ETERNALS

Gemma Chan     Richard Madden     Angelina Jolie     Salma Hayak     Kumail Nanjiani

Lia McHugh     Brian Tyree Henry     Barry Keoghan 

            In the Marvel universe jumping through time and space are de rigeur, as seen in this film, which starts from 5,000 B.C. in Mesopotamia and goes through the centuries to the present, touching on Babylon, Chicago, South Dakota, Tenochtitlan, Mumbai, Australia, the Amazon, Iraq, and spaces in between and up in space.  It will make you dizzy trying to keep track.  Not only that, one must also keep track of tricky names:  Thena (not Athena), Sirsi (not Circe), Ikaris (not Icarus), Phastos (not Hephaetus), all tied to Greek mythology.  They are clever and make you smile.

            Anyway, the story is roughly that a being called Arishem has created not only humans but also Eternals who are intended to survive anything, and… what? Deviants are sent to destroy the Eternals?!  Well, like any god-like figure, Arishem is quixotic—at least seemingly.  Through his own reasoning, he decides to foster the emergence of a Celestial transformation that could dispose of humans in the interest of furthering civilization development.  This sets up a fierce battle among the Eternals—one siding with Arishem and the others wanting to preserve humans and the earth planet.  This constitutes the rest of the story in Eternals.

In wresting with these conflicts, there are some philosophical discussions/arguments about life paradoxes to tease the mind, such as that creation always involves destruction; some have to die in order for other life to be born.  Also to be wrestled with is that even though Heresham created humans, Eternals, Deviants (which he lost control of), in the offing he plans for the emergence of the Celestials.  Life is a cycle of creation and destruction.  But some are questioning Creator Arishem’s requirement that Eternals not interfere in human conflicts because he says that conflicts and war are necessary for the development of the human world.  

The script adapted from Jack Kirby’s original comic books by Chloe Zhao, Patrick Burleigh, Ryan Firpo and Kaz Firpo is reasonably good, but goes on far too long for this type of movie.  It does meander into some of the Eternals’ lives, such as Sersi’s relationship with Ikarus and a human named Dave, Phastos’ complex relationship with Thena and his subsequent attachment to a human who will give him a family, and Druig’s going off on his own to establish a community with the Amazonians—which is always interesting, but none of these pairings are highlighted enough for us to cheer them on.

The crafts in Eternals—cinematography (Ben Davis), music (Ramin Djawadi), special and visual effects, art, and sound—are extraordinary, easily transporting the viewer into the mythological realm.  As Marvel movies go, this one seems to be one of the better ones, having some grounding in literature and wrestling with contemporary issues.  I think the upshot of it all is that any group needs to stick together as one, united against forces against it.  But—there is likely to be a sequel, so we’ll see where it goes from there.

 

Eternals are eternal, except…The twists and turns will keep you engaged, but leave you wanting more.  It’s more the crafts that will amaze you.

 

Grade:  C+                            By Donna R. Copeland

MEN IN BLACK: INTERNATIONAL

Tessa Thompson    Christopher Hemsworth     Kumail Nanjiani     Liam Neeson

Emma Thompson     Rafe Spall     Rebecca Ferguson

     

     This is Men in Black:  International; so it will take place in Brooklyn, Paris, London, Marrakesh, and “Riza’s fortified fortress of sheer death”—wherever that is.  Following the High T’s (Neeson) maxim:  “Always remember:  The universe has a way of leading you to where you’re supposed to be, at the moment you’re supposed to be there”, Agents H (Hemsworth) and M (Thompson) will travel the world to uncover the Hive enemy or (God forbid!) a mole within their own organization.

     Molly has been interested in coming to know “the truth of the universe” since she was a child and visited by an alien.  She protected said alien from the authorities looking for him, and upon fleeing he made a promise to her in his own language, although she didn’t understand what he said.  Subsequently, she always took note when strange happenings occurred, and when she was grown up, she began looking seriously for ‘them’ (Men in Black). She actually does find them, much to the chagrin of Agent O (Thompson), who reluctantly gives in to her pleas and assigns her the name of ‘M’, sending her on assignment under the supervision of Agent H to find and destroy the enemy.

     Although Agent H has an excellent reputation and is tapped to take the High T’s place when he retires, at this time, he appears to be “vaguely inept, arrogant, and reckless”—in the words of M after she has come to know him.  But he is experienced.  She, on the other hand, seems gifted with both a sixth sense and logical reasoning in solving problems.  These two:  What a combination for a team, but there’s an underlying “like” for each other that keeps them working together.

     The main plot for this film is weak; that is, we don’t get much invested in the intrigues and struggles of the Men in Black until, maybe, the very end when the mole is revealed.  But there are some creative insertions along the way that help keep us engaged.  One is a tiny being who has lost his queen and becomes attached to M.  She names him Pawny (voice of Nanjiani), and he becomes her protector, as well as the arbiter in M’s conflicts with H.  He is also the resident comedian.  Another is M’s unexpectedly encountering the alien she protected years before.

     I think this film is a victim, like so many remakes and sequels these days, of a “been there; done that” reaction.  It appears that business aims are taking precedence over creativity in films like this.  They’re reasonably well done in terms of craft, but the mark of “retread” is unmistakable.  In this instance, there is not much that is new and creative to make us go, “Wow!”

Think of this film as simply another retread in the genre of “action, adventure, comedy.” 

Grade:  C                                    By Donna R. Copeland

THE BIG SICK

Kumail Nanjiani     Zoe Kazan     Holly Hunter     Ray Romano     Anupam Kher     Zenobia Shroff

     Kumail (Nanjiani) is a standup comedian who gets heckled one evening by a young blonde woman in the audience.  It annoys him, so he confronts her later at the bar, and she argues with him—“Well, what if I said…” and she names something he couldn’t argue with.  In no time at all, he knows she is Emily (Kazan), and they spend the night together.  What transpires after that is an on again off again connection in which they initially make it clear that they’re not dating, and they agree on a two-day rule (never see each other more than two days in a row), and of course they do become attached. 

     Enter family(s).  His parents are traditional Pakistani who are working diligently to find him a nice Pakistani wife.  He loves his family and knows that he will be disowned if he doesn’t agree to an arranged marriage, so of course he doesn’t tell them about Emily.  Nor does he tell Emily about them.  She finds out, is incensed, and dumps him.  Moreover, she’s a daughter who tells her mother everything, so her parents are well informed about Kumail.

     Some time later, Kumail receives a frantic call from Emily’s best friend telling him that Emily is in the hospital, and she and their friends can’t wait any longer because of finals at school, and would he please go to the hospital and see that she gets home.  He has been well brought up and does the compassionate thing, only to be rejected once again by Emily, but greeted by the attending physician who is sure he is the husband who must give consent for Emily to be put into a coma to treat the infection.  (This scenario wouldn’t happen in a real hospital, but for the sake of comedy, it transpires.) 

      By this time, Emily’s parents have been notified and appear at the hospital.  Emily is already in a coma, so Kumail must deal with them directly.  Initially, they brush him off and let him know he is “off the hook” and can go home.  But something keeps him there.  As time goes on, and Emily is in a coma longer than expected, they do what caring people do when they’re thrown together by life-threatening circumstances, they begin to relate to one another as humans.  The question is, how will Emily react when she is out of a coma.

     Nanjiani and his real-life wife, writer Emily V. Gordon, wrote the script based on their experiences in getting together.  He is Pakistani from a traditional family, and she is American.  They wrote it as a comedy of a couple from two cultures trying to make it together, and are successful in presenting a realistic picture that is funny as well as poignant. 

      Nanjiani (a veteran of “The Daily Show” and currently on “Silicon Valley”) plays himself well as a sincere but flawed character trying to make it in comedy, but not always able to separate himself from that and be a real person.  Comedy slips in when he is anxious, as for instance when he is asked (rudely, because of his looks) about 9-1-1, and makes a dark comedy joke about it.  Zoe Kazan adeptly portrays Emily as a young woman trying to establish her independence and maintain control over her life.  After being over-parented by a solicitous mother, she is wary of commitments, and needs space.

      Holly Hunter and Ray Romano add significantly to the drama as Emily’s parents, colorful and a little flamboyant.  Both actors make real and appealing portrayals of their characters in their fights, expressions of love, and quirkiness.  Showing the contrasting personalities and values of Kamail’s parents, (Kher and Shroff), is an essential component of the cross-cultural dynamics, and the actors and script succinctly highlight the issues involved.

    Director Michael Showalter and the writers have created a movie that is wholesome in its wit, bringing out the humor and complications involved in people from different cultures trying to make it together, along with present-day ambivalences about commitments.

Pakistani and American families trying to unite around a love relationship.

Grade:  C+                                    By Donna R. Copeland