The Arrival (1996)

The Arrival (1996) – A SETI researcher finds evidence of life outside our solar system, only to discover that there’s a threat much closer to hand.

Directed by David Twohy                        Starring Charlie Sheen, Ron Silver, Richard Schiff,
                                                                                       Teri Polo, Lindsey Crouse

Why I Liked It – It’s silly fun until it collapses at the very end.

The search for extraterrestrial life (SETI) is the core of a massive portion of science fiction.  Are we alone in the universe?  The other side of that question is-do we want to be alone?  Those other lifeforms may be cute like ET or terrifying like Predator.  If you want a really terrifying possibility, take a look at Damon Knight’s classic short story “To Serve Man”.  SETI is a scientific project that comes with a calculated risk attached.

Here, Charlie Sheen plays a radioastronomer, scanning the stars for signs of other life “out there”.  Like the real SETI, the project isn’t considered glamorous enough and constantly struggles for respect and funding.  When he finds a signal that probably comes from an intelligent source (rather than all the random noise found in space), it leads him into a complex plot against humanity.

The central concern of the plot is climate change.  Given that the movie is over two decades old, it looks prescient now.  Sadly, it doesn’t live up to that flying start.

The basic story is fine, and most of the movie is acceptable.  It’s silly and predictable, but a good weekend-curled-up-the-couch kind of movie. The problem is that the closer you get to the end of the movie, the more the wheels wobble and finally fall off.  Sheen’s acting becomes more forced until he is reduced to wild eye-rolling and bellowing.  The ending is just…awful.  “The Arrival” almost squeaked through to a low-grade three-star rating, but the ending took it’s knees out from under it.

Interesting note for “West Wing” fans, there are three actors with substantial roles in that series on display here.  Richard Schiff (Toby Ziegler), Ron Silver (Bruno Gianelli), and Teri Polo (Helen Santos).  All of them are more than adequate here.
 
Rating – ** Not Impressed