Eternals

I watched Eternals for the second time on a Tuesday evening while eating a bowl of slightly burnt popcorn and wearing a pair of itchy wool socks I immediately regretted. Strangely, the physical discomfort of the socks perfectly mirrored the experience of watching this movie: it’s beautiful to look at, clearly high-quality, but it never quite lets you get comfortable.

I know, I know—mentioning Eternals in a comic book shop is a quick way to start a civil war. Released in 2021, right as the world was squinting its eyes at the sun and venturing back into theaters post-lockdown, it was the first Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) entry to get truly "rotten" reviews. People were expecting the next Avengers and instead, they got a 156-minute existential crisis about space gods and the morality of non-interference. Personally? I think it’s the most interesting failure the studio has ever produced.

The Golden Hour Gamble

When Kevin Feige hired Chloé Zhao, he wasn't just hiring a director; he was hiring a specific aesthetic. Zhao was fresh off her Oscar win for Nomadland (2020), a film known for its vast, quiet landscapes and natural lighting. Bringing that "Golden Hour" sensibility to a movie about immortal aliens was a massive swing. Most MCU movies feel like they were filmed inside a very expensive IKEA—clean, bright, and entirely controlled. Eternals, however, feels like it’s breathing.

Zhao insisted on shooting on real locations—the volcanic plains of Fuerteventura and the forests of England—rather than relying solely on the "Volume" or blue screens. It’s hands-down the most gorgeous film in the franchise. Cinematographer Ben Davis (Guardians of the Galaxy) captures these characters standing against horizons that make them look as small as they feel, despite their power. There’s a scene where Gemma Chan (Sersi) and Richard Madden (Ikaris) stand in a desert that feels more like a Renaissance painting than a superhero flick.

A Family Feud Across Millennia

The plot is... a lot. We follow ten ancient beings sent to Earth by a Celestial named Arishem to kill "Deviants." They’ve been here for 7,000 years, and they aren't allowed to help humans with their wars or their plagues. They just watch. This leads to the film’s best and worst trait: it’s a family drama disguised as an epic.

The chemistry is hit or miss, but when it hits, it’s lovely. Brian Tyree Henry (Phastos) brings a genuine, heart-wrenching humanity to the screen, particularly in a scene involving the Hiroshima aftermath that daringly suggests superheroes are just as capable of despair as we are. On the flip side, Kumail Nanjiani (Kingo) provides much-needed levity. Apparently, Kumail Nanjiani’s physical transformation for the role was so intense he ended up becoming a viral meme, but in the film, he’s just a charming Bollywood star with a valet named Karun who follows him around with a camera. It’s absurd and I loved every second of it.

Then there’s Angelina Jolie as Thena. If you’ve seen her in Salt (2010) or Maleficent (2014), you know she can do "ethereal warrior" in her sleep. Here, she’s grappling with "Mahd Wy'ry"—basically cosmic dementia. It’s a heavy subplot that gives the action sequences a sense of tragic stakes. Her combat style is fascinating; she literally conjures weapons out of golden light, and Angelina Jolie actually trained in ballet to ensure her movements felt more like a dance than a brawl.

The Speed of Light and the Weight of Godhood

Let’s talk about the action, because as much as this is a "thinky" movie, it’s still a $200 million blockbuster. The standout is easily Lauren Ridloff as Makkari. She’s the MCU’s first deaf superhero, and her speedster sequences are the best I’ve ever seen on film. Unlike the slow-motion "time-stopping" tropes used for Quicksilver in the X-Men movies, Makkari feels like a sonic boom. When she fights Ikaris in the third act, the sheer sense of kinetic energy and impact is staggering.

However, the Deviants—the primary monsters—are a bit of a CGI blur. They’re colorful, tangled messes that don't have much personality until the very end when one of them, voiced by Bill Skarsgård (It), starts talking. By then, it feels like a different movie entirely. The real conflict isn't the monsters; it's the realization that their "god" is essentially using Earth as an egg.

The film struggles with its own scale. It tries to introduce ten new characters, explain the history of the universe, and have a philosophical debate about the value of human life all at once. It’s overstuffed and occasionally moves with the speed of a tectonic plate, but I’d rather watch a movie that tries too much than one that tries nothing at all.

Eternals is the "black sheep" of the Marvel family, and that’s exactly why it has developed a bit of a cult following in the years since its release. It doesn't fit the formula. It’s moody, it’s long, and it asks questions that it doesn't always have the answers to. While the franchise was beginning to feel a bit like a assembly line, Chloé Zhao tried to build something by hand. It’s a flawed, messy, breathtaking experiment that reminds me that even gods can have a really bad day at work. If you can handle the runtime and the occasional dip into melodrama, it’s a trip worth taking. Just maybe wear comfortable socks.