Legendary comic book artist Jack Kirby left Marvel in 1970 and joined DC Comics to create the “New Gods.” While he had a definitive ending planned, the series ended in 1972, and Kirby returned to work at Marvel. Originally dubbed “The Celestials,” these new god-like beings first appeared in 1976 as “The Eternals” due to legal reasons. In 2018, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige announced that the characters would debut in Phase 4 of the MCU. The directors considered were Nicole Kassell, Travis Knight of Bumblebee fame, and the pair Cristina Gallego and Ciro Guerra. Eventually, they hired Chinese-American filmmaker Chloé Zhao, who gained much attention after directing the Oscar-winning film Nomadland. Though scheduled for a November 2020 release, the COVID-19 Pandemic caused numerous delays, initially settling for a February 2021 release. Eventually, Eternals saw its worldwide theatrical release in November of 2021.
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Synopsis
Thousands of years ago, the Celestial Arishem (David Kaye) sent god-like beings called The Eternals to Earth. Their mission is to destroy an infectious race called The Deviants, but they’re not allowed to interfere in human affairs. Due to internal conflicts, The Eternals go their separate ways and continue living their lives waiting for Arishem’s orders. In present-day London, Eternals Sersi (Gemma Chan) and Sprite (Lia McHugh) live together and enjoy everyday civilian life. One night, a Deviant called Kro (Bill Skarsgård) attacks them, but thankfully fellow Eternal Ikaris (Richard Madden) saves them. With the threat of the Deviants returning, they decide to find the other Eternals and reunite them. Unfortunately, a Deviant killed their former leader Ajak (Salma Hayek), so it’s up to Sersi to lead them. She gains the ability to speak with Arishem, but she soon learns more than she could’ve ever expected.
Review
Despite its flaws, Eternals is undoubtedly one of the more ambitious films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. There’s plenty of introspection where the characters discuss humanity as a whole and how our issues make us human. Every cast member gives a stellar performance, particularly Gemma Chan and Richard Madden as the central focus. Though she doesn’t have tons of screentime, Salma Hayek is decent as the former leader conflicted with her mission. Kumail Nanjiani steals the show as the boisterous Kingo, whose character has become a famous Bollywood actor throughout multiple generations. Angelina Jolie doesn’t get many lines, but she shows a lot of her character just from her facial expressions. Admittedly, the one weak link in the cast is Barry Keoghan, who comes off very emotionless in his line deliveries. Also, Kit Harrington comes off bland, but that might’ve been intentional given the film’s later reveal.
Another point this movie gets is for being inclusive without being in-your-face about its inclusivity. For instance, Brian Tyree Henry’s Phastos turns out to be gay, but they don’t draw much attention to it. No one talks about him being gay, he and his husband don’t act stereotypically flamboyant, and it’s played relatively seriously. Unfortunately, the film’s pacing is somewhat haphazard as they constantly jump between flashbacks without any clear indication. Also, for all the more introspective stuff going on, there are the typical CGI fight scenes that bog everything down. They’re entertaining enough, but it’s the moments where it doesn’t feel like an MCU movie that is more compelling. While this is far from being the worst MCU movie, one can only hope that things improve after this one. Overall, Eternals has plenty to offer, but it feels like it’s collapsing under its weight.
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