Double Random Movie Review - Black Widow + Eternals

Yeah, I know, I'm skipping an MCU film by doing this. But the good news is that I won't have long to wait till I can see Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings as Disney+ Day is on Friday this week. Now, for over ten years, we've come to know and love the MCU and enjoyed many of the films that it has contained. Sure, none of them have been perfect, and I didn't really expect these two films to wow me. But overall, it's been having a great run so far, even if the formula is getting too familiar for us fans. Here we have a film set after Civil War that sees the most flexible and a** kicking Avenger finally have her own film. And a film about a group of so-called heroes that features a cast containing at least two Game of Thrones stars and the MCU's first directly openly gay character (yes we have had that before, but never shown directly until now). Not really sure what to expect with these two films, but let's take a look:

Black Widow

Long before her avenging days, Natasha Romanoff (reprised by Scarlett Johansson) acted as the daughter of a super solider and fellow Black Widow who both worked as Russian undercover agents. A few things happen that lead to her being taken to a place called the Red Room for training. Until she eventually defects to SHIELD and well you know what happens next. Then we cut to just after Civil War where Natasha has become a fugitive for violating the Sokovia Accords. While trying to evade Thaddeus Ross (reprised by William Hurt), Natasha is forced to confront her past when the Red Room gets hot on her trail and she must form a team of her own to save other Black Widows like her. So ignoring the issues around people violating the rules of where and how this film should be released, this is actually a pretty good MCU film, even if it's just average. It's got a great cast who act well, and it's very action packed with the usual flare and humour that the film franchise is known for. But I guess if this was meant to be Marvel's answer to Wonder Woman, it's not too bad. But I think we all know which of the two films is the better one. But again, not a bad film. Just could be better. 8/10

Eternals

Long ago before the Avengers were saving the Earth from the likes of Loki, Ultron and Thanos, a group of superpowered beings from across the galaxy known as the Eternals, arrive to Earth to protect it from beings known as Deviants. They do this for thousands of years, but cannot interfere with human affairs (even though what Thanos did technically wasn't just a human affair per se). After killing the last of them in the 1500s, the team split following differing opinions for the next 500 years, hoping for the day when they can be sent home by their creator and celestial being Arishem (voiced by David Kaye). After 500 years pass, the Deviants return, which forces the team to reunite and stop them. But soon enough, they learn that something far more deadly is about to change the Earth as we know it. Most people have called this the worst MCU film since Captain Marvel and honestly, I kind of agree. It falls under that category of films where ambition gets the better of those that make it and it ends up not being very good. Can't get invested in these characters due to lack of character development, I really don't like the constant switches between the past and present and this is a great cast that can do so much better than what we got here. I mean, I felt Kit Harrington was wasted and there was just a lack of the MCU formula that normally makes these films great. Well I guess it was just a risk that Marvel failed at, especially as this was supposed to be a game changer for the franchise. Again, ambition took over and this is the end result. 6/10

Two films that are not Marvel's best works, but are decent watches if nothing else. Let's hope what comes next is better.