THE FILM
TITLE: The Marvels
RELEASE DATE: 07 Mar 2024
WATCH DATE: 23 Mar 2024
TYPE: live-action feature film
ACCESS: streaming on Disney+
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THE PEOPLE
DIRECTOR: Nia DaCosta
PRODUCER: Kevin Feige, David J. Grant
WRITER: Nia DaCosta, Megan McDonnell, Elissa Karasik
ACTORS: Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris, Iman Vellani, Zawe Ashton, Samuel L. Jackson,
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THE STORY
RUNTIME: 1h 45m
STORYLINE: the powers of three familiar female heroes become intertwined and they must work together to stop a destructive and vengeful enemy that not only threatens our world, but worlds across the galaxy
GENRE/THEMES: action, sci-fi, superhero, teamwork, revenge,
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THE CRITIQUE
THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS
Alright! We're back! THIS feels like a Marvel movie!!
Though not without it’s own flaws, The Marvels is a return to classic Marvel-quality filmmaking. Leave it to the women to fix a bad track record! Nia DaCosta directs a female leading cast, and revisits many familiar elements from across the MCU to continue these stories that have already begun.
The film's introduction of Kamala is a perfect continuation of her story from the Ms. Marvel series. The motion graphics illustrate Kamala’s inner thoughts just long enough to remind us of her origin story and youthfulness. The rest of the film pushes her character growth into greater stakes and the responsibility of being part of a team.
The chemistry between Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris, and Iman Vellani is on point. The past relational conflict between Carol and Monica is well balanced with youthful banter from Kamala. The montage of them figuring out how their powers work together was so fun and entertaining.
There was too much involvement of Kamala's family. It wasn't bad, but the script and screen time might have been better suited for more development between the three Marvels. They seemed to figure out working together a bit too quickly, and I was hoping for a bit more internal conflict on the way to them learning to be a team (similar to the Avengers team dynamics from their first film, The Avengers 2012). I was also waiting to be more afraid of the villain, but it just wasn’t there. Zawe Ashton was overacting and it seemed like the writing of her character was lacking in power.
I'm unfamiliar with the comic presence of these three characters, but putting them all together in a film was a brilliant overarching storytelling choice by Marvel Studios. The character designs and how their powers interact with each other all make sense together. They're also uniquely separate from each other which gives them individuality. Of course, Captain Marvel demanded a sequel, and the Ms. Marvel series was all a lead-up to The Marvels film, but I loved seeing Monica Rambeau again. Her role in WandaVision was powerful but didn't distract from the focus on Wanda Maximoff. She was always a character I wanted to see more of in future Marvel projects, and it's exciting to see her star in a film alongside Captain Marvel and Ms. Marvel.
This feels like a true Marvel movie. They told a story using characters, worlds, and concepts previously established in the MCU. There was nothing new introduced, just a chance to go deeper and farther with the material they already have. Carol Danvers, the Skrull, the Kree, the Flerken, and Nick Fury from Captain Marvel; Monica Rambeau from WandaVision; Kamala and the bangle from Ms. Marvel; the space jump portals and the Kree from Guardians of the Galaxy; Valkyrie and the Rainbow Bridge from Thor: Ragnarok; and quantum science from Ant-Man.
Though it is cookie-cutter from a handful of other Marvel films, The Marvels is refreshing from the more recent Marvel films that have tried too hard to be good and ended up disappointing. Though they played it safe, The Marvels was a good superhero movie.
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THE RECEPTION
NOMINATIONS
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THE IMPRESSION
IN A SINGLE WORD: exciting
MOST STRIKING ELEMENT: characters & chemistry
REWATCH: yes, but only for the sake of a Marvel Marathon
RATING: 3.5 // 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐
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