Eternals (2021) Film Review
Director: Chloé Zhao
Rating: 3/5 Stars
When held up directly against others in the film’s genre, Eternals is exceptional. There is measured comic relief providing vital levity to offset the heavier themes peppered throughout, and there is plenty of the usual good vs. evil gear to keep viewers conflicted and questioning their own standards of morality. The trouble lies in expecting this fun romp to be something other than what it is, effortless and buoyant, popcorn friendly entertainment.
With that in mind, anyone would be hard pressed to find someone skulking around the Candy Bar wanting their money back. Like many films in the Marvel franchise, Eternals could benefit from a tighter edit. As the title suggests, it goes for an extremely long time, and far too much of that time is spent on lingering closeups of Gemma Chan’s troubled face. Setting aside the sheer relief and “about bloody time”-ness of seeing a woman of colour in a prominent role within what is historically a white, male centric genre. Chan (Crazy Rich Asians, Mary Queen of Scots and Captain America) is beautiful and perfectly ethereal as female protagonist Sersi, but frustratingly she is lacking some much-needed oomph. However, this is more likely to be a script issue rather than one that can be solely attributed to her execution of the character. Regardless, Chan portrays some intriguing contradictions and I want to see more from her and of her in Marvel and beyond. Eternals offers up all the workings of your traditional “Superhero” blockbuster, with the bonus of a suitably head scratching Sci-Fi back story, one which will have audiences googling as the credit’s role.
Richard Madden (1917, Cinderella and Rocketman) is gorgeously wooden with hints of tortured romantic as the fabled Ikaris, our problematic hero and surprisingly, the irrefutably recognisable Angelina Jolie (Girl Interrupted, Changeling and Tomb Raider) disappears into her role as the mighty and incredibly durable Thena. Diversity of colour, sexual preference and ability is represented throughout the film, and done without a whiff of virtue signalling, or tawdry reference to casting and storytelling that should be more commonplace within mainstream movie making. Casting is certainly something that Eternal’s production got fantastically right.
Eternals’ lack of nuance is redeemed by an overall sense of likeable earnestness and for those needing one, there are some readily available takeaways of the virtuous verity. In saying that, there is a dazzling flaw that is hard to forgive, The CGI in Eternals is jarring and immediately hurtles the viewer back into the room, robbing audience members of a full immersive experience into the world that film makers and original story writers have painstakingly crafted. Ultimately, Eternals is a sensitive take on the usual “Superhero” trope with characters who possess a trace more complexity than that of some of their Avenger counterparts. Staunch Sci-Fi devotees will certainly require their expectations to be managed, but that is the only caveat I feel is necessary to include.
If nothing else, Richard Madden’s tight little body is worth hanging in for the 157-minute runtime. Like anything else, my opinion is not the only one that exists so head to the Eternity Complex discord if you’re a Science Fiction fan and want to discuss more about the merits of good story telling or share your own opinion on Eternals.
Tori Butler
