Marvel’s “Eternals” was released on Friday in theaters and served as an intriguing alternative to the classic MCU movie.

     The story follows “The Eternals,” who are powerful beings supposedly from Olympia sent to earth by their leader Arishem to aid the advancement of humans and to protect the humans from the Deviants. After eradicating the Deviants, the Eternals split up and went about their lives as regular humans, until the Deviants miraculously resurfaced. The new deviants evolved into ruthless killers, but instead of going after humans, they went after the Eternals. This united the Eternals once again and they prepared to face the new deviants. That was until they found out the dark truth about their mission.  

     Director Chloé Zhao’s plot development was masterful, incorporating unpredictable plot twists and continuous references to evolution, mythology and religious ideologies, which added numerous interpretations to the events that took place throughout the movie.

     The visual effects in the film were outstanding. They transported you into the scene of every action-packed encounter. The fact that these effects were timed perfectly and meshed well with the creative action scenes just added even more to the movie experience. The music was also spot on. I especially liked when they included Pink Floyd’s song, “Time” in the opening scene. The meaning of the song pertains to the theme of the rest of the movie, which was a wonderful touch by the producers. 

     You can’t have a Marvel movie without humor and “Eternals” executed it perfectly. The humor was subtle yet impactful and helped the film stay engaging in more relaxed scenes. Karun (Harish Patel) was the perfect comedic character to show the human point of view in all of the chaos between the Eternals.

     Compared to other movies in the MCU, “Eternals” accomplished something unique. Every single Eternal had a significant role in the fight over the villain. There wasn’t just one hero, but many; it was a collective effort rather than an individual one, which is contrary to many movies in the MCU. 

     I do wish the romantic relationship between Ikaris (Richard Madden) and Sersi (Gemma Chan) was emphasized less in the film. I understand that it adds to character development, but at some points, it went too far. Furthermore, there were parts of the movie that dragged on longer than they needed to, and that took away from the engagement of certain scenes. My only knock against how the movie was written was how they handled Ikaris at the end of the movie. His exit was too abrupt and could have definitely been changed. 

     Some critics argue that the movie lacks character development and isn’t organized, but I think they are just too used to the classic marvel movie and are resistant to change. Overall, I would definitely recommend watching  “Eternals” and I can’t wait until the second volume is released.