Eternals

I was extremely excited about Eternals. I am a Marvel enthusiast, and I have a soft spot for Angelina Jolie. Despite its lackluster quality, this film reflects Marvel's current state. Allow me to provide further details, as I understand that while fans may already be familiar with these details, the general audience may not be. Marvel's Phase Four film slate has been somewhat uninteresting thus far, leaving me wanting more and contemplating how I could have approached it differently. One of the biggest problems I have with Phase Four is the villains. We don’t get enough screen time to connect with these characters, nor do we get enough dialogue between them. Both Kro and the Black Widow villains Taskmaster and Dreykov, as well as Tony Leung's character Xu Wenwu, possess significant potential. Despite Shang Chi's flaws, he understood his role well. However, these characters receive extensive marketing, spend only five minutes on screen, and feature minimal or no significant dialogue. Even Ikaris had a more compelling villain story in terms of character development, despite not being the main antagonist. If you missed that plot twist, you should be ashamed. Not really. But seriously, while Thanos' destruction of half the universe didn't warrant a visit, did an earthquake? Is my criticism overly harsh, or is the writing sloppy? While I don't think this film is so terrible that you should avoid it, I also don't think you should watch it with high expectations. At this point, the fans expect more from Marvel and more from director Chloe Zhao. The movie tries to cram too much into the limited time it has, despite being a fairly lengthy film at 2 hours and 37 minutes. The film, in a way, tries to do what Taika Waititi did with Thor: Ragnarok, and it just feels disconnected from everything else that’s going on in the MCU. Other aspects of the film that I disliked, without giving too much away, include the underutilized role of Angelina Jolie. A particular fight scene was short, yet visually one of the best in the movie. Perhaps it's just me, but the world-ending scenarios with underdeveloped villains exhaust me. Once you realize the story can’t possibly end like this, the tension disappears. Perhaps they could justify the world-ending scenario if they had structured this into a trilogy, but personally, I find it weakens the plot, and, to be honest, I don't care. They're taking a cautious approach, and the stakes aren't sufficiently high to compel viewers to genuinely invest in these characters. Also, can we talk about the usual comedic relief? Is anyone else exhausted? Finally, the one last thing on my naughty list is the time and location jumps. While it occasionally aids the plot, its overuse leaves fans yearning for a fresh approach. Now, let's talk about the positive aspects of the film: while it may not be the best, I found myself enjoying several aspects of it, and overall, I considered it to be just average. Having said that, I thoroughly enjoyed the film's themes and visual effects, and the cinematography stands out as one of Marvel's finest. I hold this opinion despite knowing some individuals who vehemently disliked the film and refused to allow any positive reviews to surface. Several shots in this film, particularly those featuring the Celestials and the on-location shoots, were simply stunning. The portrayal of Makkari's speedster abilities in this movie as opposed to the usual slow-motion shots captured my attention. Although Marvel's portrayal of deaf and gay characters is minimal, it's encouraging to see that positive changes are occurring, albeit slowly. Once again, the underutilization of Angelina Jolie continues to irk me. My final note is the humanity of it all. Among Marvel’s extensive character lineup, these characters felt the most human to me. I found it simple to connect with characters like Kingo Makkari, Thena, and Gilgamesh. In conclusion, like I always say, go watch this movie and judge for yourselves. It is unlikely that you will find it repulsive, and the theater trip will be worthwhile if you maintain an open-minded perspective. However, Marvel fans should not expect Avengers: Endgame-level greatness, as the film is still enjoyable. I give Eternals a 7 out of 10 for outstanding cinematography and themes, but the writing, pacing, and character development leave me wanting more.