N ote: This Review Is %100 Spoiler free.
Note: I read comics. But I’m not really going to talk much about the Marvel Universe and it’s relation to this movie. We’ll do that next week, once the films opened up worldwide. But to you geeks, and non geek out there: get prepared. ‘The Avengers’ is one of the all time greats; it’s a movie for the history books.
Yep. I’m still in awe of it.
If you had come to me ten years ago, and said that one day we would eventually see a true honest to god ‘Avengers’ film; I would have laughed in your face. If you had told me that it would be written and directed by Joss Whedon – and that it was one of the best blockbuster/comic book movies I’d ever see: I might have had a heart attack.
‘The Avengers’ is the real deal. A true piece of movie perfection.
During that time, that decade ago, the young comic book reader that was myself would never have imagined this day to arrive. How far things have changed since that time: Fox ruined ‘Fantastic Four’ (I mean, shit, Jessica Alba as Sue Storm!?), X – Men, Daredevil. The Marvel universe lay in tatters really. Spider-Man was doing okay (although it bastardized the origin) – until that third movie. Sheesh.
In the mid 2000’s I probably would have guessed that a WWE wrestler would eventually play Thor, Tony Stark would be played by Channing Tatum, and so forth. I would have never thought we’d even see ‘Captain America’ done properly.
And then Marvel studios happened. ‘Iron Man’ happened. And here we are.
There is a great moment early in ‘The Avengers’ where Tony Stark explains that if they never got their powers, then they would have died. That they owe their lives to their superhero personas. In particular the gamma blast that created the Hulk – if it didn’t alter Bruce Banner’s D.n.a structure, then it surely would have killed him. It’s the special things in life that we fight for.
During the 2007 Marvel Universe comic book run ‘Civil War’ ( In which a rift occurs between superheroes after the government forces them to reveal their identities); Aunt May explains to Peter Parker that life is not much more than a few good moments that we enjoy amongst a sea of bad ones that we have to endure.
Thank you Joss Whedon, you genius. I kneel before like I would to Loki; that is after all our “Natural Position.” Ha. That sounded pretty homo-erotic; but it’s a reference to a scene in the movie.
Anyway, that’s the way I feel about this movie. It was a long road to get here, but man did sitting through the crap really help me appreciate this truly special event. Think about it; if ‘Iron Man’ never happened – then this could never have been. We: the audience won. We supported true and great adaptations of comic books like ‘Iron Man’ and ‘Captain America’ and ‘The Dark Knight’ merely by going to see them and approving of them. We showed that if you do it right, then they will try to make them better.
We showed them that maybe it would be a good idea to get a comic book nerd to write and direct a movie with comic book characters in it. We showed them that not all comic book movies need to be made by a commercial director.
Without the years of support cinemagoers have given comic book cinema, then this magical movie just couldn’t exist.
And that is truly something special, especially in this day of cynical commercial garbage.
This movie is so far from cynical garbage that I might even go as far as saying that ‘The Avengers’ could be the film event of our generation. Never before (at least on this grand of a scale) have so many stand alone films/characters been brought together in one. It’s so fitting that ‘The Avengers’ be the first of it’s kind, since it’s comic book iteration is arguably the first of that medium’s kind. Anyway, I’m rambling…
Throughout the whole hype machine I was finding reasons to lower my expectations, I guess it’s because a movie like this is unprecedented and…well, the fact that the ‘Avengers’ even exists is nothing short of a miracle.
That it’s a masterpiece, that it is perfection, that it’s the best comic book film ever made – is nothing short of a cataclysmic event (almost) too much for my puny brain to handle.
Here’s some quick bullet points:
Best character and writing of any of the Marvel movies.
A perfect balance between all the characters
Interesting takes on some of the characters, particularly Hawk-eye.
You’ve seen nothing in the trailers
Best implementation of ‘Iron Man.’
It’s extremely funny. You will be surprised.
Some of the best action scenes in a few years. Where it’s not just shit blowing up, but actual set pieces involving tension and build. You know stuff like ‘Indiana Jones’ where you remember the Truck – it’s like that. A true sincere ‘SET PIECE.’
It’s just spectacular on every technical level.
Mark Ruffalo is the best Banner/Hulk on film. You forget about the other actors that played him.
It’s quite close to the true origin of ‘The Avengers.’
I’m not going to ramble on much further about the movie. It’s breathtaking. Hilarious. Touching in some parts. Joss Whedon has done a remarkable job.
In many ways Whedon has done the impossible. I like to think that he is the Neil Patrick Harris of this year. NPH was famous for ‘Doogie Howser’ and could never shake that. Then ‘How I met Your Mother’ happened, and he was reinvented. Whedon, not someone known for his cinematic skill, seemed to forever be known as a TV guy (an amazing TV guy mind you), and now flash foward to a bit later – he’s surely one of the biggest names in cinema.
Well he will be once ‘The Avengers’ has been seen.
Wait till you see it. The set pieces, the action and the writing, are just that good. There is a set piece in the middle of the film that is one for the ages. Well that and the entirety of the last act.
There isn’t a point in reviewing this movie, there isn’t even a point of going into detail about it. You’ll want to experience it for yourself.
And for the nerds: Maria Hill (played by Cobie Smulders) is featured in this movie – and she is done perfectly (in my opinion).
‘The Avengers’ is what happens when you get a nerd; a true comic book lover (and writer) to make your comic book movie.
Let’s not act surprised when we walk out of the cinema.
