Iron Man and Captain America team up in The Avengers
The Avengers
A+
A Review by Frederick Cholowski
After prequel after prequel after prequel the long
awaited Avengers movie has finally arrived. Expectations are super high for
this massive mash up of Marvel superheroes. Fortunately, for the most part the
Avengers is a fantastic film that delivers on being a big bombastic action film
that is a blast to watch.
For the most part all you need to know about the Avengers
is that Thor’s grumpy, adopted, evil little brother Loki (Tom Hiddleson) is
going to try and rule the world (I mean because what else is he going to try
and do right) by opening a portal through a cube that is an infinite source of
energy and raining an army of wired alien creatures to destroy Manhattan. Sound
familiar? It’s up to good old Sam Jackson, I mean Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson
who finally gets to appear in more than two scenes) to assemble a team of
uncooperative super heroes that includes Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Captain
America (Chris Evans), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Hulk (Mark Ruffalo replacing
Edward Norton), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), and the often forgotten about
Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) to save the world. That’s pretty much all you need to
know.
While the Avengers boasts a simple plot the amazing thing
is that director Joss Whedon dose is manage to intertwine 6-7 separate storylines
and motivations into a single simple two and a half hour film that allows all
the characters to fill each of their respective roles. In other words he does
what the X men films have failed to do for year. Whedon succeeds by not trying
to give equal screen time to all the characters. The most interesting
characters are given the most screen time and for the most part carry the movie
(for example Robert Downey JR’s brilliant Iron Man eats up a ton of screen time
while Black Widow plays around in the background). The Avengers also surprisingly
manages to hit a number of interesting character moments that really help flesh
out the superheroes and their individual intentions. The one problem I have with
the film is that the some of the relationships feel out of place (while the
Hawkeye and Black Widow thing gives Jeremy Renner something to do it’s really
rushed, same with the whole Thor and Loki dysfunctional brotherly relationship)
and that some things aren’t really explained properly and rushed over (nuclear
energy weapons and Hulk can suddenly control himself say hi). Overall, these
things can be forgiven due to the fantastic pace and character control that is
kept up throughout the film.
Robert Downey Jr. rules this film, period. He is the
actor who gets the most screen time by far and it’s definitely for a good
reason, he absolutely is dazzling in every scene he is in. It’s also great to
see Sam Jackson being awesome (complete with eye patch and handgun) in a role
that manages to be more than an extended cameo. Here Nick Fury is the glue that
binds the dysfunctional characters together and who believes in them all. The surprise
of the film is Mark Ruffalo who is the best Hulk yet (even over the always
great Edward Norton). Ruffalo manages to bring a human nature to Banner that
has never been achieved in past Hulk outings. The rest of the cast all works
with no one feeling lost or out of place which is a true achievement in this
kind of film that could easily be an acting disaster.
When all is said and done the meat and potatoes of this film
is the action, and man does it ever deliver. The best part of the film is that
it ramps it up to 11 and never let’s go. Action scenes have a great pulse to
them and are constantly fun and energetic. The great thing about each scene is
that they are multi layered enough to hold interest but clear enough to follow
everything that is going on throughout the scenes. The cinematography is big
and wide open, always focusing at multiple things at a time. It really gives a
sense of scale in the bigger fight scenes and gives a certain feel to the
character moments that feel important and tense. The score is nothing special,
but neither does it get in the way as it provides big noises when big noises
are needed.
The Avengers Rocks, Period. While it’s not The Dark
Knight, it’s certainly is a game changer for big comic bookie superhero films
of the future. The expectation is now go big or go home while still keeping a
solid character basis. The Avengers is big, bombastic and really, really fun as
well as being a great start to the summer blockbuster season.
