“The Marvels” was released in the US on Nov. 10, 2023, and is one of the beginning installments of Phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU media released between 2023 and 2025).
The movie opens with Captain Marvel in space, a thrilling moment based on the reaction from the AMC audience in my experience. The conflict of the film becomes evident as a galactic jump point becomes stationary and, when touched, causes repercussions for the other two characters. Monica Rambeau, the daughter of Carol Danvers’ best friend Maria, is now an adult and an employee of Nick Fury with her own powers. The third protagonist is none other than Kamala Khan, known as Ms. Marvel from the Disney Plus series of the same name. She’s a Pakistani American teenager with an immense fan-girl obsession with Carol Danvers and all things Captain Marvel. In the series, she saved Jersey City from destruction and then peacefully returned to a life of slight normalcy, drawing comics as her parents and older brother Aamir yell for her to do her actual homework.
The movie continues on to show the deeper layers of the conflict by introducing the antagonist, a powerful leader named Dar-Benn. Her story begins with her uncovering a purple bangle, with similar properties seen in Kamala’s powers. We later learn that Dar-Benn’s purpose in the film is to restore her people, the Kree, to their home planet of Hala and restore the planet to its former glory. However, her methods of restoration are morally gray, and the film follows her journey as well as the juxtaposition between what she wants for the Kree people versus what the Marvels are trying to prevent.
The comical, energetic, and galactic experience of the Marvels provides a fun and dramatic film to the beginning of Marvel’s Phase 5, and begins to show the deeper nuances of beloved Marvel characters. The film includes notable appearances from Brie Larsen, Teyonah Parris, Iman Vellani, Zawe Ashton, Samuel L. Jackson, and cameos from Park Seo-Joon (“Parasite”), Gary Lewis (“Outlander”), and Randall Park (“Fresh off the Boat”).
