Credit: Marvel StudiosAs the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) continues to expand its horizons, the latest installment The Marvels brings back familiar faces and introduces new ones, creating a dynamic trio of superheroes – Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel (Brie Larson), Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris), and Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel (Iman Vellani).
The film has been incredibly divisive amongst fans for months, as Brie Larson has been one of the most controversial figures in the MCU since Captain Marvel was released in 2019. While co-star Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury) has defended Larson from the “incels,” it didn’t stop fans from sharing their low expectations of the female-led sequel that has since become the highest-grossing film led by a Black female director.
On reddit, user u/imnothornyiswearr posted a thread titled “You guys are tripping, The Marvel’s movie was great.” “Thoroughly enjoyed every scene of the movie and felt like every joke landed,” they continued, “I liked Brie Larson’s acting all around except for the tears/crying scene.” One notable point of contention raised by the Reddit reviewer was the film’s length. “Only real criticism is the length. It is obvious scenes were cut out last minute and context suffered a bit, Easy B+ movie”.
You guys are tripping. The Marvel’s movie was great
byu/nothornyiswearr inMarvel
The comments agreed that while the movie as a whole was not bad, there were certain elements missing that would have improved the film in their eyes. As u/blacksad1 remarked, “My only criticism is that I would have liked a larger action piece featuring Capt Marvel, but by no means does that make this a bad movie.”
u/avi150 added, “Could have used a better villain. If they adapted a more popular comic villain, the movie would have done better. Didn’t care for the plot but I actually liked the action scenes.”
Many pointed out that it felt like there was missing content from the movie. Some wanted another larger action setpiece for the trio of Marvels to show off their powers. Others thought there was a missed opportunity for more story surrounding the newest heroes, Monica and Ms. Marvel.
“I think it’s a good idea to to view The Marvels as the *proper* introduction for Carol and Monica,” u/COG-85 said. “There’s a bit from CM1 that you need to know, but if the movie was like, 40 minutes longer that exposition could’ve been added.”
It’s important to note that The Marvels underwent several weeks of reshoots after disappointing early screenings. It’s entirely possible that the feeling of “missing content” may have been a result of the reshoots. The film is also the shortest Marvel movie released within the last few years, a point of contention and discussion among fans.
As with some of the more recent releases, The Marvels received mixed reviews from critics as well. Rotten Tomatoes reported a 62% approval rating, while Metacritic assigned the film a score of 50 out of 100, and CinemaScore gave it a “B” grade, which tied it with other MCU entries for the lowest score.
While Marvel Studios may have expected a lot more from their newest film, Nia DaCosta’s Captain Marvel sequel still managed to claim the top spot at the box office upon release. It has now officially become the highest-grossing theatrical release of all time directed by a Black woman, with earnings reaching $110 million.
Unfortunately the following weekend saw the largest box office drop for any Marvel movie and the second largest overall for a super hero film, which follows the same disappointing drop that Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania experienced earlier this year.
Clearly, The Marvels isn’t the saving grace the Marvel Studios needed to come back from its recent flops. However, according to fans, it was at least an enjoyable and fun addition to the MCU that really only seemed to suffer from its shorter runtime despite its issues behind the scenes.
What did you think of The Marvels? Did you enjoy it? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!