Rafael "Parker!!" Jovine’s review published on Letterboxd:
Coming into this movie I was beyond intrigued, both because for quite some time Kevin Feige himself hailed this movie as the best film of the MCU; but also by the fact that to almost everyone's surprise, this ended up being the worst rated movie of the whole MCU.
And to be honest, until the third act, I had no idea why so many people disliked the movie. Although the action is not at the same level as other installments, it is still enjoyable. To a certain extent, our heroes' romance and relationship was sweet and engaging. The ideas raised are intriguing enough to pique my interest, and I'm interested in the rectifications in the Marvel universe and superhero movies as a whole. For example, does this movie confirm that Superman exists in the Marvel universe and is he a fictional character or a real one? Furthermore, as a Chloe Zhao film, the cinematography is excellent, and the director's style is very present and makes the film feel rather special.
Unfortunately as many have pointed out, you can feel its two and a half hour runtime. I think this was the first time I've ever almost fallen asleep in one of the MCU movies. Nothing really felt as exciting as it should. The mid-credits scenes are also pretty good once you dig a little deeper, like the appearance of a special voice that I didn't notice until I watched a video explaining who and what it was. Because these two reveals are rather obscure, they left everyone in my screening cold.
All in all, this film has a lot of positives, including the performances by everyone and the technical work, but unfortunately Zhao's understated direction and lack of any genuine form of emotion will surely put many to sleep. Say what you will about "Iron Man 2" and "Thor: The Dark World," they were at least entertaining.
TODAY SCHEDULE
Blood Tea and Red String
Night Teeth
Amazing Stories's Go To The Head of the Class
Eternals
