ANNIHILATION

Based on Jeff VanderMeer's first book of the Southern Reach Trilogy. A team of four women set out into a region known as Area X. After Lena's (Natalie Portman) soldier husband vanished a year ago, he resurfaces, afflicted with unexplained memory loss, resembling little of the man he used to be. Determined to find answers, she puts her name forward for an expedition into the ‘environmental disaster zone’ from which her husband recently returned. Located somewhere along the New England coastline, it's under Army quarantine following a meteorite hit. Surrounded by a kaleidoscopic protective bubble known as 'The Shimmer', the world within the blast zone is regressing genetically and mutating. Plants, inanimate objects and human organic material is genetically re-sequencing into some seriously creepy animal-human hybrids and bizarre structures.

Portman is reliably intense and lends a solid emotional base to the drama. She's helped along on her mission by a team of soldiers and scientists featuring Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gina Rodriguez, Tessa Thompson and Tuva Novotny. All turn in terrific performances. There are some seriously astonishing effects as well as profoundly creepy moments of horror - so while not for everyone, it’s a solidly written and engagingly intelligent rendering of VanderMeer's book. Science fiction this good does not come along often, usually it takes a filmmaker with fixed resolve and a strong vision, Garland has shown himself to be such a filmmaker and his talent is undeniable.

Due to 'test screenings', producer David Ellison lost faith in the film and became concerned that the it was "too intellectual" and "too complicated". He demanded changes to make it appeal to a wider audience, including making Portman's character more sympathetic and changing the ending. Producer Scott Rudin sided with Garland in his desire to not alter the film. Rudin had final cut.

Due to these clashes between Rudin and Ellison, and thanks to a shift in Paramount's leadership, a deal was struck with Netflix - where they would handle international distribution. According to this deal, Paramount will release theatrically in the US and China, while Netflix will stream the film in other territories, three weeks later. 

This kind of deal does sound a shift in the way studios treat 'risky' ventures. If the top brass doubt a films ability to open wide and conquer box office, the can offload it to Netflix where it still finds an audience and is a value add for the streaming giant because their audience perceives it as just more content grist for the mill. Either way, it's a shame Australian audiences won't get to see this stunning film in a cinema.

JARROD WALKER