Eternals

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ProfX
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Eternals

Post by ProfX »

Haven't seen it. Probably will, but I'm not rushing. Yes, I already know some things about the plot. No, I don't care about spoilers.

It's apparently a beautiful film, lots of existential questions, but apparently some fans don't like the way they let the acclaimed director take some arty deviations from the MCU formula.

I will just say this: I appreciate Feige and his team mining the lesser known Marvel properties. The problem is, that's tricky for marketing. Honestly, how many had even heard of the Eternals or could name any of them before the film's release? I'm a hardcore comics geek as you know :D , and I probably couldn't name most of them. I think this same thing hurt the Inhumans project, and I suspect Shang-Chi wouldn't have done as well without the coveted Chinese/Asian screen market. (Though I think it couldn't be shown in China proper, but was elsewhere in Asia, including Taiwan and Hong Kong.)

It really was a Jack Kirby passion project. He really was deeply into exploring this Von Daniken-ish idea that a lot of Earth mythology came from alien beings, which is why so many Eternals have the name of mythological gods or figures.

There's a plot twist key to the film. Yes, I know it, though I haven't yet seen it. No, I won't spoil it. Are the spoiler boxes working now? Don't even see the option for them. It has to do with the nature of the Celestials. But then, their role in the Marvel universe has always been sorta ... testy ... for a while.
"Don't believe every quote attributed to people on the Internet" -- Abraham Lincoln :D
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Libertas
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Re: Eternals

Post by Libertas »

ProfX wrote: Sun Nov 07, 2021 10:20 am Haven't seen it. Probably will, but I'm not rushing. Yes, I already know some things about the plot. No, I don't care about spoilers.

It's apparently a beautiful film, lots of existential questions, but apparently some fans don't like the way they let the acclaimed director take some arty deviations from the MCU formula.

I will just say this: I appreciate Feige and his team mining the lesser known Marvel properties. The problem is, that's tricky for marketing. Honestly, how many had even heard of the Eternals or could name any of them before the film's release? I'm a hardcore comics geek as you know :D , and I probably couldn't name most of them. I think this same thing hurt the Inhumans project, and I suspect Shang-Chi wouldn't have done as well without the coveted Chinese/Asian screen market. (Though I think it couldn't be shown in China proper, but was elsewhere in Asia, including Taiwan and Hong Kong.)

It really was a Jack Kirby passion project. He really was deeply into exploring this Von Daniken-ish idea that a lot of Earth mythology came from alien beings, which is why so many Eternals have the name of mythological gods or figures.

There's a plot twist key to the film. Yes, I know it, though I haven't yet seen it. No, I won't spoil it. Are the spoiler boxes working now? Don't even see the option for them. It has to do with the nature of the Celestials. But then, their role in the Marvel universe has always been sorta ... testy ... for a while.
Unrelated, ever heard of

https://gregdavies.co.uk/

He is damn funny, DAMN funny. Has a new sitcom from BBC called "The Cleaner"

it is on BRITBOX and nowhere else. Watch him on Netflix also in "Man Down"...sorry, I know this has nothing to do with "Eternals."

Checking now to see if "Eternals" is on HBO...NOPE...got spoiled there for a while, most of the new movies were on HBO...Missed you at RR, when you are not there I post less.
I sigh in your general direction.
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ProfX
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Re: Eternals

Post by ProfX »

Yeah, they are not letting Eternals go to stream, not even on Disney Plus.

Some of the RW hate hate it because, natch, it has a very diverse cast, racially and culturally diverse. That of course doesn't bother me at all. I think Zhao's work with Nomadland was amazing, it's shocking she agreed to do an MCU film, though I think this is a very different one. Again this doesn't bother me but it seems some diehard MCU fans don't like that it doesn't seem to stick to the "format" of earlier films.

BTW, I also haven't seen the new Bond film but I again know a key plot detail. It's not like no one's talking about it. Spoiler alert? Have you been living in a cave? I'll make small what I'm about to see next, you have to squint to read it.

Bond dies at the end of the film. I suspect this doesn't mean the end of that cash cow, the films have been going on for like what 60 years at this point, if James Bond was a real person he'd be in his dotage. :D I think it does mean the Daniel Craig as Bond swan song, he's said so in interviews. My guess is what happens next is they again soft reboot the character with the next actor, as they kinda did with the Craig bond too. And so he will live again, but in a new incarnation, so to speak. Rumors are the next Bond could be Afro-British. We'll see how the RW handles that.
"Don't believe every quote attributed to people on the Internet" -- Abraham Lincoln :D
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sam lefthand
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Re: Eternals

Post by sam lefthand »

James Bond isn't just a person, they are a function. As is Dr. Who, who isn't just a person, they are a function. As are US Marines who aren't just a host of persons, they are a function.

They can individually die as persons, but they don't die as functions.

:)
gounion
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Re: Eternals

Post by gounion »

sam lefthand wrote: Mon Nov 08, 2021 9:15 am James Bond isn't just a person, they are a function. As is Dr. Who, who isn't just a person, they are a function. As are US Marines who aren't just a host of persons, they are a function.

They can individually die as persons, but they don't die as functions.

:)
He's not a function. He's a FICTION. It's not real. It's made up. They can do whatever they want.
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ProfX
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Re: Eternals

Post by ProfX »

For once, I kinda got Sam's point. The difference is that unlike Doctor Who, there is no in-universe explanation like "regeneration" for why a dozen different actors/faces have had the role. They just switch over. Lots of things have happened to Bond onscreen, he's been captured, tortured, disowned, disavowed, but never ... well, you know. They ran out of Ian Fleming books a long time ago, however loosely the films were based on the novels, sometimes all they really used were the titles.

Good article on the future of the Bond franchise.

https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-a ... ime-to-die

BTW, I think the studio was pretty clear that the 60 year old cash cow isn't over, because at the end of the film it splashes "James Bond will return". But, uh, we just watched him ... well, you know.

It is the end of the Daniel Craig era. :D

Hell, they didn't even tease the idea that maybe he had a son, and the son "James Bond Jr." is going to take over the role of dear old da, like they seemed to be hinting in the Indiana Jones films.
"Don't believe every quote attributed to people on the Internet" -- Abraham Lincoln :D
gounion
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Re: Eternals

Post by gounion »

ProfX wrote: Mon Nov 08, 2021 4:21 pm For once, I kinda got Sam's point. The difference is that unlike Doctor Who, there is no in-universe explanation like "regeneration" for why a dozen different actors/faces have had the role. They just switch over. Lots of things have happened to Bond onscreen, he's been captured, tortured, disowned, disavowed, but never ... well, you know. They ran out of Ian Fleming books a long time ago, however loosely the films were based on the novels, sometimes all they really used were the titles.

Good article on the future of the Bond franchise.

https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-a ... ime-to-die

BTW, I think the studio was pretty clear that the 60 year old cash cow isn't over, because at the end of the film it splashes "James Bond will return". But, uh, we just watched him ... well, you know.

It is the end of the Daniel Craig era. :D

Hell, they didn't even tease the idea that maybe he had a son, and the son "James Bond Jr." is going to take over the role of dear old da, like they seemed to be hinting in the Indiana Jones films.
The simple truth is that it's all fiction, so they can do whatever they wish to do. Like in Star Trek, they rebooted with an all-new cast.

No one cares. If they like Bond movies, they won't care.
gounion
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Re: Eternals

Post by gounion »

Finally saw it! Don't need to post any spoilers, so don't worry.

I was... split on it. I enjoyed it. It was interesting, and a number of things happened I wasn't expecting. Now, to be clear, I paid NO ATTENTION to spoilers and stayed away from all that, since we ended up not seeing it when we had planned. I enjoyed the characters and story.

But how does this play out for the future of the MCU? Who knows? I don't see that it really fits. I mean, there was a BIG HAPPENING at the end. Why didn't any Avengers show up?

I think they really wanted to be artsy and get a Best Picture Oscar for an MCU movie, and that's not going to happen.

I did really like the gold power grid stuff, like the armor forming and the way Thena just conjured her weapons. Beautiful!
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ProfX
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Re: Eternals

Post by ProfX »

I finally saw it also.

I will spoil warn, though I think it is barely one.

The Celestials have made brief appearances in earlier MCU movies.

The only one we've really "met" extensively was Ego in GotG 2, although ... well, it's odd, he isn't one in the comics, but ... any way, in that film - spoiler? - he's Quill's dad, and basically ... a bit of a douche.

I think Ego was a hint, and they've definitely pretty much shown in the film, they don't necessarily have humanity's best interests at heart. The Eternals have pretty much avoided interaction with the Avengers or any other beings on the planet, just following their Celestial mission to protect humanity from deviants.

... until now, where obviously they can't just follow the Celestial agenda. This means they will, I think, start interacting with the larger MCU.

One of the post credit scenes is setting up Black Knight.
https://marvel.fandom.com/wiki/Dane_Whitman_(Earth-616)

P.S. notice any similarities between the gold energy tech the Eternals are using and Shang-Chi's golden rings? I did.
"Don't believe every quote attributed to people on the Internet" -- Abraham Lincoln :D
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