The Marvels (2023)
…………………………………………………
The Marvels Movie Review
The Marvels is a 2023 superhero film directed by Nia DaCosta and starring Brie Larson, Teyonnah Parris and Iman Vellani. It’s a fun, but messy movie.
………………………………………………….
“Confusion is the first step to knowledge“
………………………………………………….
………………………………………………….
Carol Danvers gets her powers entangled with those of Kamala Khan and Monica Rambeau, forcing them to work together to save the universe. This is the 33rd entry in the MCU and one of the weakest so far. In a year where the studio released the mediocre ‘Quantumania’, this film now begs the question whether or not they are even capable of making a decent movie anymore.
What was the point of this film? The superhero genre has an audience that is by and large male, so the studio’s insistence to make female-driven stories feels ill-fitting in the least, but downright foolish when you take into account the financial outcome that was eventually quite grim in this instance. The Marvels has, thus, been their worst idea from a business standpoint so far.
But watching it on its own terms, it also doesn’t work. I haven’t watched a single Marvel show nor do I intend to, so I couldn’t quite follow the story here. The choice to make them connected was a horrendous one as movies shouldn’t require homework, especially not homework that is not on the big screen.
As a fan of ‘Captain Marvel’, I was highly disappointed to see her reduced role in this sequel that is definitely not hers. That was another terrible idea that did not work. Carol here also felt different and somewhat subdued both in personality and in her powers, which was so annoying to witness. Monica is fine herself and I did like Kamala quite a bit, but I would have preferred a film about Carol only. Marvel’s insistence to introduce so many new characters to the roster constantly is another baffling one.
………………………………………………….
………………………………………………….
There is a lot of fun to be had in this film that actually has its solid entertainment factor in regards to fun action, for once a short runtime and a breezy pace and approach. The dynamic between the actresses and their respective characters is playful and amusing and the movie was at its best when it focused on said relationships. The energy here is definitely very feminine, which did not bother me personally, but again it goes to show that Marvel doesn’t know who their target audience is. The VFX are mediocre as always and so is the villain, but the ‘Star Trek’-inspired storyline was at times interesting, though extremely underbaked and underexplained.
The core demographic of superhero movies are men, so Marvel’s insistence to make female-driven product continues to be baffling. The Marvels isn’t just female-centric, but it’s also very feminine in its overall energy, which was a terrible choice from the business standpoint, leading to a box office bomb. Watching the movie on its own terms I also noticed other horrible decisions across the board with the worst one being the film’s dependence on shows, which made it incoherent for anybody who hasn’t watched these MCU shows. Films should not require homework. Another bad idea was the choice to sideline Carol and introduce new characters to the MCU roster that has by now become way too big. I did find the dynamic between the three actresses and their respective characters fun and charming. The movie is breezy, refreshingly short and quite interesting in its Star Trek-inspired storytelling, but it was way too messy in its rushed narrative, underexplained scenarios and a general lack of purpose.
My Rating – 2.5
Results
