Vivarium, movie (2019) - Film review by Kadmon

Vivarium, movie (2019) - Watch the trailer on YouTube
video © Fantastic Films & Frakas Productions & Pingpong Film

Article updated: 2023.05.09

The Vivarium (2019) is a contemporary fantasy mystery / drama film. The movie was reviewed by Kadmon.

Product: Vivarium (2019)

Original title: Vivarium

Series: -

Setting: contemporary fantasy Earth

Product type: Film, Genre: contemporary fantasy mystery / drama, Style: fantasy, contemporary fantasy, supernatural, mystery, drama

Release: Premiere: 2019.05.18 (Cannes International Critics' Week), Released: 2020.03.11

Watched: very recent (2020.04), first time

Rating: Average (2 out of 3 points), Enjoyment: Weak (1 out of 3 points)

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This is my review of Vivarium, a contemporary fantasy mystery / drama movie from 2019. It's about a young couple trying to bring up a baby given to them under mysterious circumstances. The film looks nice, the actors are good, and there are a couple of interesting scenes. I recommend the movie to fans of the genre.

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Vivarium, movie (2019)
image © Fantastic Films & Frakas Productions & Pingpong Film

Review (spoiler-free) - Vivarium film (2019)

I didn't know much about Vivarium, but after a couple of recommendations, I though I'd give it a try. I don't remember watching the trailer, but I'm sure I've seen some scenes in channels about movies.

The Vivarium film is about a young couple trying to bring up a baby given to them under mysterious circumstances. They are forced to stay and bring up the child, while they try to get out of the situation.

Vivarium has a very interesting concept, it has good scenes, but overall, it's too long for the content within. Visually it's very nice. The characters are a little bland, but the actors are good, and get the most out of them.

The music is okay, it's fitting the theme.

Vivarium is a watchable contemporary fantasy mystery / drama, that fans of the genre might enjoy.

My experience

As you can probably guess from my review, I didn't particularly enjoy the Vivarium film. I was interested in the slow setup, but after 30 minutes I started to feel that the movie is dragging, at 45 minutes I started to feel bored. I watched the movie until the end, because I hoped there will be a twist, and the movie will become more interesting, but it didn't happen. My main problem is that beyond the basic concept, the plot of the Vivarium film doesn't go anywhere, and the story is uninteresting, making the film pointless.

Rating: Average (2 out of 3 points). Vivarium is watchable.

Enjoyment: Bad (1 out of 3 points). I didn't like the film.

Rewatchability: I think that if you liked the film for first viewing, you'll like it for the visuals and atmosphere, not for the story. So, you'll probably like to watch Vivarium more than once.

Chance of watching it again: None. There's nothing in the Vivarium film for me that would make watching it again worthwhile.

Chance of watching a sequel: Probably. I'd be interested where would they go with the story.

Vivarium, movie (2019)
image © Fantastic Films & Frakas Productions & Pingpong Film

Will you enjoy this?

I don't think anyone would think that Vivarium film is fun, but I suppose there are people who would feel it worthwhile to watch it.

If you are young, I don't think you could really project yourself into the main characters, thus leaving the movie less of an immersive experience. It could give you some ideas about how it feels to be a parent.

If you are absolutely naive, or an extra-terrestrial, this movie might shed light on the life of ordinary people, so you might enjoy it. However, there are plenty of better films to do that.

If you have a child, you probably already know how life works, so the Vivarium film can't really show you anything new.

The only audience that I think really should watch this film, are those people who are planning to have a baby. After you decide that you'd like to start your "baby project", watch Vivarium. If the would-be parents still feel that you are up to the task after watching the Vivarium movie, they'll be okay with a kid. Or at least they had been warned. Even if they had a child a while ago, and now they think that they are open to have another one, watching this might help them remember the first couple of years, as time can make them forget the worst, and they might remember only the best parts.

Do not show this film to any women expecting a baby, because the depressing nature of the story, combined with the theme of motherhood, might switch her mood to depressed due to the hormones. And also, I don't think it's useful to show the Vivarium movie to anyone who has a small child, and cannot escape from the reality that comes with that.

Watching for plot points

If you are interested in contemporary fantasy mystery stories, I think it's worth watching the Vivarium movie for the plot points.

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Vivarium, movie (2019)
image © Fantastic Films & Frakas Productions & Pingpong Film

Review with spoilers - Vivarium movie (2019)

I like the idea, the actors, the cinematography, but the running time was too long for me.

It was nice to see the relationship of the couple falling apart due to pressure and lack of stimulation.

The ending of the Vivarium movie - everybody dies - might have been a shocking twist ending 50 years ago, but now I don't consider it interesting. And that's the only twist in the film, so you wait the whole time, hoping that the creators can get creative, and come up with an ending that will surprise you, or shock you, but they just tease you with the promise of a good story.

Being depressive and boring is not a good combination for a film.

Promise of the first scene

We see a little cuckoo in a nest, handling things like cuckoos usually do. I have actually no idea what does this mean for the rest of the movie.

Execution: It was part of the theme for the movie, but I was only able to understand it partway into the story.

Vivarium, movie (2019)
image © Fantastic Films & Frakas Productions & Pingpong Film

Plot summary / Synopsis

The movie starts by trying to hammer the allegory of the story into the viewer - we see a baby bird that pushes the other baby birds out of a nest, then grow larger than the parents that try to feed it. It's a cuckoo, but if you don't know already what a cuckoo is, you won't be told. Although it is mentioned a bit later that behaving like that is not cruelty for them, it is their nature.

A young couple (Jesse Eisenberg as Tom, and Imogen Poots as Gemma) is looking for a new home. They meet a strange estate agent (Jonathan Aris as Martin), who lead them to a suburban development (Yonder). After showing around a house, the agent vanishes. The couple try to leave the place, but no matter how long they drive, they always get back to their starting point. They realise that the place is endless. When the fuel runs out of their car, they get into the house to sleep. Next day they receive a box full of consumer goods. They try to burn down the house, but the building gets rebuilt.

Next day they receive a child (Côme Thiry, Senan Jennings, and Éanna Hardwicke as the boy) in the box, with a note that they will be released when the child is brought up. They keep the kid fed, they care for him, although neither of them love the kid. The kid try to observe and mimic them. The unintentional dad starts digging a hole in the backyard, and keep doing that all day long. The couple starts to feel distanced. The man starts to feel ill, get promised to be released, then he dies. Then some time later, the woman also dies.

The kid, now a grown man, goes back to the city, and takes the place of the previous real estate agent, who now dies to give way to the new generation.

The setting

The story of Vivarium starts on contemporary Earth, probably somewhere in the USA.

Yonder

Then the main characters get into an enclosed space (pocket dimension?) that has an artificial sky, and if you go forward far enough, you reach your starting point, although the place looks totally flat. The dead bodies of the previous foster parents are buried in the ground. The destruction on the buildings can be repaired easily by the creatures. I assume this is done personally, because at the end we see that the now grown up kid repairs the changes on the house by hand, and that suggests to me that the building doesn't have the ability to reset or regenerate. The sky is either an artificial dome with projected clouds and a moving sun, or it has fixed patches of clouds in the air.

The creatures of Vivarium

The creatures of Vivarium look like normal humans, but they have a strange sack in their necks they can inflate to create inhuman sounds. From the looks they are either mutant humans, evolved on a parallel path, or creatures evolved to mimic the outlook of humans, or possibly these are hybrid aliens, created by some kind of extra-terrestrial or super-natural entity. None of this is explained in the movie. Because it seems like their only goal in life is to take over their predecessor in the real estate business, I'd assume they are not technologically advanced extra-terrestrials, but some kind of mimicking creatures, with supernatural abilities. Otherwise I don't think a spacefaring species would choose their main goal in life to be real estate agents. Unless, of course, the creatures we see are just puppets in the hands of the mastermind species.

The creature don't seem to be able to use imagination, and do not dream. They grow up quickly, in a couple of months, the kid grows to look like a 7-10 year old human, and he matures in about a year after the pair got him.

There are creatures with advanced technology or supernatural abilities to control this space, and they use it to have their children brought up by abducted parents, until they grow up to take the place of their predecessor (possibly their parent?). The creatures have their own written language (although they use books like humans) and they use strange visuals for learning or for entertainment purposes. The creature kid doesn't always know how to communicate his needs, but tries his best to show that he has needs to be fulfilled, by screaming. The creatures need humans to show their kids how to act normally, how to blend in the human society.

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Vivarium, movie (2019)
image © Fantastic Films & Frakas Productions & Pingpong Film

Analysis of the story - Vivarium film (2019)

I liked the basic concept of the Vivarium film.

The message of the story

I'm not sure about the intended message in the Vivarium film. For me, it's about how living a traditional life (dad working day and night, mom keeping the house and caring for the child) is pointless, and destroys the parents. So, you basically get a 90 minute long version of the phrase "life sucks, then you die", in case you were not aware of that.

The Vivarium movie, however, focuses on the negative aspects of being a parent, only shows the low points. There are only a couple of fleeting moments when the woman is being amused by the kid, even though the kid itself doesn't seem to be bad, he's just strange.

The structure of the story

The scenes of the Vivarium movie are played in sequence. It has the usual arc of the dramatic structure, but the end loops back to the beginning, showing that the events play out in a cycle.

Things I liked

• I like the basic concept of using abducted humans to bring up the new generation of creatures.
• The visuals are great.
• The actors were a good choice.
• The place looks nice.
• The day to day happenings with the kid (waking up to the kid, feeding him, trying to stop him watching tv, getting him to sleep) really evoke the feeling of being a parent.
• The scene when the kid tries to imitate his alien mentor is creepy.

Problematic elements

Unengaging characters: One of the major problems was that the characters are bland, and we don't really get to know them. It was very hard for me to feel interested in their story.

Unanswered questions

A lot of questions remained unanswered about the situation, the place, the creatures, but as they were intentionally left out, I think it's okay.

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Possibilities of improvement

• Cutting the cuckoo sequence: I understand why they stuffed it into the beginning, but it doesn't really give information for those who don't know how a cuckoo works, and the analogy doesn't seem to work the same with the kid. The kid is not hurting the children of the parents, and he doesn't leave them to live their life when he is grown up. The only parallel is that he is brought up by foster parents, and that he grows to be more powerful than they are.

How it could have been better?

As I've written earlier in my review, there are major problems of the Vivarium movie. It should have been shorter. Or include more interesting elements, possibly plot twists.

Building more interesting characters could have been another way to improve the story. The couple is boring, they don't have anything exceptional, or any kinds of conflicts. They are just two people who happen to live together, without anything else in common.

If they had included more information about the creatures, the other people trapped in the place, it might have been a good addition.

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How does it compare to the other works of the creators?

I haven't seen any of the previous films writers (Garret Shanley and Lorcan Finnegan). This movie was a little confusing, but it had an interesting concept, so I'm looking forward to see their further movies.

I haven't seen other movies of the director (Lorcan Finnegan), but the direction of Vivarium was okay.

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Vivarium, movie (2019)
image © Fantastic Films & Frakas Productions & Pingpong Film

Uses for the film - Vivarium movie (2019)

Plot

• Set in a contemporary fantasy setting.
• A creature captures members of another species (humans) to bring up its offspring.

Scenes

• The chasing scene near the end looks interesting. It could be used to depict some kind of inter-dimensional chase.

Scenario ideas - Role-playing game scenario ideas

Scenario ideas - Wargame scenario ideas

Force - Intruders: They can look identical to any other force, and use the same technology.

Intruder pool: Before the game, you can leave a number of army points in an Intruder Pool. During the game, you can select an enemy model, pay twice its price from your Intruder Pool, and from then on, you can control that model, because it was an Intruder agent all along.

Intruder gates: If the Intruders are the defender side, they can buy Intruder gates as battlements. Every gate costs X points, and you can only place them in your starting zone. When an Intruder model touches an Intruder gate, the Intruder player can decide that it enters it. Place the model in a separate place (the Yonder), outside of the playing area. In any action after this, an active model in the Yonder can enter the playing area through any of the Intruder gates. If there is an enemy model touching the entering model, it can be pulled in with a succesful melee attack. If there is an enemy model touching an Intruder gate, Introder models in the Yonder can be activated to attack the model through the gate. They can either try to harm the model, or with a succesful melee attack, it can be pulled inside. Enemy models pulled inside become casualties, as only Intruders can succesfully navigate the inside of the Yonder. Intruder models with ranged weapons, staying inside the Yonder can take snap-shots at enemy models through one of the gates, while remaining in the Yonder. Any models attacking through the gate can be targeted by enemy attacks, but they are considered to be partially hidden / in cover.

Miniatures - 1/50-1/60 (28-32mm scale)

The adults: Human-sized (S3) modern human civilians.

The kid: Small (S2) modern human kid.

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Frequently asked questions - Vivarium movie (2019)

Is Vivarium worth watching?

Vivarium might be worth watching if you belong to the audience I recommend in the Will you enjoy this? section.

What was the point of Vivarium movie? / What is the meaning of Vivarium movie?

The plot of the Vivarium movie is about a pair trapped in an artificial environment, forced to bring up an alien humanoid kid. The point of the Vivarium film is probably that life is pointless, and you will die anyway.

What did Tom find in the hole in Vivarium? / In Vivarium what was in the hole?

In the Vivarium movie, Tom found a dead human in a body bag. The same fate that will also await him.

Is Vivarium a scary movie? / How scary is Vivarium?

Vivarium can be frightening. There are some also scary moments.

Is Vivarium a remake?

Vivarium is not a remake. Although there were some similar stories before (Midwich Cockoos, Mimic - both of them adapted to movies), they are significantly different in their plots.

When did Vivarium come out?

Vivarium was first released in 2019.05.18.

Who wrote Vivarium?

The Vivarium film was written by Garret Shanley and Lorcan Finnegan.

Is there a post credit scene in Vivarium?

No, there's no post credit scene in Vivarium.

Will there be a Vivarium sequel? / Will there be a Vivarium 2?

Although I think the Vivarium movie is a complete story, I could imagine a couple of ways to create a sequel to Vivarium, so I wouldn't rule that out.

Where can I see Vivarium? What is Vivarium playing on? What streaming service is Vivarium on? Where can I watch Vivarium online? Is Vivarium available on Netflix? Is Vivarium on Amazon?

As of 2022.10.18, Vivarium is available on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Microsoft Movies, Redbox, Vudu.

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Similar stories - Vivarium movie (2019)

Short stories

Donald A. Wollheim: Mimic (1942): In a then contemporary setting, insectoid creatures hide among people, disguising themselves humans.

Movies

In the Mouth of Madness (1994): In a contemporary setting, strange things happen, and we don't understand why. It's slightly similar to Vivarium, but in Vivarium, the horror is more personal.

The Endless (2017): In a contemporary setting, strange things happen, and we don't understand why. It's slightly similar to Vivarium, the horror is both movies is personal.

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Resources - Vivarium movie (2019)

Official

Vivarium (on Archive.org): Official website. (2021: Offline)

Information

IMDB: Vivarium (2019): Database article.

WikiPedia: Vivarium (film): Database article.

Letterboxd: Vivarium: Database article.

Rotten Tomatoes: Vivarium (2020): Database article.

Metacritic: Vivarium 2020: Database article.

TVTropes: Film / Vivarium: Database article.

Parental advisory information - Vivarium movie (2019)

Joyce Slaton (for Common Sense Media ): Vivarium: Parental advisory information article about the Vivarium film.

Reviews with no spoilers - Vivarium movie (2019)

Ben Croll (for The Wrap): ‘Vivarium’ Review: Jesse Eisenberg Satire Bites Off More Than It Can Chew: Review article of Vivarium movie with minor spoilers, not more than the trailer.

Matt Elliott (for Horrornews.net): Review article of Vivarium movie with minor spoilers, not more than the trailer.§

Mary-Catherine Harvey (for The Upcoming): Vivarium: Review article of Vivarium movie with minor spoilers, not more than the trailer.

Reviews with spoilers - Vivarium movie (2019)

FoundFlix: VIVARIUM (2020) Ending Explained: Review video of the Vivarium film, with spoilers. Includes plot summary.

Jez Stoker (for Borrowing Tape): Vivarium: Review article of the Vivarium movie, with spoilers.

Haleigh Foutch (for Collider): ‘Vivarium’ Review: Jesse Eisenberg & Imogen Poots Take an Existential Trip to Suburban Hell: Review article of the Vivarium film, with spoilers. Includes plot summary.

Matt Donato (for Flickering Myth): Movie Review – Vivarium (2019): Review article of the Vivarium movie, with spoilers.

Ryan Lattanzio (for IndieWire): ‘Vivarium’ Review: Jesse Eisenberg and Imogen Poots Star in a Creepy Suburban Brain Bender: Review article of the Vivarium movie, with spoilers.$

Sarah Cartland (for Caution Spoilers): Vivarium (London Film Festival 2019): Review article of the Vivarium film, with spoilers.

Simon Abrams (for Roger Ebert): Vivarium: Review article of the Vivarium film, with spoilers.ß

Reviews with spoilers - Vivarium movie (2019) - Turkish

Müge İbrikçi Baran (for Dark Movies): Vivarium (2019) – Film Review (in Turkish): Review article of the movie, with spoilers, in Turkish.

English version by Google Translate

Analysis - Vivarium movie (2019)

: Analysis video of Vivarium movie.

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Buying the product - Vivarium film (2019)

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Have you seen the Vivarium film? How do you like the movie? Would you recommend it to others? Do you know reviews or resources you'd like to add? What further thoughts do you have about it? Tell your opinion in the comments!