The film revolves around a group of immortal alien figures who arrive on Earth to protect humanity from evil creatures known as Deviants where the group reunite centuries later to deal with return of Deviants but also an event they have to ensure happens. It is a film that is about a family of sorts who all reunite centuries later as they live on Earth for a long time observing and interacting with humanity and civilization as the events of the Blip that lead to the return of half of the population who were wiped out five years before by Thanos suddenly lead to the return of the Deviants. The film’s screenplay does a lot of world building and establishing who the Eternals are yet it unfortunately takes up a lot of time for the narrative to have the entire team reunite but also deal with their own ideological differences, views on humanity, and their mission at hand as they have to serve the Celestial god known as Arishem (voice of David Kaye). The narrative for much of its first act also play into flashbacks into the lives of the Eternals including an event that lead to their break-up as well as other issues following their last encounter with the Deviants.
The titular group of consist of ten individuals each with a special power as they’re lead by their spiritual leader/healer Ajak (Salma Hayek) who is also the bridge between them and the Celestials. There’s also the empathetic Sersi (Gemma Chan) who can manipulate matter through physical contact, Ikaris (Richard Madden) who can fly and shoot cosmic beams with his eyes who is determined to finish his mission, the illusionist Sprite (Lia McHugh) who has the physical appearance of a 12-year old girl, the comical Kingo (Kumail Nanjiani) who shoots cosmic beams with his hands as he’s become a Bollywood star, the weapons and technological inventor Phastos (Brian Tyree Henry), the deaf Makkari (Lauren Ridloff) who possesses super-speed, mind-manipulator Druig (Barry Keoghan), the strongman Gilgamesh (Don Lee), and the goddess of war in Thena (Angelina Jolie) who can create weapons with her own powers. They all have something to offer but are broken apart by idealistic views on humanity and the decision to not interfere in human conflicts or events under Arishem’s rule. Upon the events of the Blip and the re-emergence of the Deviants, the team struggle to get themselves back on board due to various issues but also the fact that some of them have their own lives and are reluctant to take part in this conflict where the stakes are larger.
Chloe Zhao’s direction is definitely astonishing for the fact that it’s shot on various locations and its emphasis on realism about the evolution of civilization. Shot on various locations such as London, South Dakota, the Canary Islands, and Los Angeles, Zhao does create a film that does take place many centuries where the narrative flashbacks to the age of cavemen, Babylonia, the Incas, and the present world in the aftermath of the Avengers’ war against Thanos. Zhao’s usage of wide and medium shots to establish the locations and the world these characters are in as they interact with the world or observe the world around them. The way Zhao establishes the Eternals and how they impacted civilization early on does showcase moments that do play into their development but Zhao is unable to maintain that same momentum following their break-up as the reunion goes on for a long time.
While there are these moments that do play into the drama with Zhao’s usage of the medium shots and close-ups as it help audiences be engaged by the characters. There are moments where it drags too long for each member to reunite with one another as there’s also a lot of baggage from everyone in the team to deal with. Phastos is man with a son and a husband he loves as he had lost interest in creating new tech following a major historical event while Thena is a woman that is going through serious mental issues and memory loss due to centuries of fighting. For nearly two hours into the film, the two acts serve as not just to establish the team and who they are but also their reunion and the stakes of the mission as it could’ve been trimmed. Even as the third act reveal some revelations on Arishem’s motives as well as why the Deviants were created as it is clunky though there is some amazing action and drama that occur in the film. Overall, Zhao crafts an engaging yet extremely uneven film about a group of immortals trying to save Earth one last time following the return of their old foes.
Cinematographer Ben Davis does brilliant work with the cinematography with its emphasis on natural lighting for many of the daytime exterior scenes along with some low-key lighting for the exterior scenes at night and other stylish lighting including Kingo’s Bollywood film set. Editors Craig Wood and Dylan Tichenor do fine work with the editing as it has some style in the jump-cuts and allowing shots to linger though there’s moments where it does feel too long as the film could’ve trimmed 15 minutes from its running time. Production designers Eve Stewart and Clint Wallace, along with set decorators Pancho Chamorro and Michael Standish plus supervising art director Matthew Gray, do amazing work with the look of the Domo ship interiors as well as Ajak’s home in South Dakota, Gilgamesh and Thena’s home in Australia, Druig’s camp in the Amazons, and Phastos’ home in Chicago. Costume designer Sammy Sheldon does excellent work with the costumes from the casual look of the group in their non-hero suits to the design of the superhero suits they wear upon their arrival on Earth.
Hair/makeup/prosthetics makeup designer Frances Hannon does fantastic work with the look of the characters as it play into the different periods with Thena having a unique look of her own as does Ajak. Special effects supervisor Neil Corbould and visual effects supervisor Stephane Ceretti do incredible work with the look of the Deviants, the exterior of the Domo spaceship, and other effects as the mixture of practical and computerized effects as it is a highlight of the film. Sound designers David Farmer and Addison Teague, along with sound editor Daniel Laurie, do superb work with the sound as it play into the atmosphere of the locations as well as some of the sound effects into the powers that the Eternals have. The film’s music by Ramin Djawadi is wonderful for its orchestral-based score as it play into elements of bombast for some of the action and suspenseful scenes along with low-key string-based pieces for the dramatic moments while music supervisor Dave Jordan create a soundtrack that features different array of music that include pop, country, rock, hip-hop, Bollywood-based music, and others that feature contributions from Lizzo, BTS, Skeeter Davis, Foreigner, and Pink Floyd.
The casting by Sarah Finn and Anna Tenney is marvelous as it feature some notable small roles from Haaz Sleiman as Phastos’ husband Ben, Esai Daniel Cross as Phastos’ and Ben’s son Jack, Zain Al Rafeea as a villager who first meets the Eternals after being saved from a Deviant, Bill Skarsgard as the voice of an evolved Deviant in Kro, and David Kaye as the voice of the Celestial God Arishem. Harish Patel is terrific as Kingo’s manager Karun who films everything for Kingo’s documentary on the Eternals as he provides some humor but also some nice insight on his view on the group. Kit Harrington is superb as Sersi’s boyfriend Dane Whitman who works at the Natural History Museum in London as he is hoping to commit to her.
Lauren Ridloff and Barry Keoghan are excellent in their respective roles as Makkari and Druig with the former being a deaf yet funny Eternal with super-speed as she communicates through sign language while the latter is a sarcastic yet passionate figure with the power to manipulate minds as a way in wanting to stop conflicts in the hope he can save humanity. Brian Tyree Henry and Salma Hayek are brilliant in their respective roles as the technology inventor Phastos and the group leader/healer Ajak as the former being someone who hoped to create things that would help civilization only to retreat after catastrophic events to become a family man while the latter is a spiritual figure who communicates with Arishem where she never questions his motives until the return of the Deviants as she begins to question him as well as having a change of heart about the mission at hand. Don Lee and Angelina Jolie are amazing in their respective role as the super-strongman Gilgamesh and the warrior goddess Thena with the former being a man who is powerful but also someone with a lot of heart and patience in taking of the latter where Jolie displays a woman who is suffering from serious PTSD and weariness while also dealing with memory loss as it relates to her life fighting against Deviants.
Kumail Nanjiani is remarkable as the powerful yet witty Kingo who spent almost a century being a Bollywood film star as he brings a lot of humor but also questions about the mission at hand where he isn’t sure of being involved in something that would break up the team again. Lia McHugh is incredible as Sprite as a master illusionist who can create things yet has the body of a 12-year old girl who can’t age where she laments not being able to grow up while having her own feelings for Ikaris. Richard Madden is marvelous as Ikaris as a Superman-like persona who can fly and shoot cosmic beams with his eyes as a figure who is intent on wanting to finish his mission as well as reunite with his former flame in Sersi in the hope they can stay together after the mission. Finally, there’s Gemma Chan in a phenomenal performance as Sersi as the empath Eternal who can manipulate matter through physical touch while discovering new powers as a way to deal with the Deviants while lamenting over her love for humans and the stakes of the mission itself where she has to take charge in the film’s climax.
Eternals is a stellar yet wildly uneven film from Chloe Zhao. While it features a great ensemble cast, dazzling visuals, a cool music soundtrack, and some amazing action scenes. It is a film that is ambitious yet is hampered by wanting to be both a superhero film and an art film as it never found its balance despite some exciting moments. In the end, Eternals is a good film from Chloe Zhao.
Chloe Zhao Films: Songs My Brothers Taught Me – The Rider - (Nomadland)
Marvel Cinematic Universe: Infinity Saga: Phase One: Iron Man - The Incredible Hulk - Iron Man 2 - Thor - Captain America: The First Avenger - The Avengers
Phase Two: Iron Man 3 - Thor: The Dark World - Captain America: The Winter Soldier - Guardians of the Galaxy - The Avengers: Age of Ultron - Ant-Man
Phase Three: Captain America: Civil War - Doctor Strange - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 - Spider-Man: Homecoming - Thor: Ragnarok - Black Panther - Avengers: Infinity War - Ant-Man and the Wasp - Captain Marvel - Avengers: Endgame - Spider-Man: Far from Home
Multiverse Saga: Phase Four: Black Widow (2021 film) - Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings - Spider-Man: No Way Home – Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness – Thor: Love and Thunder – Werewolf by Night - Black Panther: Wakanda Forever - The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special
Phase Five: Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 – The Marvels – (Deadpool & Wolverine) - (Captain America: Brave New World) - (Thunderbolts*)
Phase 6: The Fantastic Four: First Steps - (Avengers: Doomsday) - (Avengers: Secret Wars)
© thevoid99 2021
Directed by Michael Showalter and written by Emily V. Gordon and Kumail Nanjiani, The Big Sick is the story of a Pakistani-American who falls for an American girl as their relationship is tested when the latter falls ill as he meets her parents. The film is based on the real-life relationship between Gordon and Nanjiani in which the latter stars as an aspiring comedian who is torn in his love for this young woman and being true to his own family. Also starring Zoe Kazan, Anupam Kher, Ray Romano, and Holly Hunter. The Big Sick is a charming and riveting film from Michael Showalter.
The film follows a Pakistani-American stand-up comedian trying to make it as he falls for a young American graduate student as they endure a relationship only for things to get complicated until a rare illness occurs where the comedian meets the young woman’s parents. It’s a film that explore a man who is dealing with expectations from his family in finding a Pakistani wife to marry as well as become an attorney yet he is more interested in becoming a comedian while being a driver for Uber to pay the bills. Upon meeting this young woman whom he embarks on a relationship with until they break up over things he hasn’t been able to tell her where he later gets a call from one of her friends that she’s in the hospital as her parents would arrive to watch over her as she’s in a coma. The film’s screenplay by Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon that is based on their real life relationship on how they met and such does play into the many ups and downs expected in an interracial relationship between this Pakistani-American man and white woman as they live in Chicago.
Among the obstacles they face has to do with parents and how they would react as it’s something the character of Kumail (Kumail Nanjiani) is dealing with as he’s unsure what his parents would think of Emily (Zoe Kazan) as he chooses not to tell them about her as he’s also reluctant in meeting her parents over what they would think of him. When Emily becomes ill, he would meet her parents in Beth (Holly Hunter) and Terry (Ray Romano) who know about Kumail and appreciate the fact that he called them. Though they initially don’t want anything to do with him, they eventually get to know him as well as more about how Kumail and Emily broke up. Kumail’s time with Beth and Terry during the film’s second act is key to not just about Kumail dealing with the fear of having to tell his parents about Emily but also the realization that, despite their best interests for him, times are changing and he has to follow his heart but do it truthfully.
Michael Showalter’s direction is largely straightforward as it doesn’t really go for any kind of stylistic shots nor does it play into the conventions that is often expected in a romantic comedy. Shot largely on location in Chicago with bits of the film shot in New York City, the film does play into the world of comedy clubs where comedians try to get laughs as well as figure out what they should say and what routine they should go for. Even if it doesn’t work as Kumail would see a few of his peers try out ideas that is still in development as he is also working on a one-man show that is about himself and being Pakistani-American. While there are a few wide shots, Showalter would emphasize more on close-ups and medium shots to play into the developing relationship as well as some low-key comical moments of Kumail’s moments with his family where he would eat lunch/dinner with them as the recurring gag would include a prospective bride being invited by his mother Sharmeen (Zenobia Shroff).
The comedy is light-hearted as the funnier moments are based through dialogue but there are also some dramatic moments as it relates to the seriousness of Emily’s illness and Kumail eventually telling his parents about her. Yet, Showalter knows that the film is a love story of the unconventional kind in how a man is willing to stand by his love one no matter how close to death she is. Even as it would prove for all of Kumail’s mistakes and hesitation in telling Emily about his devotion for his family only to see that he wants her to be part of it. Overall, Showalter crafts a touching yet witty film about an unlikely romance and devotion between a Pakistani-American comedian and a white graduate student.
Cinematographer Brian Burgoyne does excellent work with the cinematography as it’s largely straightforward in terms of the exterior/interior scenes in the day as well as how clubs are lit at night. Editor Robert Nassau does terrific work with the editing as it does have bits of style in a few jump-cuts in a montage as well as some rhythmic cuts for some of the film’s humor. Production designer Brandon Tonner-Connolly and art director Andy Eklund do fantastic work with the look of Kumail and Emily’s different apartments as well as the home of Kumail’s family.
Costume designer Sarah Mae Burton does nice work with the costumes as it is largely casual with the exception of the traditional Pakistani clothing Kumail’s mother, sister-in-law, and some of the women he’s being forced to meet wear. Sound editor Tom Paul does superb work with the sound as it play into the atmosphere of the comedy clubs as well as the sounds of the hospital in the waiting room. The film’s music by Michael Andrews is wonderful for its low-key score that mixes elements of ambient music with some traditional Pakistani music to play into the two worlds that Kumail and Emily live in while music supervisor Joe Rudge provides a fun soundtrack that mixes elements of pop, indie rock, and country music as it would help provide moments where Kumail finds himself connecting with Emily’s parents.
The casting by Gayle Keller is great as it feature some notable small roles from Linda Edmond as one of several doctors watching over Emily, Vella Lovell as a prospective bride for Kumail that he would meet during the film’s second act after accidentally snubbing her during a meeting he was supposed to have, Rebecca Naomi Jones as Emily’s friend Jessie, Kurt Braunohler as Kumail’s aspiring-comedian flatmate Chris, Shenaz Treasury as Naveed’s wife Fatima, Aidy Bryant as a fellow comedian in Mary who is trying to develop her own routines about herself, and David Alan Grier in a small role as the comedy club emcee/owner who organizes the line-up for all of the performances. Adeel Akhtar is terrific as Kumail’s brother Naveed as the only person in Kumail’s family that tells him about Emily as he knows that Kumail isn’t trying to hurt anyone but reveals that the relationship with Emily could still have severe consequences. Bo Burnham is superb as the comedian CJ who is also trying to get his break but often has criticisms about others over routines he feel that are tired.
Anupam Kher and Zenobia Shroff are excellent as Kumail’s parents with Kher as the father who is more lenient about Kumail’s choices while Shroff’s role as the mother is a more traditionalist woman who just wants her son to find a nice Pakistani woman to marry. Holly Hunter and Ray Romano are brilliant as Emily’s parents with Hunter as the mother in Beth as someone who is more practical as she is concerned with making sure Emily is getting the best treatment while Romano is more reserved with some funny lines as well as giving Kumail advice on love as well as what he has to face as it relates to his parents. Zoe Kazan is amazing as Emily as a psychology grad student who heckles Kumail at a comedy club as she befriends and later falls for him while eventually falling ill as she later copes with the illness and the things that forced her to break-up with Kumail. Finally, there’s Kumail Nanjiani in an incredible performance in a semi-fictionalized version of himself as a stand-up comedian trying to get a break as he deals with Emily’s illness and his own fears of telling his parents about her as it’s a performance of great wit as well as humility when he learns about the seriousness of Emily’s illness.
The Big Sick is a sensational film from Michael Showalter. Featuring a great cast and a touching yet witty story about an interracial relationship that would grow stronger through a life-threatening event. It’s a film that definitely bring some new ideas to a genre that is in need of going into other directions as well as be a film that explore the idea of family and cultural traditions as well as how one person wants to follow his heart and not stray from traditional values. In the end, The Big Sick is a spectacular film from Michael Showalter.
Michael Showalter Films: (The Baxter) - Hello, My Name is Doris - (The Lovebirds (2020 film)) - The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2021 film) - (Spoiler Alert)
© thevoid99 2018
Directed by Michael Showalter and written by Showalter and Laura Terruso that is based on two short films by Terruso, Hello, My Name is Doris is the story of a woman in her 60s who falls for a much-younger co-worker as she tries to woo him as well as become independent from her family and older friends. The film is an exploration of a woman trying to put some spark in her life as she goes after a man who is young enough to be her grandson. Starring Sally Field, Max Greenfield, Tyne Daly, Beth Behrs, Natasha Lyonne, Stephen Root, Elizabeth Reaser, and Wendi McLendon-Covey. Hello, My Name is Doris is a delightful and charming film from Michael Showalter.
The film follows a shy and eccentric woman whose mother had just died as she falls for a new and much-younger co-worker in his 20s as she tries to figure out how to get his attention. It’s a film that explores a woman who is given a new jolt in life through this young man as she tries to understand what he likes and what he does while she is coping with the loss of her mother as well as being known as a hoarder of things she finds and brings to her home. The film’s screenplay by Michael Showalter and Laura Terruso shows the world that Doris (Sally Field) is in as someone who has collected so many things at her home as she wears quirky yet colorful clothes, sports a weave, and sometimes wears two glasses to read things. Yet, Doris lives alone despite the offer from her younger brother Todd (Stephen Root) to live at his home with his wife Cynthia (Wendi McLendon-Covey) and their two kids as well as sell the house.
Doris refuses as she spends much of her time with longtime friend Roz (Tyne Daly) who has spent much of her time raising her 13-year old granddaughter Vivian (Isabelle Acres) since her daughter is in prison awaiting a parole hearing. When Doris meets this young man in John Fremont (Max Greenfield), she falls head over heels for him as she turns to Vivian for help on things about him as well as creating a fake Facebook account and getting advice from a self-help guru. Learning about what music he likes and other interests, she does whatever he can to get to know him and be with him as there are these moments of fantasy into what Doris would see life with John is like yet she would have to contend with reality. Not only for the fact that she’s in her 60s and John is in his 20s but also other realities that include reasons into why she’s a hoarder and how this pursuit of John has alienated friends and family.
Michael Showalter’s direction is very straightforward as it opens with the funeral of Doris and Todd’s mother as it play into how odd Doris is in the way she looks as well as how she’s coping with the loss. Shot largely in Los Angeles though many of the exteriors are shot in New York City where the film is set, Showalter mainly goes for intimate compositions with the usage of medium shots and close-ups while exploring the world of modern-day New York City youth culture such as indie music, EDM, and other places that hipsters are known to frequent at. There are moments in the film where Showalter would create these moments of fantasy as it relates to Doris’ reaction towards John as it is playful. There are also moments in the film that showcase the humor very naturally such as the scene where Doris is eating dinner at Todd’s home where she’s wearing odd clothes because she’s about to attend a EDM concert with John later in the night. It’s among these weird moments that has Doris be part of a world she has no clue of what it’s about yet they would include her as they think she’s really cool. The film’s tone does change in the third act as it relates to not just the reality that Doris is facing about herself but also John and his own life as it’s filled with things that she doesn’t really know about him or what he wants in his life. Overall, Showalter crafts a charming and heartfelt film about a woman in her 60s who falls for a man in his 20s.
Cinematographer Brian Burgoyne does excellent work with the film’s cinematography as much of it is straightforward with the exception of the neon lights for the scenes at the EDM concert. Editor Robert Nassau does nice work with the editing as it is straightforward for much of the film with the exception of a few scenes such as Doris’ fantasies and a montage sequence of her dressing for a party. Production designer Melanie Jones, with art directors Catherine Devaney and Eve McCarney plus set decorator Karuna Karmarkar, does fantastic work with the look of the office floor that Doris and John work at as well as her home that is filled with all of these antiques and stuff she’s found over the years.
Costume designer Rebecca Gregg does brilliant work with the costumes from the colorful and offbeat clothes that Doris wears throughout the film as it adds so much to her character with everyone else being straightforward. Sound editor Tom Paul does terrific work with the sound as it is straightforward with the exception of the concert scene. The film’s music by Brian H. Kim is wonderful for its low-key score of soft orchestral and jazz-like pieces while music supervisor Andrew Gowan creates a fun soundtrack that features a mixture of EDM music and pop music to play into the different world and musical tastes of John and Doris.
The casting by Sunday Boling and Meg Morman is great as it feature some notable small roles and appearances from Jack Antonoff of Fun as the singer of the EDM band that John and Doris sees, Rebecca Wisocky as Doris’ boss, Kyle Mooney as band photographer, Rich Sommer as a young co-worker of Doris in Robert, Kumail Nanjiani as another young co-worker of Doris in Nasir, Natasha Lyonne as a co-worker of Doris in Sally, Don Stark as John’s uncle Frank who tries to flirt with Doris at a party, Isabelle Acres as Roz’s granddaughter Vivian who helps Doris know more about John, Caroline Aaron as a friend of Doris and Roz in Val, and Peter Gallagher in a terrific small role as the self-help guru Willy Williams. Beth Behrs is superb as a young woman named Brooklyn who is often seen with Jack during the film’s second-half while Elizabeth Reaser is fantastic as Doris’ psychiatrist Dr. Edwards as a woman that is trying to understand Doris as well as see the things in Doris’ home. Wendi McLendon-Covey is wonderful as Todd’s wife Cynthia who is always critical of what Doris has in her home as she would unknowingly push Doris’ buttons while Stephen Root is excellent as Doris’ brother Todd who is just trying to help her as well as express his own issues with her as it relates to their mother.
Tyne Daly is amazing as Roz as Doris’ longtime friend who is still dealing with the loss of her husband many years ago as she becomes baffled by Doris’ strange behavior as well as having to accept the fact that she is getting old. Max Greenfield is brilliant as John Fremont as a young man in his 20s who becomes a new superior for Doris as he is curious yet welcoming towards Doris’ presence as he admits to the difficulties he’s having in his life at work and in his personal life. Finally, there’s Sally Field in a spectacular performance as Doris as this woman in her 60s who falls for this young man as she tries to get his attention as it’s this incredible mixture of comedy and drama where Field just exudes this air of awkwardness and physicality to her performance as it’s really a master at work making it one of Field’s defining performances.
Hello, My Name is Doris is a remarkable film from Michael Showalter that features a phenomenal performance from Sally Field. Along with its ensemble cast, themes on aging and exploring new worlds, and moments that are funny and endearing. It’s a film that manages to be not just entertaining but also give audiences something full of heart in this exploration of a woman trying to nab a man that is much younger than her. In the end, Hello, My Name is Doris is a sensational film from Michael Showalter.
Michael Showalter Films: (The Baxter) – (The Big Sick) – (The Lovebirds (2020 film)) - The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2021 film) - (Spoiler Alert)
© thevoid99 2017
