I’ve seen nearly 80 movies already this year. There are a few that have really stuck out in a positive way, like that time Warfare had me glued to my seat during the entire runtime or that time I saw How to Train Your Dragon on a giant screen in Caesar’s Palace. My favorite movie of the year (so far) snuck up on me unexpectedly at a recent screening, and I’m surprised a slew of critics aren’t on the same wavelength.
The movie? It’s Eternity, a quirky rom-com starring Elizabeth Olsen, Miles Teller and Callum Turner that’s part of A24’s release schedule this year. The flick is about a woman who dies and is taken to a sort of waiting area for the afterlife, where she must choose to remain with her deceased partner of many decades or her young love who died at war before they had a chance to blossom. I saw the film a couple of weeks ago, and while some critics have found things to nitpick over, I’m still thinking about the sweet story and what it has to say about love over the long haul.
It’s also simply one of the best rom-coms I’ve seen in years. The last time I think I was jonesing to rewatch a romance movie this much was probably 2013’s About Time. Yes, some great rom-coms have come out since then, but this one really just struck a chord with me in an immense way, and I hope audiences find it as darling, funny, and sometimes bittersweet as I did.
However, some critics don’t seem to be wholly on the same page. A few called the movie “lacking in profundity” (In Review Online) or called the love triangle “patronizing” (Mark Reviews Movies). Literally in the middle of writing this piece, a new review dropped, knocking Eternity from 80% down to 79%. I’d expect the score to change a bit as more and more people have the opportunity to see the movie. I’m hoping that’s more for the positive!
Of course, 79% still means the majority of people who reviewed the flick liked it. Still, the negative reviews are the opposite of my experience watching the movie, and I’m a little bit baffled. It’s rare we get such an odd story that hits on so many sentimental notes, and I just loved the tone, cast, story, and even the world building hints we got.
I could totally see not feeling the movie is perfect. Spectrum Culture’s Alan Zilberman mentioned the movie was “overstaying its welcome,” and that’s a comment I can understand as the film did go on a bit longer than I’d initially thought it was going to. Regardless, and without getting into spoilers, the final few minutes were so satisfying, that little blip didn’t bother me much.
Eternity hit the 2025 movie release schedule on November 14th, but is opening wide in time for Thanksgiving weekend. Hopefully, a slew of people will see it and fall in love with it the way Callum Turner fell in love with Dua Lipa.