Aaand with that, here’s another mid asf MCU movie. Kyu hi banate hai ye log saal mein itni saari movies. Ek taraf Loki ka finale, aur doosri taraf yeh, such contradictory pieces of content in a single day. Now I won’t lie, the trailer had given me some hope ki movie at least decent toh hogi. But, my god the movie disappoints bigggg time. “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” felt like a wake-up call, and “Secret Invasion” didn’t exactly set the streaming world ablaze. Despite a glimmer of hope with “Loki” Season 2, “The Marvels” can’t quite shake off the fatigue of producing 78 movies in a year. Despite the anticipation, the film falls short of expectations, delivering a broken narrative and visual experience that leaves much to be desired. What a waste man.
Plot
So, what’s the deal with the plot? Well, our trio – Captain Marvel, Ms. Marvel, and the ever-electrifying Monica Rambeau – are up against Zawe Ashton’s Dar-Benn, a Kree with a vendetta. But when the story attempts to inter-twine the storylines of all of our three leads, it starts to fck up. Dar-Benn gets hold of a magical bangle (yes, THAT bangle) and out of nowhere, powers get swapped like trading cards, and everyone’s playing a cosmic game of musical chairs. The result? A narrative mess that even Tony Stark’s genius couldn’t untangle. The only positive from the movie is the cameo in the mid-credits scene. It is a ray of sunshine in the storm, hinting at potential excitement in the Marvel multiverse.
Performances
Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris, and Iman Vellani all bring their distinctive features to their roles, but the entire narrative is so chaotic ki the character arc goes missing. Larson’s spiky coolness battles for attention with Parris’s warmth, but it is Iman Vellani who tries her best to bind it all. Kinda a shame how a young actor had to do it when everyone else in the movie was almost double her age. How long can she hold it all alone? And what about the chemistry? Oh, it’s there, but it’s like trying to find your keys in a cluttered bag – you know it’s in there somewhere, but the search is exhausting.
Direction and Writing
NGL, I had pretty high expectations from Nia DaCosta. You’ll know what I’m talking about if you have watched Candyman. But even she fails to bring a unique perspective to the movie and ends up with the same ghisa-pita superhero plot. And what is that editing??? The only way to describe it is by imagining Moose being given a cotton pillow to play with. Simply messy. The writing tries to be all cool by weaving a complex plot, but shayad writers khud hi beech mein confuse hogaye. Why cram so many characters in one movie? Good luck trying to connect the dots between characters and past MCU events Good luck – you might need Doctor Strange’s help.
Screenplay and Cinematography
The screenplay suffers from an overload of plot elements, and if you’re not an OG jisko pura MCU rata hua hai, good luck trying to make sense of everything. The VFX is also very gimmicky, especially during Ashton’s Dar-Benn introduction. It looked like college kids edited that scene for a project. The cinematography is decent overall, but it is after all, a series of green screen shots for most of the parts. Also, forgive me but I’m gonna rant once again about the editing. Remember when you used to not pay attention for a moment in your maths class and the teacher would literally be done with the chapter? Bass waise hi if you miss a beat, you might find yourself in a parallel universe. It is THAT bizzare. Bruh how do none of the technical aspects land well?
In the end, “The Marvels” is another forgettable MCU project. Marvel Studios needs to hit pause, regroup, and rediscover the magic that made us fall in love with the MCU. Until then, this misstep is a mediocre addition to Marvel’s directory. 2024 seems to be a better year cuz less projects and the ones that are there are pretty hyped up. Here’s hoping the next Marvel adventure brings more thrill than head scratches. Skip this movie. And for the MCU fans jinhe dil par paththar rakh kar ye movie dekhni padegi, I’m sorry!
