Eternity – Review and Summary

Eternity has A24 present another question about love, with the focus this time being about choosing the fantasy in your head, the “What If?”, or the reality you are familiar with.

ByAmari Allah Hours Posted on Hours Updated on

Spoiler Alert: This summary and review contains spoilers.

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“Eternity” Film Details

  • Director(s): David Freyne
  • Writer(s): Patrick Cunnane, David Freyne
  • Distributor: A24
  • Runtime: 1 Hour(s) and 52 Minutes
  • Public Release Date (In Theaters): November 26, 2025
  • Genre(s): Comedy, Fantasy, Romance
  • Content Rating: Rated PG-13
  • Primary Language: English
  • More Information (External Link)

Movie Summary

For 65 years, Larry and Joan were married, and together they had kids, grandchildren, and built a life together. Sadly, Larry died first, Joan a week or two later, and while both thought they would spend eternity with one another, then enters Luke, Joan’s first husband, 67 years ago, who died in the Korean War.

From that point on, Joan finds herself torn between the man she did everything one could do with and the man she didn’t have a chance to. And to make matters worse, she has only a week to decide between the two.

Cast and Characters

35 Year Old Larry (Miles Teller) & Older Larry (Barry Primus)

  • Character Summary: Larry may not be a war hero, but he’s a good guy. The kind that made sure his family was good, kids provided for, and while he may complain a lot, and enjoy pretzels too much, he was always solid.

Joan (Elizabeth Olsen) & Older Joan (Betty Buckley)

  • Check out other productions we’ve covered starring Betty Buckley: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
  • Check out other productions we’ve covered starring Elizabeth Olsen: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
  • Character Summary: Joan is old school. She married young, started a family, and built a life, but not with her first husband but her second. That left some version of guilt, questioning, maybe longing, but the reality is that Larry was there, accepted Luke’s eternal presence, and was a good man. It’s just, is he someone to spend eternity with?

Luke (Callum Turner)

  • Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
  • Character Summary: Luke was the hottest guy around. Tall, dreamy eyes, everything you’d imagine a man being by definition. Unfortunately, though, he died in the Korean War and decided to wait 67 years for Joan to die too so they could be reunited.

Anna (Da’Vine Joy Randolph)

  • Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
  • Character Summary: Anna is an afterlife coordinator who is assigned to Larry and she finds him interesting to the point of not treating him as just another client to push along, but someone to genuinely invest in.

Karen (Olga Merediz)

  • Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
  • Character Summary: Karen has been Joan’s friend since Luke was alive, and is presented as the third option if she doesn’t choose Luke or Larry to spend eternity with.

Ryan (John Early)

  • Check out other productions we’ve covered starring this actor: [Link to Actor’s Tag]
  • Character Summary: Ryan is Joan’s afterlife coordinator who actively advocates for Joan to be with Luke.

What To Expect In “Eternity” (Rated PG-13) – Content Overview

  • Dialog:
    • Cursing: Occasional
  • Sexual Content:
    • Nudity: Non-Sexual
    • Sexual Situations: Implied
  • Miscellaneous:
    • Drinking: Yes
    • Smoking: Yes

Review and Commentary

Highlight(s)

You End Up Just As Torn As Joan [83/100]

Thankfully, Eternity doesn’t make it seem like choosing between Luke and Larry is a simple decision. It is made clear that with Luke, there are a lot of “What Ifs?” since he died young, and because he dies young, there is a lot of nostalgia, which allows him to be perfect. And granted, in terms of flaws, the movie doesn’t reveal any, but there is a reminder that maybe he was perfect for that time in Joan’s life, but maybe not who she became.

Then with Larry, she chose to have a family and spend 65 years with this man – nearly her entire life, and yes, he complains a lot, and maybe isn’t as classically handsome as Luke, but he was the man of Joan’s life. He did what he could to make things easier, better for her, and was an active father. Larry was far from perfect, but his imperfections allowed Joan to exist in a way where she knew any love exchanged between them wasn’t from one façade or persona to another, but between two real, messy, and sometimes flawed people.

In many ways, like fellow A24 film Materialists, there is a push to re-examine what love looks like and should be, especially when considering your forever person. Does it need to check off all the boxes, be perfect, or some version of it, or is it about the effort put in, earning that ease, and having someone who may not live up to the fantasy but makes reality feel less cruel?

On The Fence

The Rules and Consequences Of The Afterlife Are Murky Sometimes [78/100]

Eternity does its best to explain the majority of questions you may have quickly, and often it can feel like a cop-out. For example, why is everyone either in their single digits or maybe mid-thirties at most? Because you look like who you were when you were your happiest – and it seems most people don’t reach peak happiness when 40+ – outside of Karen, Joan’s friend. As for whether there is a God or a true religion? Who knows? But you can pick an eternity where others who believe there is will be there with you.

Then, when it comes to eternities, why can’t you go from one to another? How can any, like the one without men, become full? Never mind, if they can get full, what are the sizes of these eternities? Heck, when it comes to afterlife coordinators, like Anna and Ryan, how did that job start? How many people have turned the transit hub from death to eternity into their final destination, and what are their stories?

Anna hints what happened while she was alive, but Ryan doesn’t. And it isn’t really answered what happens to those who don’t want to work but also don’t choose an eternity either. Which all aren’t big time, ruins the movie, type of questions, but it does leave you with something to think about, potentially longer than Joan’s decision and why she made it.

Overall

Our Rating (80/100): Positive (Worth Seeing)

Eternity is unique, as are most with the A24 label, but also like most of their films, there are lingering questions which don’t take away from the experience, but can leave you thinking more about what wasn’t said and done than what happened.

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Amari is the founder and head writer of Wherever-I-Look.com and has been writing reviews since 2010, with a focus on dramas and comedies.