Here in the UK, Avengers has been in theaters for two weeks, and I have seen the movie twice already. It is incredibly fun and a great summer blockbuster and I really enjoyed it. But I have to say that this is not my favorite Marvel movie and definitely not the best of them, but it is definitely not the worst either. In fact it is probably the best of the second tier of Marvel movies. Here is how I would order the marvel movies:
1. Captain America: The Winter Soldier (5/5)
2. The Avengers (4.85/5)
3. Iron Man (4.8/5)
4. Guardians of the Galaxy (4.5/5)
5. Avengers Age of Ultron (See bottom)
6. Iron Man 3 (4/5)
7. Thor (3.75/5)
8. Thor The Dark World (3.5/5)
9. The Incredible Hulk (3/5)
10. Captain America (2.5/5)
11. Iron Man 2 (2/5)
After getting that out of the way, Avengers Age of Ultron is a good movie. I really enjoyed it. There was a ton going on in this movie and Joss Whedon and his team had a tremendous challenge and they did the best job that they could have done in these circumstances. Whedon was in a tough spot. He had to set up a Phase 3 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and conclude Phase 2 while creating a compelling story that gave each characters moments to shine and grow. He had to add new characters to the group and had to build up a new villain. Like i said, he had a lot to do. Overall, I thought he did a great job. Joss is moving on and will not direct any more movies for Marvel and I wish him the best. I would love if he continued, but it takes a lot of work and he wants to do more independent projects. I can't wait to see what he comes up with.
As for the movie there were a few things I did not like. I really thought that the movie was going to be darker than it was. I was convinced that a major Avenger would be killed during the movie and thought this would give a lot of emotional weight to this film. In the end the new Avenger Quicksilver sacrifices himself to save Hawkeye, and it was an emotional moment, but I thought a main hero would have been more impactful. The movie really needed to raise the stakes and I felt that the stakes weren't as high as they could have been. The death should have come in the second act of the film instead of the third. If it was in the second, there is a question if the rest of the team would have survived. Superhero movies are predictable in a way that the heroes will always survive, so I thought it would have been nice to change it up. Quicksilver did end up dying and it was a significant moment, but I thought it could have been better. That was my big problem. I just don't think the film had high enough stakes.
The film included tons of things I did expect. The banter between the team was great. Tony Stark had a quick wit and the team constantly were shooting barbs at each other. The entire movie was filled with gags and jokes. I was worried that the movie wouldn't have a lot of jokes, but it was filled with them. If you don't pay attention, you might even miss some. It was really really funny.
The movie starts off with an intense battle sequence where the Avengers take down the HYDRA base and Baron Von Strucker. The first time I saw this it was awesome, but I did feel a little disoriented. I wasn't really sure what was going on, why the team was there, and why Strucker had Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. It was just a little confusing. However, I saw the movie again this weekend after I saw last week's episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D and the I viewed the beginning of the movie in a whole new light. It answered all of my questions and was the perfect set up for this movie. That is one of the benefits of the connected universe. It allows for Marvel to set up their movies without wasting time in the actual movies.
There wasn't much development for Thor, Captain America, and Iron Man. The three of them were themselves and their characters didn't really grow. The main focus for those characters was surviving this film and setting up their next adventures in Thor Ragnorok and Captain America Civil War. The only character development in this movie was between Tony Stark and Ultron. Tony tries to build an AI that will protect the world. He accidentally succeeds and creates Ultron. Ultron takes a dark interpretation of his mission and believes that to protect the world he must destroy it. Ultron really is what Tony Stark would be if he was a bad guy. He is very smart, very witty, and charismatic. Ultron is Tony's dark side and the interplay between the characters is great. Ultron could have used a little more development I thought and I think he could have been more menacing, but there was just not enough time.
I loved the development for both Bruce Banner and Black Widow. They were involved in a love story. I loved how they had vulnerable moments. Black Widow's reveal that she had been sterilized was heartbreaking and you realize that both character are very damaged and view themselves as monsters. You can really see that both characters really care for each other but are also having trouble being vulnerable. Natasha really tries to break down Bruce's emotional barriers, but Bruce puts up a fight. In the end Bruce runs off because he believes that he is too dangerous and wants to protect Natasha. I believe that Natasha really understands Bruce's reasoning even though he left without her. Based on her final scene with Nick Fury, I think she just wants to find Bruce and bring him back. I'm really interested in seeing where this storyline is going.
Then there is the addition of Vision, Quicksilver, and Scarlet Witch. I loved these characters. We didn't see much of Vision because he was introduced at the beginning of the third act. But he was really interesting. He is a naive character with a very good moral compass. Thor trusts him, as he can lift Thor's hammer. The gag revolving around the hammer was great and it was a great way to clearly show that Vision is a good character. Quicksilver was very interesting. I thought he was funny and you really understood his reasoning for his actions. He also grew up in the film. As the movie progressed, he realized his misguided ways and then in the end made the ultimate sacrifice and was killed in the process of saving Hawkeye and a child. It was a beautiful progression and I was surprised how much I cared for this character. Even though Quicksilver was an awesome addition, Scarlet Witch was the best addition to this franchise, and maybe Marvel yet. I love this character. She follows a similar arc to Quicksilver, but also is afraid. That fear crystalizes during the final battle and Hawkeye gives her this great pep talk. She eventually emerges and is amazing. She is so strong willed and incredibly powerful. I think Scarlet Witch has the potential to be the most powerful hero we have seen yet. Plus I though Elizabeth Olsen was captivating in this role. She was amazing. I loved every second she was on screen. She played the role perfectly. I absolutely love this character and can't wait to see her again. Elizabeth Olsen and Scarlet Witch completely blew me away.
With all of this, the stand out feature of this movie was Hawkeye. I am the first to admit that I have not been a fan of Hawkeye. I never really understood his role on the team. In Thor he had a minor role and then in Avengers he was a mind controlled zombie for most of the movie. When standing next to the others, he never really fit. I didn't understand his motivations for being an Avenger. It seemed like he was almost a sidekick trying to be a hero. That completely changes with this movie. They really developed his character in this movie. You find out he is married with children with another on the way. You realize that he is on the Avengers to protect his family and he feels responsible for the team. He became the glue for the team. He is almost a father figure for the Avengers. He has moments with most of the characters and his interaction with his wife is really revealing. His character also developed through his dialogue. You really got into his head. He had moments where he referenced his dislike of mind control. He quips about not having super powers and being left behind but Quicksilver. His talk with Scarlet Witch was brilliant. He realizes that it is absurd that he is on this team and using a bow and arrow. With this movie he becomes the common man's entrance into this team. Before it was Coulson and now it is Hawkeye. This movie did a great job growing this character, who was the least developed character in the entire franchise. I can now officially say that I am a fan of Hawkeye. I love this character now. The film also kept teasing that he was going to die to the point where I was convinced it was going to happen up until Quicksilver died. I really thought Hawkeye was going down and was relived when he didn't. The development was great. This movie almost became the Hawkeye movie.
Overall, this movie was really fun. It's story was complex but was consumable because the characters were very good. Everyone got a moment and the film was just loaded with gags and memorable moments. It was a pure, fun superhero movie that did a great job tying up Phase 2 and opening Phase 3. I cannot wait to see what comes next. I give this movie a 4.25 out of 5.
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