Arrival — The must-see of the year, even if you don't really like sci-fi — 10*/10

• Overall: Perfect. Very novel. A masterpiece by Denis Villeneuve.
• Who is it for? A must see. It's a sci-fi like you've never seen.
• Synopsis & information: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2543164/
• Known actors: Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner and Forest Whitaker.
• Style: Introspective realistic sci-fi, but it's so much more.
• Pacing: Amazing. This is one of its greatest strengths.
• Intro: Great, especially once you understand the ending.
• Story: Mostly tense with unreal or introspective moments incredibly done. It transports you somewhere completely different. The real world fades to something barely known and you live again. Plus, it has a very strong sentimental dimension to it. And the mood... the mood is incredible, thick enough to hack at with a machete and sharp enough to shave.
• Ending: Things get into focus and the film bloom. It's as if a beautiful butterfly would morph into something even more beautiful.
• Dialogs: Always full of meaning.
• Characters: This is not a character movie, so they barely have any importance. Except for the main one, the others are rather simple, but you don't get to spend enough time with any of them to notice, so everything is fine.
• Acting: Excellent. Can't ask for more.
• Visuals: Astounding. Masterful.
• Special Effects: Perfect.
• Camera Work: Riveting choices. Lots of thought went into it and it shows.
• Score: Very reminiscent of 2001. Not so much the score itself, I find it much better, but the way it is built and used.
• Afterthoughts: It's one of those movies that you never forget.