Eternals is the twenty-sixth entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It is directed by Chloé Zhao with Kevin Feige serving as co-producer.
Under the command of the Celestials, Ajak (Salma Hayek) leads a group called the Eternals to fight the “Deviants,” a terrifying alien race that has come to Earth for destruction. After succeeding in defeating them, they go their separate ways. In the present day, Sersi (Gemma Chan) and Sprite (Lia McHugh) are living in England, and Sersi has started a relationship with a professor named Dane Whitman (Kit Harington). They are attacked by a Deviant but are saved by Ikaris (Richard Madden), who sought them out after hearing about strange attacks.
They locate Ajak, but find she has been killed, and Sersi receives her ability to speak with the Celestials. They decide to look for the others. Kingo (Kumail Nanjiani), has become a Bollywood star. Gilgamesh (Don Lee) has been watching over Thena (Angelina Jolie) after she had a mental breakdown. Phastos (Brian Tyree Henry) has become a family man.
The team locates Druig (Barry Keoghan), who has become a cult leader, and they are attacked by Deviants, with the leader killing Gilgamesh before stealing his powers. They then find Makkari (Lauren Ridloff), who has been watching over their ship. They soon learn a devastating secret about the Celestials and the Deviants, one that will change the course of their destiny.
This movie has stunning visuals, decent acting, and superb special effects. It also introduces Dane Whitman, and if you don’t know who that is, I won’t spoil it. That is as far as I can complement this Marvel film.
The plot suffers from a major flaw. It is boring. This movie has a ton of exposition, set-up, and so much freaking talking that I found myself wandering to my phone. One of the reasons for this boredom is that, outside of Sersi and Ikaris, they never do any character building. They just sort of tell you about them or give them a “highlight reel” so you can get the gist of their powers or state of mind. This made them seem flat, one-dimensional sidekicks to the two mentioned earlier.
It was also just sort of bland. The story is based on a comic book team created by Jack Kirby, who liked to utilize colorful palettes when creating characters and planets. While each character has an assigned color, their costumes seem muted and unoriginal. That also goes for the music. Bland notes that, while not intrusive, it did nothing to add to the movie.
Chloé Zhao is a talented director, and if she had used the X-Men: First Class model of “showing not telling” when introducing its characters, I think she could have truly made a masterpiece. I do hope she gets another chance, but it should really be for a solo character that she can flesh out.
Bottom line, Eternals is a boring entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I sense that the sequel will be some sort of crossover, or they will bring in an Avenger to attract more attention to it.
PARENTAL CONCERNS: Violence, Some foul language, Sexual content
FAVORITE QUOTE: Do you think it was easy to live with the truth? To know that one day all this would end? If we gave humanity the choice, how many of them would be willing to die so that billions more could be born?
Check out the trailer below:
What do you think? Let me know in the comments below. Tell me if there is a comic book, movie, or novel you would like me to review.