Marvel Studios is known for superhero epics that leave people talking about them for days, but their latest outing, Eternals, does something that only Marvel could pull off: Tell an epic, wowing tale without any major superheroes. Eschewing the more traditional heroes, this film focuses on a diverse, fresh cast of characters that you’ll come to truly care for, while also delivering a spectacle the likes of which honestly invite comparisons to “Star Wars.”
Speaking of “Star Wars,” this film opens with a George Lucas-esque text crawl establishing the Eternals as a race of immortal superpowers beings created by the Celestials to destroy the Deviants- think dinosaurs made of scary string. Centuries pass, and the Eternals are brought back together by a tragedy and given a new mission that could either save mankind or be their downfall.
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Eternals is a HUGE movie, not just in terms of its cast of ten principal leads, plus “Game of Thrones” star Kit Harrington, who hardly factors into the plot, but in terms of the scope of its storytelling. While “Avengers: Endgame” was undeniably an epic film, this one feels like an operatic, galaxy-spanning, and time-twisting tale that Marvel’s been waiting decades to pull off. Several wildly different stories are told in the film’s two and half hours, and astoundingly, every single cast member gets a time to shine, with the film feeling like a novel in that it devotes chapters to establishing each lead before colliding everyone together.
What’s more, is that this film is packed with lots of surprises that will throw off even seasoned moviegoers. There’s a plentiful amount of spoilery goodness that shouldn’t be disclosed and it leads to some unique moments that are unlike any you’ve seen in any film prior. It’s clear that director Chloe Zhao, fresh off her Oscar win for “Nomadland,” gives a damn, as she packs this film with an emotional wallop and doesn’t shy away from dark, ballsy moments over the course of the narrative.
Not only that, but the cast throws their all into their fully developed parts. Gemma Chan, who crushed it in “Crazy Rich Asians,” brings the same gravitas to her character here, but also imbues her with a badass quality that could rival most of the strong females we’ve already seen in the MCU. Kumail Nanjiani adds levity, Angelina Jolie makes a welcome addition to the ensemble, and Richard Madden has one of the more juicer roles in the cast, but the newcomers also shine, namely Lia McHugh as a snippy and world-weary Eternal trapped in a young body, and deaf actress Lauren Ridloff does a lot without a word.
Yes, the film has a lot of Marvel spectacle and action sequences, but much like “The Avengers,” you truly care about the people involved. And given that few have heard of the Eternals outside the comic diehards, that’s something to celebrate. Eternals is yet another massive win for Marvel and one that will likely go down as one of the most ambitious and riskiest projects in their resumé. And of course, stay after the credits.
Eternals is now playing in theaters.