Eternity – REVIEW

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It might be idealistic, but many couples truly believe they marry for life, or at least a very long time. Of course, every marriage has its challenges – as our editor can attest, after a memorable evening when he jokingly told his wife there were other options, only to be playfully reminded that better options exist for her too! The story follows Joan (Elizabeth Olsen), who has been married to her second husband, Larry (Miles Teller), for many years. Now an elderly couple, they attend a modern gender reveal party where Larry tragically chokes on a pretzel – some people will go to any lengths to avoid such events.

Larry finds himself in a strange, retro-futuristic center where ‘Afterlife Consultants’ help people choose where they’ll spend eternity. There isn’t just one afterlife, but many different worlds to pick from – like a beach paradise, a wild west realm, or even a world without men! However, newcomers only have a week to decide, and once they choose, they’re stuck there forever – trying to leave results in a sort of nothingness. Luckily, Larry is soon joined by his wife, Joan. Unfortunately, so is Joan’s first husband, Luke, a soldier who died in Korea and has been waiting for her for decades. Now, Larry wonders which of them Joan will choose to spend eternity with?

I was completely blown away by the performances! With only three actors, each one was just incredible in their role. The script, which director David Freyne co-wrote, is fantastic – it reminded me of classic films like ‘A Matter of Life and Death’ and those feel-good movies by Frank Capra, and even a little bit of ‘Brief Encounter’. Especially in the first two acts, it was really moving and thought-provoking, with a slightly sad but beautiful feeling. What really lifted things were John Early and Da’Vine Joy Randolph – their comedic timing was perfect, and honestly, Da’Vine Joy Randolph is absolutely brilliant here, it’s some of her best work I’ve seen in ages as one of the men’s agents.

The third act feels slow and prevents the story from taking a more daring turn. It seems the filmmakers may have chosen a safer ending, possibly due to studio interference, even though it doesn’t quite fit with the carefully constructed world they created. However, this story would be perfect for a stage adaptation.

Here’s the Eternity trailer….

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2025-12-05 16:23