Big Picture Big Sound

First, on a positive note: "The Marvels" clocks in at a merciful 105 minutes. This is significant because most movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe run in the 150-minute-plus range in an effort to show their heft and import about all the generic battles to save the world. A movie's runtime shouldn't really matter - it all depends on how the time is used  - but for a movie like "The Marvels," it's best it got out quickly.

"The Marvels" is directed by Nia DaCosta ("Candyman," "Little Woods"), but like any movie in the MCU, it feels like test audiences and people in boardrooms directed it. There have been several good and even some great MCU films, but in the case of "The Marvels," it's never been more evident when one of the brand's movies has been hacked to bits. It makes for a very disjointed watch - which is why such a short runtime is ultimately a good thing here.

The biggest problem about "The Marvels" is how desperate it is to connect to the larger arc of the MCU, which might be great for diehard fans, but it has made the movies feel increasingly alienating. The MCU movies span 15 years and 33 movies and were once true event films. Think about the surprise of 2008's "Iron Man" and what a fun summer blockbuster it was. It made you excited for the next movie and the one after that, but now movies like "The Marvels" come with homework, which takes the fun out going to see them. If you aren't caught up with the endless amount of related Disney+ shows, you will be underwater with "The Marvels."

Brie Larson returns here as Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel. She teams up with Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel (Iman Vellani) and Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris) after they discover that their powers can swap with each other, which results from a bangle Dar-Benn (Zawe Ashton) has stolen. Carol, Kamala, and Monica have to team up to stop Dar-Benn and save the world from her destructive plans.

There are glimmers of the movie "The Marvels" desperately wants to be, but they always ends up buried in the safety of MCU sameness. DaCosta was an inspired choice as director, but no single director is ever allowed to have full control over their Marvel movie. It's evident that she is interested in the rapport between Carol, Kamala, and Monica, but any chance we get to spend time with the characters is drowned out by another indistinguishable set piece, which are often edited so bizarrely that it feels like some connective tissue is missing.

The three actors have a fun rapport together and work overtime to liven things up. Vellani brings an infectious teenage spirit to Ms. Marvel, while Parris is afforded some emotional depth with her backstory. Larson gives a contractually obligated performance, which is disheartening because she is such a talented and emotional actress, who should be spending her time doing movies like "Room," which won her an Oscar eight years ago. And of course, Samuel L. Jackson's Nick Fury dips in and out to react and provide one-liners.

As superhero fatigue continues to take over, "The Marvels" is going to feel like a dot on a larger canvas. It's inoffensive, but messy and bogged down by being the 33^rd film in a series. Where does the MCU go from here? That's for millionaires in suits to decide, but a word of advice: Less is more.