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The first compliment that Eternity deserves is its coloring. It is, perhaps, the first film in recent memory to embrace a full spectrum of vibrancy without heavy-handed filtering or curation. The wardrobe, the set, the title cards— every color is allowed, and each in full radiance. From this perspective, it was a pleasure to watch from start to finish.

The second compliment is to the creative premise of the film and a largely successful attempt at pulling it off. The description of the film puts it aptly:

“In an afterlife where souls have one week to decide where to spend eternity, Joan is faced with the impossible choice between the man she spent her life with, and her first love, who died young and has waited decades for her to arrive.”

It would have been easy to get lost in the weeds of world-building and rule-setting in this kind of narrative, but the logic of it all holds relatively firm. They keep the story simple enough to make it feel small and local, rather than large and complex.

The third compliment is to the leads, Mrs. Olsen and Mr. Teller, who carry the weight of the film with their respective performances. While the chemistry between them may not have been stellar, they certainly did a phenomenal job individually, often carrying others in the cast who were, unfortunately, not as convincing as themselves.

Finally, I give my applause to the end of the movie, which will have to remain a secret. I thought I knew exactly where it was going but was proved wrong… multiple times. Although the pacing of the film in the second and third act made me very concerned that it would not stick the landing, I think it does so with satisfying results.

All in all, an enjoyable film that had me in my feels. While I am not rushing to see it again in this lifetime, I’m not mad I watched it once. Should you find yourself in a theatre with no exit, you won’t regret purchasing this ticket to the Other Side in order to kill a few hours.