Review of Eternity, a somewhat bittersweet romantic comedy

Eternitythe new film A24 benefits from the solid interpretations of its leading trio composed of Elisabeth Olsen, Milles Teller and Callum Turneras well as specific interventions from a Da’Vine Joy Randolph which, as always, introduces a touch of pepper that makes it more sparkling.

The film opts for a mix of genres in which fantasy, romance and comedy win in this order, being somewhat uneven in its development as it oscillates with a certain indecision from drama to humor without seeming to have a very clear idea of ​​which outcome to opt for.

After all, it’s a story that seeks to talk about everything openly: intimacy, affection, sex, complicity and expectations (everything that concerns a relationship that aspires to perpetuity) without losing a touch of sweetness that makes it, at the very least, special and unusual.

Together forever and we will never be apart

Joan and Larry shared a life together: they met after she was widowed after losing her husband in Korea, and they had children together, living through the good and the bad until Larry choked on a pretzel and died almost instantly.

When he suddenly finds himself traveling on a train to the “beyond”, he doesn’t know what to think or what he should do. You only get one answer: your CMA, i.e. your Afterlife Advisor, will give you all the information you need. For now, he will have to stay in this limbo until he makes the decision that will mark his eternity: where he wants his soul to rest forever… and with whom.

His wife Joan, sick with terminal cancer, appears in front of him a week later, just as he is preparing to wait for her on the paradisiacal beach similar to the one they wanted to visit in their lives.

What she doesn’t suspect is that her ex-husband Luke has been waiting for her for 64 years with the tempting opportunity to allow her to live an experience completely different from the one she had with Larry. Joan still feels a huge attraction to him and a great curiosity about the possibility of reconnecting with the person who was her first great love, so it won’t be easy for her to decide what to do when she is forced to make a firm decision.

Eternity It was part of the “black list” of the best unproduced films of 2022. From then on, the project in which Elisabeth Olsen and Milles Teller participate not only as protagonists, but also as executive producers, was rescued.

As we said, it’s a pleasant film that doesn’t tend to opt for politically incorrect solutions. Many aspects of the film were created based on its own mythology without taking technological advances into account, which gives it a very retro feel but also a certain timeless quality..

Thus, the souls travel by train to the CMA meeting centers and the appearance they present corresponds to the happiest moment of their lives. They temporarily live in hotel rooms, but have to work if they don’t decide on a path to transcend.

The possible scenarios for staying forever are offered in a kind of exhibition where the wonders of each person are talked about and where free experiences are offered, etc. It’s a good idea to give ideas this form because it makes them as intelligible and physical as the “tunnel library” where memories are kept, recreated in a theatrical way on painted backgrounds.

It is also true that there are many decisions that do not seem well justified or a little strange: how is it possible that the afterlife is more limited than reality? Why are there red doors if it is forbidden to pass through them? How does “deregistration” of a world work if it runs its course? Most of them get no response and leave a feeling of premeditated ambiguity, something similar to what they made us feel recently. A big, bold and wonderful journey. The film uses an original formula to create character studies.

Without being perfect, Eternity It’s a charming film, which leaves a mark and opens up debates. Would we make the same decisions when faced with these dilemmas? But most of all, are we prepared for life after death?