Eternals tells the story of a group of heroes from beyond the stars who are sent to protect Earth since before the dawn of mankind. Thinking their job is done, this group lives through the history of the Earth in an almost invisible manner. This all changes when some monstrous creatures called the Deviants return and force the Eternals to again rescue Earth. Eternals is an epic story that covers a LOT of ground. It goes through space and history on a grand scale. On a much more intimate level, the story tackles challenges found through people’s hearts in a movie that is also at its core about loyalty, love, and friendship.
Quality
Eternals is a Marvel Cinematic Universe film at its core. With that comes incredible quality and technology. This is a beautiful film to watch throughout most of the movie. Director Chloé Zhao relies heavily on practical effects which is awesome. Sometimes this leads to the digital effects being more noticeable, however. Overall, this is a wonderful film to look at. The audio for the film is rock solid and adds to the story being told. It is a movie that is definitely worth experiencing with a good home sound system!
Extras
The extras included with Eternals are enjoyable to watch. The quality of the bonus features rank up there with other releases from the MCU. Unfortunately, there just aren’t as many included with this release. All of that aside, these extras are really worth watching and add even more to this movie. It is simply beautiful how it highlights the diversity and how the message of anyone can become a superhero really comes through in this film. This is particularly poignantly shown during Walks of Life.
Bonus Features*
- Audio Commentary – View the film with audio commentary by Chloé Zhao, Stephane Ceretti, Mårten Larsson
- Immortalized – Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe launches into the cosmos with the Eternals. In this behind-the-scenes documentary, dive deep into the reasons why Marvel wanted to immortalize these superheroes for the MCU.
- Walks of Life – Eternals unveils Marvel’s biggest and most diverse lineup of Super Heroes in one film. Hear reactions from the cast on being involved in the film and the instant sense of camaraderie that was felt on the day they all joined each other in their costumes.
- Gag Reel – Watch some of the hilarious mishaps of the charming cast and crew.
- Deleted Scenes
- Gravity – Phastos and Jack have a conversation that leads to a breakthrough.
- Nostalgia – Sprite and Makkari reminisce about humankind while overlooking the ruins of Babylon.
- Movies – Gligamesh and Kingo connect over movies while crossing the Amazon River with the rest of the team.
- Small Talk – Sprite confronts Dane in the museum about his interactions with Sersi.
*bonus features vary by product and retailer
The bonus features included with Eternals are all worth watching. I’d suggest watching them straight through after seeing the film. Then, go back and watch the film at another time as they do add to the viewing experience.
Final Thoughts
Watching Eternals and its bonus features this time around was actually more enjoyable of an experience than the first time I saw it in the movie theaters. So much is going on in the film it almost takes a second viewing to be able to absorb it all. Add the bonus features and the movie becomes more enjoyable. Overall, this is a really enjoyable film and a wonderful addition to the MCU. Yes, there are some moments that seem to overexplain things that probably aren’t needed. There are also some digital effects that made my eyebrow raise. However, there are also some really great moments that are full of heart and others that genuinely made me laugh. While not my favorite film in the MCU, I definitely enjoyed it. This is definitely a welcome addition to any fan of the MCU’s movie library.
