The Marvels

The Marvels is a horrible movie, and here’s my attempt to explain why without letting the movie’s bad publicity and my preconceived notions of the film infect my decision.

First, it’s a poorly written superhero movie. The plot is essentially to find the villain and take away her powers before she unleashes her final world-ending plan. Good superhero movies employ what’s known as the “fatal flaw.” Heroes are often too powerful, and from a storytelling standpoint, they need a “fatal flaw” that negates their powers. The villain exploits that flaw, and the hero has to find a way to overcome personal shortcomings to win in the end. No such flaw exists here.

I take that back. Carol has a flaw, but we don’t discover it until halfway through the film, and this flaw manifests itself in not wanting to see Monica and suffer through an awkward reunion. Hardly the stuff character is built upon. This “conflict” felt petty as full-grown Monica still can’t get over Carol leaving her and her mother behind to save the universe.

Without the fatal flaw, the story is about moving from story point A to B to C until the final stand-off with Dar-Benn. Fatal flaws are important because these shortcomings are ways that audiences can connect with the powerful hero…especially because the average person doesn’t have superpowers of their own.

“…clearly made and produced by people who have never read a Marvel comic book but read Archie instead.”

When you’re unable to connect with the audience from a character standpoint, The Marvels decides to connect with audiences with flashing lights and nostalgia. There are a few cameos that you may or may not care about. There’s a planet where its inhabitants communicate through musical numbers. How about action and fight sequences that feel like cartoon (not comic book) action? Lastly, there’s an army of kitty cats. All The Marvels has to offer are jokes, cartoon fight scenes, and flashy images.

I suppose the heart of the film is the relationship between Kamala, Monica, and Carol. Kamala acts like a star-struck teen, and Iman Vellani’s take on Ms. Marvel is not half-bad. Her relationship with her family is adorable and heartfelt. There’s a moment when Captain Marvel yells at Ms. Marvel during a stressful battle. The way they resolve hurt feelings made me feel like I’m in an HR meeting… “I’m sorry for making you feel [insert bad feeling]”…”Thank you. Let’s hug.”

For comic book fans, let me say there’s a secret Carol is hiding that makes her look like an overpowered monster. I’m talking about Dark Phoenix-type-level destruction. The difference here, though, is Jean Grey paid for her sins.

In the end, The Marvel is a superhero movie clearly made and produced by people who have never read a Marvel comic book but read Archie instead. It feels like it was made for teen girls and not for actual comic book fans.