Faith without question can lead to unwanted consequences. That's the message that's being driven in Marvel's Eternals. Much has been said about the films critical reception with arguments being directed towards the films uneven pacing, and overly serious tone in regards to its main themes. While Eternals does suffer from an excessively long running time, it's admirably executed with it providing enough decent thrills while offering a bold new direction for the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Eternals plot focuses on a group of near-immortal beings who have lived quietly among humans for thousands of years, are called back into action when a powerful foe returns and threatens the destruction of Earth. Eternals plot offers the Marvel timeline something fresh and unique with a new team forming that differs from the traditional Avengers whom fans are familiar with. The film is more plot and character-driven than the average MCU flick with the plot being placed front-and-center. The story moves at a significantly slower pace in comparison to most Marvel movies, though the personal touch that director Chloe Zhao gives the films characters can't be understated. Eternals isn't the type of Marvel film that fans are generally accustomed to, which isn't necessarily a bad thing as it contains the action, humor, and heart that drew them to the universe originally.
When it comes to performances, the cast of Eternals rank as being one of the films main highlights with everyone delivering stellar work along with selling the story. Gemma Chan gives a strong performance as the emphatic Sersi, who can manipulate and transform matter through physical contact. Chan brings a sense of gentleness, compassion, and vulnerability to her role while showcasing a more nuanced female lead character than what's been previously seen before in the MCU. Richard Madden thrills as Ikaris with both him and Chan sharing strong chemistry with their deep-level romance being believable to audiences, along with their opposing views of the world. The rest of the Eternals cast deliver charismatic performances with Kumail Nanjiani as wisecracking Eternal Kingo, who provides the stories humor along with his sidekick Karun played fantastically by Harish Patel. Lia McHugh also impresses as 12-year-old Sprite with McHugh playing her role as a cynical older figure trapped in a teenage body with Brian Tyree Henry scene-stealing as Phastos. Despite both Salma Hayek and Angelina Jolie being here, the latter feels a bit restrained in her role with Hayek doing well as wise spiritual leader, Ajak, though Jolie doesn't get as much depth as elite warrior Thena. Other noteworthy performances include Lauren Ridloff as deaf Eternal Makkari who possesses superhuman speed, Barry Kepghan as aloof Druig, Don Lee as Gilgamesh, and Kit Harington in a small yet charismatic performance as Sersei's love interest Dane. As a whole, the cast for Eternals delivers.
As for directing, Zhao demonstrates a skillful hand at crafting character-driven stories which rely heavily on excessive dialogue with Zhao creating a visually stunning atmosphere that surrounds them. The film is beautifully shot with stunning cinematography, putting Zhao's directorial style on full display in what's stylistically the best looking Marvel film yet. Scenes are bathed with final light from sunsets along with wide shots showing key landscapes such as a desert Oasis, a volcanic island, and the American prairie with characters appearing smaller in comparison. The CGI effects are impressive with Zhao making it a point to use as much practical effects as possible with VFX creatures and settings only being added when necessary, though still blending with their natural environments. The pacing is extremely slow with priority being placed with establishing the characters with the action coming in second. As far as the films technical aspects go, Zhao presents a different kind of Marvel story that's gorgeously shot and feels epic although its pacing might be off-putting for audiences.
Eternals screenplay feels more meatier than the average superhero script with it carrying themes pertaining to evolution, purpose, faith, war, friendship, loyalty, sacrifice, and legends with a message regarding finding ones own purpose. The writing does well with taking its time in showing the origins and individual dynamics of each character, along with the different timelines they've experienced within 7,000 years. Despite Chan delivering a strong performance as Sersei, her character isn't as interesting as other Eternal members, even with her essentially reigning everyone in. The screenplay does well with exploring her relationship with Ikaris, while showing the contrast between them in terms of their overall perception of the human race. The story is strictly about the reassemblance of the Eternals in order to stop the looming threat with it flashing back and forth in telling the backstory of the characters to make the audience care about the consequences later on. In terms of introducing the team and establishing the universe, the script does fairly well with balancing out its main ensemble while giving them just enough depth to make an impact on the story. The writing isn't perfect with questions being posed regarding where the Eternals have been all this time along with why didn't they appear earlier and so forth, but the story is well-structured with much to appreciate here.
As noble as it's attempts are at taking the MCU in a bold new direction with the filmmakers ambition shining through, Eternals ultimately won't satisfy everyone. It may move too slowly compared to the common superhero flick and its philosophical themes may come across as feeling too preachy given the films serious tone, but it thrives as being an unusual beat for the MCU that possesses a tremendous amount of talent both infront of and behind the camera. Eternals for better or worse, is a reasonably satisfying and visually spectacular superhero film that makes a strong effort to break away from the typical Marvel standard of fast-paced storytelling and characters making non-stop witty jokes. One hopes that future MCU films make the same attempt at reaching for the stars that Chloe Zhao attempted here.
Final Verdict: See It
Images courtesy of Disney
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