Eternals Review: 5 Ups & 5 Downs

2. The Mixed Bag Of Villains

If you thought the Deviants looked like generic CGI dog-monsters you've fought in at least a dozen different video games over the years, the final film won't much dissuade from that belief.

The MCU villain problem abounds once again in Eternals, for though the Deviants are slightly more complex than they first seem, for the most part they're presented as generic fantasy baddies.

The Celestial Arishem (David Kaye) proves a little more interesting, though naturally lacks much of a presence throughout the film for reasons that will be clear to anyone watching it.

Other villains can't really be discussed in any depth for the sake of spoilers, though the major third-act villain has such a painfully predictable and by-the-numbers arc that few are likely to be left fully satisfied.

Eternals' villains aren't nearly the worst the MCU has ever offered up, and there are definitely kernels of intrigue here, but due to the film's aforementioned scripting issues they don't feel utilised to anywhere near their full potential.