On November 5th, Marvel Studios released its third Marvel Cinematic Universe movie in phase 4, with the release of “Eternals” featuring a new set of exciting superheroes.
The idea behind this movie was that for thousands of years, ancient immortal aliens have been sent to Earth, secretly living for about 7,000 years. After the events of “Avengers: Endgame,” an unexpected tragedy compels them to emerge from hiding to face their oldest foe: The Deviants. These “deviants” were a monstrous race created by the celestials (gods) with the sole purpose of erasing planets from existence.
Eternals is truly a great milestone for Marvel. It brings a different flavor to the MCU, and raises the bar for what’s possible in the future films. However, the movie seems to be slightly rushed. To introduce over 10 different main characters without any way of easing in, in all 1 movie makes it slightly difficult to fully enjoy the movie itself.
With that said, on a more positive note, the character development and relationships with one another seems to be really significant throughout the movie, unlike something we have in other typical Marvel movies. Sersi (Gemma Chan), the primary character, is usually late and has a phone addiction. She has had a romantic companion for 5,000 years, Ikaris (Richard Madden), one of the antagonists who was duped. Thena (Angelina Jolie) is a warrior who is physically weakened by the weight of thousands of years of memories crammed into her head. Then there’s Gilgamesh (Ma Dong-seok), the tough guy who has a soft spot for Thena throughout the film. Despite the large cast, they managed to illustrate all of their relationships and developments in a very effective manner.
The action sequences are stunningly designed and coordinated, emotionally charged at times, and full of suspense and anxiety. You may find yourself on the edge of your seat more than in previous MCU entries. The action may not be often enough for some, but when it occurs, it is spectacular. Plot holes certainly exist in the action, but not to the point where they obstruct the film’s development. However, some unanswered questions and strange behavior do complicate the plot from a viewer’s perspective, but it’s nothing that the film should be knocked down for.
The intricate dynamic of the Indian group appears to be the source of much of the comedy; when they reconnect in the present day, some of them see each other for the first time in centuries. This relationship is exploited for drama as well. The most memorable comedic parts of the movie originated from Karun (Harish Patel) and Kingo (Kumail Nanjiani). They had a very close relationship for the past 50 years and were together throughout the entire movie not leaving each other at any time. Karun was somewhat of a servant to Kingo doing any favor he asks for. For the movie, the dynamic duo of Karun and Kingo wanted to create a documentary in the movie-meaning the servant (Karun) would be filming Kingo and the other eternals as they were fighting the antagonist. Karun would always have his camera out no matter how tense or stressful the situation got, leaving the audience at ease with his comedic relief.
Even with some of the negative parts of the movie “Eternals” was definitely still a great movie that had come with a completely different side of the MCU that we haven’t seen yet. With that being said I would give it a rating of 4/5.