Eternals - Review

Rating: 8/10

 

ETERNALS is the boldest and most unique film in the MCU. It seems to be a very divisive film among viewers, but I thoroughly enjoyed it because of the compelling cast of characters, fascinating mythology, majestic visuals, ambitious ideas, the unexpected twists and stellar action sequences. 

This grand story is epic in scale and spans 7000 years of human history, but it’s still an emotionally grounded and character-driven story. I really enjoyed the backstory of the Eternals and seeing them throughout history such as Mesopotamia, Babylon and Hiroshima. The mythology and world-building is incredibly captivating and it’s one of the biggest reasons that make this story so compelling to me. Although the constant intercutting flashbacks throughout the narrative felt chaotic at times, I enjoyed the balance of watching the present-day narrative unfold while getting key pieces of context and history of the Eternals through the flashbacks.

Director Chloe Zhao had a herculean task of introducing 10 new superheroes along with their complex mythology and, all things considered, she does a pretty good job of it. She makes every single Eternal unique with their powers and having their own distinct personalities. I loved the group dynamic of this cast of characters and their individual relationships with each other. The loving relationship of Gilgamesh and Athena, the animosity between Ikaris and Druig, the quippy exchanges between Gilgamesh, Phastos, Kingo and Sprite, the wholesome relationship between Druig and Makkari, and plenty of other interactions like this is what really made me instantly connect with these characters. I also really enjoyed the humor throughout the film, which balances the seriousness of the plot and its heavy themes. My favorite characters are Ikaris (Richard Madden), Thena (Angelina Jolie), Gilgamesh (Don Lee), Druig (Barry Keoghan), Makkari (Lauren Ridloff) and Kingo (Kumail Nanjiani). 

This film is visually astonishing. Not just because of the mind-blowing visual effects and CGI which brought the cosmic and mythic scale to this story, but also the majestic landscapes and other physical locations which was shot beautifully by cinematographer Ben Davis. The production design (Eve Stewart & Clint Wallace) and costume designs (Sammy Sheldon) are also excellent and enhance the stunning aesthetic of the film. The score by composer Ramin Djawadi is remarkable and really stood out from the usual MCU scores. The runtime of 2 hours and 37 minutes did feel a bit long at times and could have benefitted from a 10-15 minute trim, but otherwise had decent pacing overall.

ETERNALS is an ambitious story with a scale of cosmic proportions and the intriguing character dynamics, dazzling visuals, unexpected twists and powerful themes of identity, humanity and moral relativity makes this character-driven epic a real standout in the MCU that only gets better with subsequent viewings.

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Director: Chloe Zhao

Writer(s): Chloe Zhao, Patrick Burleigh, Ryan Firpo, Kaz Firpo

Runtime: 2h 37m

Release Date: November 2021

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