My Favorite Movie: 'Arrival'

When 12 mysterious spacecraft arrive to Earth in the 2016 film Arrival, they bring with them an eerie question: why are they here?  To answer that question, the U.S. military enlists the help of a top linguist, played by Amy Adams, who is tasked with deciphering the extraterrestrial’s language. Her mission is backdropped by escalating threats of war and a particularly fraught distinction: the difference between the translations of “weapon” and “tool.” The film, based on Ted Chiang’s Story of Your Life, is a compelling exploration of language, reality, (mis)communication, and how we understand worlds far beyond our own. 

Join Future Tense on May 13 to watch and discuss the film with Shane Harris and Katherine Mangu-Ward. The event is free and open to the public, and it will be celebrated alongside the Space Intersections symposium, organized by ASU’s Interplanetary Initiative and led by Jack Traphagan.

Featuring:

Katherine Mangu-Ward, @kmanguward
Editor-in-Chief, Reason

Shane Harris, @shaneharris
Intelligence and National Security Reporter, The Washington Post

Jack Traphagan
Visiting Scholar, ASU Interplanetary Initiative