Fans have been debating the quality of Marvel’s new movie, “Eternals.” Specifically, Marvel fans have debated whether watching the movie is worth it. The movie features actors Angelina Jolie (Thena), Richard Madden (Ikaris), Gemma Chan (Sersi), Salma Hayek (Ajak), Don Lee (Gilgamesh), Barry Keoghan (Druig), Kumail Nanjiani (Kingo), Lia McHugh (Sprite), Lauren Ridloff (Makkari), and Brian Tyree Henry (Phastos). 

Marvel Studios’ “Eternals” was released on Nov. 5 in theaters. It was announced as Marvel’s first stand-alone movie, which made some fans nervous about its arrival. It was a different kind of movie, with many different actors. While there is mention of previous Marvel movies, like “Endgame,” there is not much. “Eternals” has earned reviews from Internet Movie Database (IMDb) and Rotten Tomatoes; a 6.9/10 from IMDb and 48 percent  Rotten Tomatoes. So it did not receive outstanding reviews, but that should not determine whether you should watch it or not. 

From this point on, I would like to give a spoiler warning, however, I will try to keep the spoilers light and only use them when necessary. 

We will start with the beginning. How a movie begins is important. It allows you to decide whether or not you are willing to stay for the entire movie, or just walk out. The introduction to all of the characters is a bit odd. We only know two characters’ names until about ten minutes into the movie. But through the first scene, we learn about the characters and their powers. Although, unless you are paying attention to all the details, at this point it is hard to remember which character has which power. Luckily, this gets much easier as the movie goes on. Right off the bat, we can tell that the special effects and soundtrack are actually a huge part of the movie, and very well done. I was very impressed with all of the special effects and how well they displayed each character’s powers. It was very detailed and almost looked real. Overall, the beginning was slow but impressive looking and sounding.

I already touched on the special effects, but seriously, they were amazing. If you have seen the trailer, you have seen a bit of what the movie has to offer, but I personally think it does not do it any justice. We all know that Marvel has always done an amazing job with visual effects, but this movie really showcased their abilities. From the characters’ powers to the surroundings and setting, it is all very visually appealing. The costumes are detailed as well. All of the visual effects get more intricate and interesting as the movie progresses. The soundtrack was very well put together as well. It was different, not classic action movie music with the Marvel theme vibe. But I did like how the music changed when they changed time periods. 

The next thing that I liked about the movie was the acting. While I do not think there was much character development, I do think that most of the actors got into character and made their own characters seem more human than just someone on screen that has no depth. The actors, like most Marvel actors, were well chosen and fit the part very well. From their facial expressions to different uses of body language, they individually fit their own part quite well. One actor that I think did an excellent job fitting into their character was Lauren Ridloff (Makkari). I thought it was very interesting how she was fluent in ASL and it was implemented in her character. She did such a good job of portraying her character through facial expressions and body language. 

There were quite a few things that I did not like about the movie. First, character development. As much as I hate to say, this new stand-alone style of the movie is not Marvel’s thing. I felt no connection to any of the characters. The one character that I actually liked and thought I connected with was totally ruined by a plot twist that was very obvious and one used too often in movies. I did not feel as emotionally connected to the characters, so even a character’s death had no impact. The writers did not really add depth to the characters, which might be a result of their attempt to make it a stand-alone movie and it is just something they are not used to. 

The second thing was the connection between these new characters and the Marvel Universe. Warning, this paragraph will have more spoilers than others, so if you have not seen the movie skip this paragraph. At the beginning of the movie, the writers decided to try and explain why these immortal beings that have been here since the beginning of humanity have never gotten involved in “human affairs.” It was really just confusing. Like why had not these all-powerful and immortal characters never helped with Thanos, Loki, or Ultron? It just does not make sense. Maybe if Marvel had added this story and all of these characters earlier on, it would have been better. 

That all being said, here is a recap of my personal ratings. 

Visual Effects: 10/10

Soundtrack: 9/10

Characters: 6/10

Development: 4/10

Exposition: 6/10

Plot: 7/10

Overall: 7/10

So if you do go and see this movie, do not expect it to be the best Marvel movie that you have ever seen. It is decent, okay? Hopefully, Marvel’s upcoming movies will be much better. The biggest issue was that it was a standalone movie, so the others should be better.