fight it or run from it like she was doing initially. So she is lena, the real one, but because her clone self destructed not only itself but the shimmer near the lighthouse, she is lena, but not lena. Shes something new. The same lena, but more.
"It might not happen soon, but the primal coding that sends us towards self destruction remains as an inevitability that nobody and nothing will ever fully escape"
"thanks for watching"
Lena and the rest of the team began to mutate the moment they entered The Shimmer. Notice that Alma's tattoo appears on Lena's arm, suggesting that their DNA or physical features gets mixed somehow. One of the close-ups of Lena's face during the interview is lit in such a way (and maybe digital effects?) and it appeared to me that her face now had features of the other women.
I enjoyed the film...stunning effects, terrific performances, and plenty of mental stimulation. This and the plot of the novel (have not read it) strongly remind me of a SciFi novel I read in the late 80s with a similar concept: a meteor or other phenomena results in an area becoming infected with all sort of weird flora and eventually the protagonists figure out that some alien intelligence is "terra-forming" the Earth to suit their biology. Wish I could recall that title....
Yeah but the guy in the fungal situation had the tattoo as well. The tattoo had nothing to do with that woman.
This is so late and adds nothing new
I didnt like that they should have been married!and the only 1 superbeing that kills all of the shimmers beings by eating a nade?
bernhardtsen74 I also didn't like it
I liked it!the meeting with the being was cool!but they always have a crappy love story blended in!it was trying too hard but it was fun too!
The love story is essential to the plot, its the reason she entered the shimmer in the first place. It gives her motivation. But i guess you just like cool effects and CGI in movies, thats okay too...
not just that!I kept fast forwarding a lotta times!I guess I missed most of the "Story" inside the story!
I just watched this and noticed that when Lena was in quarantine she had the same tattoo on her forearm as the lady that got killed by the bear. When they were in the boats it showed her forearm and the tattoo wasn't there.
My theory about the movie as a whole and the ending in particular:
The main theme: Suicide is not the same as self destruction. You should know as a biologist, aren't all cells meant to self-destruct?
Main concept: Fractals are effed up, yo.
So basically, what would happen if a self-perpetuating fractal fell to Earth? First, it's very nature as an ever dividing thing would cause this "refraction projection" under which patterns repeat themselves endlessly, hence the lush profusion of evolutionary growth from different models. If you go with the theory that time is just space in motion, then the time displacement makes sense as the space is refracting, time is also duplicating or refracting. But because the area of effect is so large, the change isn't quick, which is why it was months vs weeks.
What does this fractal want? Fractals got to fract, and maybe even frick. Duplication is the name of the game for a fractal, and a full duplication is the main purpose. Like a single-celled organism, this fractal is seeking for a way to divide... Which it does through invasion, like a virus, duplication, then replacement of the old cell structure with the new, as we see under the microscope. The difference is that humans have a consciousness from which to make decisions, where the fractal has full autonomy to control each cell. With their powers combined, it's invasion of the body snatchers! Dum dum daaaaaaah!
But let's get into some nice, guilty self-destruction, shall we? Each of our characters is a lost soul, damned in a way, by their own actions or histories. A husband who doesn't want to face his wife's betrayal (possibly due to the effect of his perpetual absence) and would rather take a suicide mission. A wife, wracked with guilt, grief, and self-hatred, spurring herself to find some way to reclaim what her actions destroyed. And in smaller forms of other characters, loss, abandonment, self-immolation, self-confirmation, and cancer, cancer, cancer. Our own replicating cells that go haywire and kill us, the most literal form of self-destruction there is.
While suicide is a conscious act, self-destruction, like cell replication, is not. It is the impetus of our id on our actions, the subconscious agony bleeding into the world through the decisions we make. Every person sent into the shimmer was self-destructive. Like cancer, this self destruction became literal. Loss of mind, loss of body, loss of cell structure, loss of control, loss of self. Each character had a different type of self destruction occur to them.
So why didn't the psychologist metastasize into two beings like the husband and wife duo? If you look at her profile as a permanent loner, no kids, no spouse, no friends, you can see she did not cleave to anything or anyone. The goal of the fractal being was in direct opposition of her subconscious self. She could only be destroyed if she could not propagate.
The husband wanted two things, to not remember his wife's betrayal and to start over, neither of which he could do, but which his fractal clone could - expunged of all history, guilt, and grief. So the original died, and the ideal version of himself lived.
The wife wanted to save her husband and to destroy "herself". Not suicide, but the stupidity of having the affair, of destroying something good with her own hands instead of protecting it, of all the bad decisions she made in the past. She wanted to fight herself. She "owed" her husband restitution, protection, her self-punishment. Her goal, seeing that some version of him is alive, is to save him the way she couldn't before. Once she realizes her husband is dead, then that goal transfers to the only part of him left - his fractal duplicate.
Her fractal duplicate becomes the unreasoning self she fights and ultimately destroys. She remains her original self....BUT! One fractal connected to and of itself collapses, which is why the destruction of the shimmer occurs from the original fractal as it burns. A separate, fully metastasized fractal shoot, like her clone hubby, and like her own divided cells in her body that are starting the metastization, are not connected to the main fractal colony. Wait! You say. But she isn't a full separate copy! That's true. But her hubby infected her with his fractal (lol) before she ever entered the shimmer. She is part of his fractal, which is why, despite refraction running rampant in her body, she maintains coherence. His fractal is rejecting the original fractal's control in order to obey the hubby's direction to go to Lena, which is why he is in intense organ failure, but gets better as soon as the original fractal colony collapses. After all, a cell that metastizes does not survive, it makes two new cells filled with its old bits. What do we have now? Two new cells, filled with bits of the old fractal.
But they will not need a refraction field to multiply and divide. They can has bebbies. Because I am pretty sure her ovarian cancer has been cured with fractal power.
That's my take on this movie ending.
Nice theory,, refraction, duplication of cells,it suits current situation...
How could you fail to mention the tattoo!? It appears on Lena, (while she’s in the shimmer) Anya has it as does the soldier who Kane cuts open...
biggest oath . so cp
I did NOT see that I will go back and look
@@nickgummo9472 Huh?
Fun fact : watching horror films can burn up to 200 calories, same as a half-hour walk. More calories than any other genre.
Yeah and they also act as a natural laxative.
Sheila Dey what's up with you, you are on 🔥!
Science fiction
Sheila Dey I'd say comedy... if it was actually funny that is
Interesting, so you spend 2 hours doing half hour's work...sounds like a good deal!
Simple Ending Summary >>> Kane is alien copy. Lena is alien copy. Alien copy Lena pretending to be real Lena when she tells her lies/story during Q & A. Alien copies Kane & Lena Reunite :)
This is awesome, I don't know How The Hell it failed at box office???😕😕😕
Shubham Goel Black Panther came out the same weekend.
Shubham Goel it wasn’t that good lol
Wasn't it a straight to Netflix movie?
MRLONG758 it was in theaters and on Netflix
It was too "smart" for most audiences it seems.
The only thing more horrific than the "bear" scene is the background music in this video.
Iam i the only one thought that they just should have dropped people from above with a chopper too reach the center. Why go from the outside when you can drop from above. Yes the "bubble" expands outward but how did it take them so long too actually reach the center.
They also wanted to explore it and take data from it. I get what you're saying though, but it didn't need to be THAT logical. You could use that logic with just about any movie or show.
Finally a movie reproduces Lara Crofts double in the original Tomb Raider level which scared me as a kid
This & Ex Machina are the two most iconic sci-fi films of the last decade. I've spent a long time thinking about both.
My first interpretation was that it was Alien Lena that survived, and was reunited with her alien partner or something. But on second thought, it would lie more in the nature of the Shimmer to actually change Human Lena, nice analysis ☺️
"...ultimately tied to an alien entity that we see take on humanoid form..."
As mentioned below, I rather prefer the "cancer" theory better, and calling it an 'entity' invalidates that entirely. I'm not certain the film is supposed to be fully explained, and it's better that way, actually.
I just watched it but still discovering this thing. This movie is so good want more movies like this. It was even better than
I Origins
In the ending scene, Kane and Lena are the real Kane and Lena. Kane just doesn't know if he is Kane because he like Lena realizes he and every other thing in the universe spawned from the shimmer. The being at the end is not an alien. It is just a replica of Lena. It attacked Lena because Lena attacked it. In other words, it did the same things Lena did because it was a replica that even had the same thoughts as her. That is how she destroyed it. She thought about self-annihilation. Even when the replica held her against the door, it did it because she felt trapped. Kane said in the video that he thought he was a man. It seems that was Kane, but actually it was Kane's replica saying what the real Kane was thinking. This movie is about evolution and evolution started originally because of the shimmer, which as stated in movie, wants nothing because it does not have a conciseness. It does not have a self. The creepy part of the movie is at that the self is an illusion. Evolution started from the shimmer billions of years ago and we are no more special than an animal, a rock, or anything else. The reason Kane doesn't think he is Kane is because he has been enlighten to know the self is an illusion.
Wow.
Remember the dude with the snake thing in His stomach? He had an infinite sing tatoo on hisbleft hand and so does Lena When she came out!
In the book there's not only the "border" or the "shimmer". The doppleganger of the biologist, the surveyor and the anthropologist return and are found in various areas aka "last memories" areas. The surveyor and the anthropologist areas after they are captured and taken in, month later open another entrance to Area X. They never say if it's the same area or a new one but it's another portal. In the second book, the biologist's doppleganger escapes capture and once found, she randomly gets sick and in her throwup that she spewed in a tidepool, there's a bright light, a portal. So they explain there are many ways into and out of Area X. if they are still there or not is the question.
The movie is not about destruction. She even said it in the movie. It's about change.
quick word of warning to anyone wanting to read to novels
The movie is a VERY loose adaptation of the books. It's my opinion that the movie is a refined and superior experience than reading the books, making it one of the few instances where "the movie was better". After reading all three books I felt the story was losing direction and momentum. The poor pacing made it hard to engage in the story, the characters are shallow and difficult to relate with, and there is no clear purpose to character motivation. There is very little conflict or character development, just ALOT of internal dialogue and frustration between companions and co-workers. Basically the novel and the film are polar opposites, Where the film illustrates a terrible/beautiful isolation from the world and overcoming dangerous obstacles through improvisation and communication , the novel has characters with no names or backstories enter a land under hypnosis and basically learn nothing as they eventually die one by one. The books lack most of the elements the make a story enjoyable and is only sustained by the uniqueness of its plot and narrative.
tldr; The books sucked ass, the movie was a masterpiece.
zac jenk I agree with you about the books. I'll neverunderstand why the books got such attention and acclaim. I read all three hoping it would somehow resolve in some way that made reading it worth the effort. . . . . . NOPE . . .
I personally think the first book was better than the movie (though I liked the movie, too), but I didn't care for the second or third books.
The first book lost me with the therapist using hypnosis to erase memories.
Although, I liked how the lighthouse was described in the book. The constant mutations are described very well in the book.
I loved the movie, liked the first book a lot, thought the second one was great sometimes, ok at other times, and I just started the third. But yeah, the book and movie are very different, it's almost unfair to compare them. idk.
Thanks for the heads up! Gonna skip the books in that case.
It wasn't Dr Ventress singing on the alien throne under the lighthouse. It was one of the clones. That's why her face is green, has a dent instead of eyes, and luminesces.
Yeah it was a clone or maybe the shimmer took over I wish they could tell us more lol
Can you guys explain the ending of Infinity War once more? Didn’t quite get it the the first time and you guys haven’t done enough Infinity War so should do more guys.
It was nothing like the book. I understand the movie is a different medium, but the book's abstract nature is what made it so amazing in the first place.
I already knew all of this! You just resumed the movie...
Vomitus Americus - yes. It means to begin again:D
Sarey Kim No it doesn’t. It means to continue towards something “again”
All Alone - ouu im sry. I didn’t realize some words werent allowed to have multiple definitions.
Sarey Kim They are but what you said wasn’t one of them
All Alone - ahh. my apologies for the mix-up.
Here is how it *really ends*! The author thought of the best ending that could puzzle readers thinking of the movie adaptation that could even paralyze viewers and make an anomalous echo in the movie industry that will lead websites and TH-cam-ers scratching their heads and having hard time explaining what it meant to be- Thus- THE ULTIMATE CREATION of a writer. To create an enigma. Well, after watching too many movies I could say everything is what it is, but when it comes to this movie - I HAVE TO ADMIT - It's mind-blowing and I hadn't recovered from it, YET 10/10 in AA VFX's scale
youre fuckin high buddy
Calm down, pal. You’re off your meds.
Perfect response ... I’m recovering too, but there is so much to unpack.
AA VFX it really was a good film
I think you haven't watched Predestination
The sound track to this film is amazing
What about this theory: The Lena clone that burns inside the lighthouse is only the part of Lena that wants to fight the shimmer. The Lena that survives is the shimmers offspring/creation and final purpose.
The song which played at the very beginning and end of the film “Helplessly Hoping” by Crosby Stills and Nash is the key to the relationship between Lena Kane and the Alien
They are one person
They are two alone
They are three together
They are for each other
It's weird that they scientists at base camp didn't already come to the conclusion that mutations were happening. All they'd have had to do was grab a quick sample of grass or place an insect in a box at the outskirts of the shimmer and then check it. They could then have built suits for the soldiers to wear similar to space suits.
Its a movie about cancer in every way. Even destroying the primary tumor cant save an organism if some cells remain intact (lena and her husband). Even the Women represent all phases typical to cancer diagnosed patients (denial, rage, shame, acceptance etc). This in mind makes this one of the most pessimistic movies Ive ever seen. Exposion actual cancer patients to this kind of content is very scary, cause it can rob them a sometimes justified sense of hope, cause alot of people can be permanently cured. This makes this movie harmful like cancer itself in true way. I dont know if thats the work of an evil genious.
Gornodd this is a very interesting point. Although I don't know that I agree that it takes away any hope. I guess it might depend on if you think Natalie Portman's character is her or the alien at the end. If it is the real her, then to me that would imply that after beating cancer you become a different person than you were before. Which is understandable. If she was the alien at the end it might imply that you become a shell of what you used to be, since the alien just mimics to try to assimilate. But in both instances it describes survival of some sort. I think having the women during all the stages of grief die could be the process of getting past each stage until you reach acceptance.
Gornodd. Makes sense! I like your prospective.
what you smoking ? haha
To miss quote agent Smith from the Matrix...
Humanity is a cancer.
Or it's about depression and self-destruction like both the author of the book and the director of the movie have said, but you should keep being offended by everything.
It’s basically part Lem’s Solaris part Tarkovsky’s Stalker which in turn is based on Roadside Picnic by Strugatsky brothers
There's NO evidence that any inorganic matter is ever mixed with organic compounds. We ONLY see the intermingling of organic compounds.
It's remotely plausible that the refraction of the EM energy might count as "non organic matter being jumbled," but the narrator specifically referred to the intermingling of organic and inorganic matter, not matter and energy.
Anyway, I think that the narrator said this because she was referring to plant and animal cells mixing and she doesn't/ the script writer doesn't recognise that plant matter is ALSO organic matter.
I think to truly understand a movie like this, it is not just having a high IQ but also trying to understand how the world we live in might be like outside the physical world we live in such as what the spiritual world could be like or completely different. Because there were aspects in the movie which pointed to ignorance which lead to bad consequences. Its about waking up to yourself and not letting the void have control over our minds. It needs deep thinking from past experiences which makes it easier but also a good intuitive intelligence helps. Then again there are parts in the movie that can be enjoyed such as making change within yourself so that you dont get defeated by yourself but if you want to think on a deeper level then you can interpret the movie in many ways which is the beauty of it kind of like the matrix
Good point. In the Lovecraft story, The Color out of Space, the meteorite leaves behind a substance, that are of colors never seen by man and is only described in the story by way of metaphors. In the real world we live in, studies of the cones and rods of both humans and animals are shown to be not the same. The only color dogs see is green, with everything else in black and white and shades of gray, while birds and butterflies see a broader spectrum of colors that humans cannot. In the Bible, Jesus used metaphors to help explain to his hearers what the KIngdom of God is like. When Paul was taken to heaven by a means by what method he wasn't sure of if it was by dream or vision, he reported to have seen and heard things he could not relate to others. For what it's worth, there are accounts of near death experiences and other types of experiences of people having been taken to heaven, who reported having seen colors not seen on earth.
No body explains this movie right, what a shame.
It’s never mentioned that every team was killed except one man and every team died untill they sent a women. This is like a new psychedelic Adam and Eve.
this movie goes over everyone’s head.
In the bed scene they debate it god makes mistakes Kane saying god does not make mistakes Lena saying god does make mistakes. The asteroid is god or the thing god sent down.
Anyhow this movie is fun to talk about
I never thought of that. That's a pretty cool point and makes sense.
I had had same thought so glad someone else thought the same do you think the shimmer version of her kind of “swapped places with her” in the lighthouse and that maybe she lied about her ending of the story or do you think it was the same woman I don’t because their eyes both were glowing BUT she seem to remember everything and her husband didn’t and we know for a fact he was the real Husband.. would love to hear your thoughts
Question Everything thats the best explanation
theres something especially irritating and obnoxious about people who admit that a film is complicated and open-ended yet present their own subjective interpretation by saying 'god i cant believe how many people are WRONG about this movie'
Thanks for the review and explanation, Looper! I just finished the film. It was great (to me). Anyway, I appreciate the validation of my thoughts. Take care!
Benedict Wong reminded me a lot of his performance as Alex Yu from Prey in this.
Definitely.
This was an amazing film about spiritual asension and how love breaks the mirror of fear, evolving past the ego into a higher state of consciouness (my opinion)
I think lena is a doppelganger from the moment they woke up in camp, and yet again, after the scene in which her friends turned into a tree.
That's not true at all.
Those trees were the other people that went in prior to them going in.
Even though I understood the movie completely, your explanation was really good! Good job
This entire movie set off my fight or flight response
Scene with bear...i can watch this again and again...i feel like addicted to the scene
This "break down" should have been called "state the bloody obvious".
It wasn't so much a break down, as it was a butchering of a very intelligently made and excellently delivered film. The film deals with a multitude of subjects that are very nuanced and masterfully done. An exceptionally brief run-through and half-hearted summation does it no justice at all.
Going in the shimmer is a average weekend for me
So yall are she really wasnt the double and the shimmer just lived on inside her genes? Honestly this kinda makes more sense. Many speculate the double escaped and was lying to save herself. But it would make more sense that she still had it in her cells, and as a biologist was well aware that it was still in her blood, so when shes asked Are you Lena? She enters that "i don't know who i am" state that Kane was in in that video and so she isnt sure for a second. Then with the hug she decides to accept the piece of the shimmer so that she can have her husband back.
No one in the movie says, “It’s about cancer,” but it’s clear within the first fifteen minutes that the premise of Garland’s movie is basically, “What if the Earth-that is, the planet itself-got cancer?” And then the movie moves forward from that premise. The “plot” may be about a biologist, Lena (Natalie Portman), who, along with fellow scientists Dr. Ventress (Jennifer Jason Leigh), Thorensen (Gina Rodriguez), Sheppard (Tuva Novotny), and Radek (Tessa Thompson), heads into The Shimmer, an unexplained phenomenon, and searching for answers. But the movie is about is cancer, and you can see that consistently throughout.
We immediately get it right from Lena’s first lecture at Johns Hopkins where she talks about cell division, and how cells rapidly divide and mutate
Hold on, am i the only one who getting the story right?
It's not just another aliens movie, its actually how the cancer cells act. First, a mutation happenes by external force, any surrounding cells is being mutated, then it gets false clon of the orginal cell, then any new clon became worse than the previous one untill a perfect mutant cell is being created having the same image of the original cell but deadly. So basically, the mutants cell keeps cloning untill they have the perfect deadly clon then keep multiplying untill it leads to ANNIHILATION of all body cells ... Thats my opinion as a paramedic
All I heard was celestial. Therefore, we can conclude the Shimmer is Peter Quill's dad. Prequel to Guardians of the Galaxy
I adore this film. The book is so mysterious and the movie is just about perfect to me :)
Haven't read the book but the movie was 💗
The movie was so good
LockwoodE3 Best part of this film was the very beginning on the Blue -ray disc...where it has “ play-settings-scenes-extras. Went down hill right after that. 2 minutes later, reached bottom. You kiddies haven’t seen too many movies have you. Hell, Progressive insurance commercials have more content than this waste of time.
@@dancindavey1515 be quiet. We know you cant understand the artistic aspect of this movie so you feel the need to write it off as shitty.
@@chefboiardeeznutz9881 You’re right. I have no artistic specificity. But I do know crap when I smell it. Or in this case…watch it.
Lena and Kane are the only survivors of the shimmer. However, they no longer exist in the world they lived before entering the shimmer. In the ending Kane and Linas DNA has been fused with alien DNA as they are now possessed by the entities of extraterrestrial beings.
I was waiting for this video.
Thanks for this. I watched the movie very confused. I don't mind it being artistic and somewhat metaphorical, just wasn't clear what the ending really meant. The shifting irises were the part most confusing. It makes sense now. Not a happy ending. Kind of fits the crappy Pandemic we are all in.
Her ¹st give away was that her hands mirrored in reverse after she took a sip. Not her eyes only, as her ²nd give away
The Looper picture is the same image as on Lenas arm
The video fits your channel and logo.
The moral of the story.
Don't cheat while ur husband is worked!
alien life adapts, . The transmutation of native dna resulted in the various combinations of extraordinary phenomena. This spontaneous and natural evolution occurring as the invasive species colonized its new environment. AWESOME concept, stunning f/x, altered humans weird each other out, loved it!
But when she says they didn't need to come back, that she lied to get to the lighthouse, that she needed to come back for something
She doesn't have a tatoo on her right hand when she's in a boat with her team ,but later in the interview she has a tattoo of infinity symbol ♾️ on her right hand...does it mean the one who is being interviewed is not the real lena?
Good explanation- thanks.
Good job!🎉
You are mistaken. Lena does NOT survive the battle with the shimmer and that conclusion is not ambiguous. The proof is in the “infinity” tattoo on her forearm. Lena didn’t have one. “Shimmer Lena” did, you can see it on her arm right before the grenade goes off. Lena died in the fire and “Shimmer-Lena” emerged.
"ENDING FINALLY EXPLAINED"
then proceed to just explain the whole movie. 🤡🤡🤡
In a bed scene of Lena and Kane , Lena said “God make a mistake , bcuz our DNA were designed to be aging and not perfect” .. well , another lesson , humans love to complaints , but can’t accept the changes or even make the changes .
You still don't find Lena to be a very sympathetic character and she's the only to live...
The story "Lena" tells is a lie. The real Lena is dead. They are both aliens at the end.
you're wrong because she's still at the tattoo from the beginning the Shimmer doesn't create tattoos on humans or their scars so the tattoo confirms that she is the real Lena unless you're saying she Drew on herself with a sharpie
@@jamesthomson14 actually the bruise she got from the crocodile turned into the tattoo
+Shantelle Lavea you're right I forgot about that but still I mean she had the tattoo at the end so she still the same person she's not the same person that entered the Shimmer she's altered but she's not the cologne of herself
@@jamesthomson14 I don't think that the tattoo is evidence of that because the clone is capable of replicating that too but I'm pre sure that in the end, it was the real Lena. But obviously, she came out as a different person because of the changes her cells went through whilst in the shimmer.
Exactly...i have the same intuition
The Lighthouse scene reminded me a little of 2001: A Space Odyssey's ending. A little, mind you.
This is just a summary of the movie. It doesn't explain the unanswered questions in the film.
This movie had like no depth. I mean. What was the point? I like movies with meanings. This had.... nothing. Just an alien coming and changing DNA. Whoa...
i saw the movie as a celebration of our destructive impulse, which gives rise to the new and destroys the old. progress cannot come without destroying what is, and it is our destructive impulse that allows radical progress.
I find it hard to believe that the filmmakers didn't even want the audience to consider the possibility that the alien entity is some form of advanced tech...what with it being metallic and all
This movie handled horror elements better than most horror movies.
Btw, try playing the songs "For those that follow" or "The Alien" from the soundtrack in a dark room. Have fun! Lol
Most misleading title I guess - good job telling stuff that's obvious from watching the film. Not sure you guys caught much of the deeper meaning, but why make this video then (especially with such a bragging title)
Everything that is engulfed in the light of the shimmer prism makes all the cells of all the organisms bleed into each other and merge together. Everything is becoming one. Why? I dunno, but my advice is to do unto others as you would have them do unto you. In a way I see the shimmer as sort of a mirror. I guess the alien entities knew that the best way to rid the planet of humans and all other earthly creatures is to turn us on ourselves. Why is Lena still alive? Is that even Lena tho? Perhaps a successful embodiment of the shimmer. The extraterrestrials want this thing to spread.
I can't tell you guys that this shimmer thing isn't from or of aliens, but I was thinking the whole time the shimmer was an intelligent force that drives evolution or in other words, creates life. Also, Lena wasn't a doppelganger in the end. Her husband was. She was just becoming one with her husband literally and figuratively. Figuratively, meaning their marriage is renewed and are one flesh as said about Adam and Eve in the Bible. Maybe this leads to the ending meaning they are the new Adam and Eve for a weird and new future. The bear and the woman it ate represent this becoming of one. The deer having plant like antlers is another example. This all points to the ending being about oneness. However, the shimmer being seemed to want to destroy itself or in other words become something new. Maybe the husband was himself, but just changed in a good way. Maybe the shimmer being with the husband in the video was the one blowing himself up.
So why the hell would he be certain if it him or not, unless he is a clone, but it is possible that he is a clone of a clone, but that idea isn't so strong cuz it needs to be 1,2,4, not three. What is the difference between a clone and a human, if it is a copy that isn't perfect so it's just a alien reflection, but the humans too have mutations, or there are none mutations just alien clones.
The looper icon was actually Ouroboros :O
But, if the Shimmer was one huge interconnected being, completely imploding and disintegrating as Lena’s clone burns, shouldn’t any fragments of the Shimmer IN Lena be destroyed too?
It’s shown the connection persists, as “Kane” stabilizes once the Shimmer is destroyed, but again, if he’s connected to, or part of the Shimmer, shouldn’t he have disintegrated as well? And since “Kane” was in fact a product of the Shimmer, why was his body failing (until the Shimmer was destroyed). Shouldn’t he have just continued to mutate or at least been some new anomalous creation? There are just too many inconsistencies.
One video claims that in the quarantine Q&A, Lena’s glass of water “mutates” after she drinks it, but after the initial water scene with “Kane” I was specifically paying close attention and didn’t notice anything. And after watching that video, I went back and rewatched the scene a couple times, and so no mutation. I think the author of the video just mistook the natural refraction that occurs with a glass of water - like when you put a straw or pencil in it, and from certain views. It looks like it’s broken in two. I did notice when they zoom in on the glass, we see a mirror reflection of her arm and not just her arm through the glass, but again, there was no mutation there - I think just a photographic choice to emphasize the changing she’d undergone (if anything meaningful at all).