13 Awesome Performances In Otherwise Disappointing 2021 Movies

Eternals, the bitterly disappointing 26th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, assembled a fantastic cast, but as many other films have shown, a great cast doesn't mean the film is going to be great.

And indeed, Eternals was a poorly-written, overlong and thoroughly dull slog. It was full of interesting ideas, but the screenplay is so flat and robotic that the story never comes to life. Similarly, most of these incredible actors give oddly blank performances, since the script gives them little to work with.

The big exception is Bryan Tyree Henry, who plays Phastos (who is one of the Eternals). Henry is the one performer in the film who really feels human and he sticks out in the best possible way as a result. While the other actors make little impression, he does a fantastic job of filling the scenes he's in with emotion and rises above the limitations of the script.

Honestly, most of the time when Eternals feels truly alive is when Henry is on-screen, so he really deserves credit for his wonderful work. It's especially nice to see him do so well considering that this was the same year he was wasted on an infuriating comic relief character in Godzilla Vs Kong.