THE sequel to the hit superhero movie 'Captain Marvel' from 2019 is finally out and it features two other super-powered heroines in a team-up that delivers action and comedy in a short runtime.
Carol Danvers a.k.a. Captain Marvel has to work with science whiz Monica Rambeau and bubbly teen fan-girl Kamala Khan after an incident in space sees the three switching locations with one another whenever they use their powers.
Monica and Kamala were introduced to viewers via the TV series 'Wanda Vision' and 'Ms Marvel' respectively, and all three share a link due to their light-based powers.
A looming threat appears in the form of Dar-Benn, the leader of the Kree race, bent on exacting revenge on Carol for the alleged destruction of her home world of Hala.
The grand plan is to steal the water, air and sunlight from a series of worlds beloved by Captain Marvel in order to rejuvenate the now barren alien planet.
To carry out the devious deed Dar-Benn has to retrieve the two all-powerful Quantum Bands, one of which Kamala has, to establish a network of portals.
Although 'The Marvels' contains all the elements (action, drama and comedy) of a typical fun Marvel superhero outing on the big screen, it somehow falls short when compared with previous works with more heart, such as the 'Guardians of the Galaxy' movies.
The cast try their best but the thin story and weak characterisations only serve to muddle the already uneven tone of the movie.
A lot of the crucial character-building was left in the background and only explained via exposition, which was a pity since it would have made the leads more endearing and viewers would have rallied behind them.
This led to dramatic moments, that were supposed to pull at the heartstrings, falling flat and seemingly empty.
In an extreme swing in the opposite direction were certain expected-to-be-funny bits and scenes that went into "jumping the shark" territory.
Some of these included a confounding song-and-dance routine and an elaborate scene involving a great number of felines.
Another weak link was the one-dimensional villain that did not inspire fear or prove to be much of a threat.
However, a standout from the movie was Karachi-born Canadian actress, Iman Vellani, who plays Kamala with wide-eyed exuberance.
Her positive energy, enthusiasm and engaging personality provided some much-needed excitement and warmth to balance out the many contrived proceedings.
Then there's the usual cameos and post credit scenes to look out for in order to get everyone hyped-up for the next product that's already coming in the pipeline.
Although 'The Marvels' is not as bad as some people might make it out to be, it's not that great, either.
And that's such a waste since these characters really do have the potential to shine, if only they were given more depth, emotional resonance and time to grow on viewers.
Unfortunately, 'The Marvels' is part of the current batch of assembly-line Marvel releases that's fun enough if you lower your expectations.
Check it out if you're a Marvel franchise completist.
NOW SHOWING
THE MARVELS
Directed by Nia DaCosta
Starring Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris, Iman Vellani, Zawe Ashton
Duration 105 mins
Rating P12
