Oscar winner Chloé Zhao combines times and worlds in the Marvel film “Eternals” in a stylish patchwork.
As old Hollywood was about to doom, in the early 1960s, some of its best directors were suddenly making sandal films in Rome. Today, when streaming services are arousing concerns about the future of cinema instead of television, the comic book blockbusters are perhaps the last safe bet.
No less a person than Chloé Zhao, who won two Oscars for her social drama “Nomadland”, is now at the wheel of such a huge ocean liner. The season of “Eternals” spans no less than 7000 years, what a challenge after your small, fine independent films. But can she discover new territories in the Marvel Universe with her artistic talent?
The bad guys come back
It starts 5000 years before Christ. Erich von Däniken always knew: the gods were astronauts. A troop of superheroes from the planet Olympia has rushed to the aid of a humanity threatened by aliens. But, as is so often the case, you can’t get rid of the bad guys: after a few hundred years, the predatory “deviants” reappear on earth, and the luckily ageless heroines and heroes are in demand again.
The “Magnificent Seven” are nothing compared to the international star cast that Zhao’s direction has to bring under one roof: To list them once, these are: Ajak (Salma Hayek), Druig (Barry Keoghan), Gilgamesh (Don Lee), Ikaris (Richard Madden ), Kingo (Kumail Nanjiani), Makkari (Lauren Ridloff), Phastos (Brian Tyree Henry), Sersi (Gemma Chan), Sprite (Lia McHugh) and Thena (Angelina Jolie). All of these stars bring their own filmographies and screen personalities with them, which gives the term “diverse” a new meaning in terms of film aesthetics.
The Pakistani-American actor and stand-up comedian Kumail Nanjiani, for example, became famous for the role of Dinesh in the comedy series “Silicon Valley”. Here he plays a superhero who has built an earthly existence as a celebrated Bollywood star – and travels around appropriately with a private servant and cameraman. However, this parodic element brings little lightness to the film, just as nothing else stylistically fits together.
How should it, one can ask, when high and trivial mythologies are constantly being quoted and places and times are jumbled up? Here you can already admire Chloé Zhao’s steadfastness when she wants to add something of her personal style as a director to top it all off. In fact, she left the sterility of the green screen studios, which are obligatory for large-scale digitally animated productions, as often as possible in order to shoot in real landscapes. However, this does not lead to a new Marvel style – especially since a sweet and colorful design was imposed on all images in post-production.
Do you prefer a parody?
Undecided, this placeless film lurches between seriousness and non-seriousness. Neither tension nor mood arise when it comes to everything and nothing at the same time. In this 26th edition, this film series seems to have one foot in its own parody – which might also be a smart strategy. This is a type of cinema that is equally popular around the world – or at the same time wants to take the wind out of the sails of potential parodists. Maybe Terry Gilliam should direct the next Marvel movie anyway. As the ultimate Monty Python parody.
Eternals. Regie: Choe Zhao. 157 Min.
