Review: ‘The Marvels’ quickly flies to new heights
‘The Marvels’ follows the involuntary team-up of three superheroes connected by fate and who must join forces to stop a world destroyer.
After the mixed reception for Captain Marvel and the long delay of Black Widow, it felt like Marvel Studios took a step back from female-led blockbusters. However, with the launch of Disney+, they seemed unafraid to retest the waters on the small screen with the likes of She-Hulk, Ms. Marvel, WandaVision, and even Hawkeye and Loki to some degree. Now, it’s finally time to bring some of these characters up to the big league with an exciting superhero team up. In The Marvels, three super-powered women must join forces to stop a rival from destroying the galaxy.
Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani), a.k.a. Ms. Marvel, is working on her fan fiction when she suddenly finds herself on a spacewalk. Captain Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris) similarly finds herself transported into a fight in a spaceship, while Carol Danvers (Brie Larson), a.k.a. Captain Marvel, ends up in a suburban family home on Earth. Suddenly and unexpectedly, the three women’s powers are linked, causing them to switch places any time they use their abilities simultaneously — a problem they need to get a handle on quickly. In the meantime, the Kree have uncovered an ancient artifact they intend to use to restore their home world — by stealing essential resources from other planets to replace Hala’s depleted ones, leaving the donors uninhabitable.
Each of these brave women are unique and bring something different to the table. Carol is kind-hearted and well-intentioned, which means her errors weigh heavily on her shoulders. Monica is scientific and logical, making her a practical problem-solver who’d prefer to check emotions at the door. Kamala is a teenager obsessed with Captain Marvel who only recently unlocked her powers, but demonstrates hero qualities and an ability to make or accept the hard choices, even when they break her young heart. There’s some interesting dynamics between the trio as Monica has been avoiding her Aunt Carol and Kamala is meeting her superhero crush for the first time. But once these relationships are ironed out, they find they can work together in sync and complement each other’s abilities, generating some very exciting battle sequences.
On the flipside of their adventure is Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), who’s once again been tasked with caring for the Flerken Goose, while also ensuring the safety of Kamala’s family, who are very vocal about their conflicting feelings about Kamala’s mission. It’s part of the pleasure of seeing three diverse narratives united so seamlessly without losing any of their charms. And in opposition is Dar-Benn (Zawe Ashton), a desperate character willing to sacrifice anything and everything to save her people. In spite of her cruelty, her plight is meant to be pitiful as she feels she has no other choice — consequences be damned. Her actions are the result of a choice in which she will always choose the Kree over all, even herself — an admirable quality, even if misguided.
The film presents the typical mix of character development, action, humour and heart that fans have come to expect from Marvel movies. Notably, writer-director Nia DaCosta produces an impactful picture that skillfully weaves together these features in a snappy hour and 45 minutes, while adding a delightfully surprising musical element.
Director: Nia DaCosta
Starring: Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris and Iman Vellani
