The Avengers review

            Well, after a solid week of hype (more like four years of hype), I have finally seen Marvel's The Avengers. Oh. My. God. I can't believe that movie is even real. I'm still having a hard time wrapping my mind around it. What can I say besides this film is a damn near perfect movie, easily the best in Marvel's cinematic canon. There are flaws, of course (what movie doesn't have them?) but the film gets so much right that I didn't even care. Where do I even begin?

            Let's start with the characters. Each and every one of them gives it their all in this movie. Robert Downy  Jr. is as funny as ever as Tony Stark. At long last, my dream of seeing RDJ bounce off the likes of Steve Rogers and Thor has come to fruition. The way he argues with Cap, tries to tick off Banner, and gives nicknames to Thor is hilarious; everything just clicks into place. Chris Evans plays Captain America once again with gusto, even more so as we see him become an actual leader. Chris Hemsworth brings even more depth to the role of Thor, as we finally see him become the god he was meant to be while his humanity is highlighted by his relationship with his brother.

           Speaking of which, Loki is brilliant. I loved the way his character progressed in this film. He was ruthless, but you could tell (spoiler alert) that he was secretly being manipulated by someone else. When he opens the portal and the alien army of Chitauri fly through, he even says it can't be stopped. He's cocky, he's arrogant, and he did what trickster gods do best: cause as much chaos as possible, on both a personal and a global scale. When he and Thor have their talk on the mountaintop, it spoke volumes about their characters. Loki has completely turned his back on Asgard, while Thor wants nothing more than to get his brother back, despite the threat he poses to mankind. But enough about the Asgardians. What of the rest?

        First, I have to call attention to Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner. He's perfect. Perfect in a way that Edward Norton can't even match. He's intelligent, yet extremely humble. He's the only guy who "speaks English", according to Tony Stark. He refers to the Hulk as "The Other Guy", and throughout the film he comes off as a man who has been through hell but has finally found inner peace. When he does hulk out, I'm happy to say, he kicks SO MUCH ASS. He fights Thor, he fights Widow, he fights Loki, he fights aliens, he fights everyone! He's both awesome and at the same time incredibly hilarious. I loved every minute of him. Let's hope Ruffalo stays on board, because he's the definitive Bruce Banner.

       The SHIELD agents are given a lot more depth in this film. Specifically, Scarlett Johanson's Black Widow. I love her opening scene, as we finally get to see her as more of a Russian superspy. Her backstory with Hawkeye was great, especially when she opens up to Loki. That entire scene really highlights how ruthless Loki is, while at the same time deepening Widow's character by giving her more of a history. Samuel L. Jackson's Nick Fury doesn't get as much screen time as I hoped, but he did have his moment to be a badass, and he still plays the role really well. Colbie Smulders gets almost nothing to do as Maria Hill, but even she played well with what few scenes she's given.

       Clark Gregg knocks it out of the park with Agent Coulson once again. I felt like we really got to understand him as a character more this time around. After coming off as the ultimate badass in the last few films, Coulson this time is portrayed as a huge fan of Captain America, who stumbles with his words in the very presence of him. I loved it. Also (another spoiler alert), his death scene was incredibly sad, but extremely well done. He even says it himself: his death is needed as the driving force that gets the Avengers together. It works. I'll miss you, Agent Coulson. Hopefully a spin-off prequel is heading your way, but if not, this was a fine farewell to your character.

        Then there's the other SHIELD agent, Jeremy Renner's Hawkeye. This was one of the (very few) flaws I had with the film. Renner's Hawkeye is fantastic, and we get plenty of scenes with him once the battle comes around, but for the first half of the film he's mind controlled by Loki and essentially his henchman. The most we learn about Hawkeye we learn through Widow, and I thought that the whole mindwiping deal was a missed opportunity to develop Hawkeye's character.

         Out of all the Avengers, Hawkeye had the least amount of buildup, so I figured he'd get his due this time, but I felt his role here was more of an introductory role, setting up his character to be fully fleshed out in another film. Like I said though, he did get his own chances to shine in the climax, and in an ensemble this big there's bound to be at least one character who ends up short. At the very least, his past relationship with Widow made him interesting enough so that we want to know more about him, so there's always that.

       The only other flaw I could really find with the story was that it was a little too simple, and at times even coincidental. It's basically set up like this: Loki gets cube and escapes, heroes assemble to get cube, they fight on the helicarrier, realize they need to work as a team, Loki creates portal to space and Chitauri come through, heroes fight Chitauri, the end. Maybe it's just me, but I guess I wanted something a little more thought provoking coming from Joss Whedon. But then I have to put this film in context. This is the first Avengers film. The first half is basically getting the team together and providing closure to all the build up from the first five films. There really is no time for a big, thought provoking plot. It's not as stupid as, say, a Michael Bay film, but the straightforward storyline does have advantages.

        The film has a central threat, flows well from one scene to the next, and the audience can understand it regardless of whether they are fans of either comics or the last couple films. When I say coincidental, by the way, I mean more like some plot points seemed a little too contrived. Hulk goes apeshit on the Helicarrier, then suddenly he can play buddy buddy with everyone in New York? Iron Man blows up the mothership, all the Chitauri aliens shut down? So yes, there's that, but again the large nature of the film would only be hindered by a complex plot. What the film does succeed in, with flying colors, is character development.

         I've already mentioned how the superheroes bounce off each other. Not only is their dialogue serious, it is often hilarious. There are so many funny moments in this film (most coming from Iron Man and the Hulk) that the film gets points just for creating a humorous tone even amid all the seriousness. It's not all dark and gloomy like Batman: it knows how to take itself seriously while having fun at the same time. That's the mark of a true comic book film. All of the characters truly benefit from being with each other. Tony's clashes with Cap make him understand the value of heroism and sacrifice, Thor's interaction with the others allows him to respect the mortals he once thought "so petty and tiny", and under pressure Cap knows how to become a leader and utilize everyone's strengths to the task at hand.

          And the Hulk? While I mentioned it's weird that he suddenly learns to play well with everyone, it can be reasoned that Banner finally learned to control the Hulk (as hinted throughout the film). Either way, it was great to see him interact with everyone. I truly believed that the Avengers were an honest to god team when they assembled. This film is, without a doubt, greater than the sum of its parts. The value of teamwork is on full display here, and for that I thank Joss Whedon tremendously.

         I also thank Mr. Whedon for creating one of the best action films I've ever seen. The last act is solid balls to the wall action as the Avengers fight an onslaught of aliens and their giant dragon-like serpents. The aliens themselves amount to little more than cannon fodder, but they're a large enough force to justify a threat for the Avengers. Whedon is known more for his TV work, but give this man a 100 million dollar budget and he shines. He knows how to direct an action scene, and while doubters may complain they've seen it all before in Transformers, the character interaction guarantees we care about what's going on.

        Last but not least, I have to mention (as always) the end credits scene. The film is chock full of moments for comic book geeks to fawn over, such as the Helicarrier rising from the ocean, but unlike the lead in films this movie is surprisingly short on easter eggs. My one wish was that I would hear Cap shout "Avengers Assemble!", but that never happened. Thankfully, the lack of easter eggs is completely made up for with the end credits scene. The mysterious ally who provided Loki with the Chitauri in exchange for the Cosmic Cube was (final spoiler alert) Thanos, the Mad Titan who in the comics wields the Infinity Gauntlet and is powerful enough to warrant the entire Marvel Universe to unite against him. It was an awesome scene, one that perfectly sets up for the next few Avengers sequels.

         Just like that, the Marvel Cinematic Universe now has a new direction: they can go cosmic. Not only that, but the ending also paves the way for the next round of solo films for Iron Man, Cap, and Thor. I simply love how the film creates a shared universe, fully realized, on screen. Not only is it established that the heroes can go back to their own adventures, but they can now team up as well whenever a large enough threat comes along. We had the unique opportunity to see how a shared comic book universe could work on screen, and with the Avengers we got it. And now that it's here, it paves the way for even more films, that will continue to expand the potential of comic book movies for years to come.

         I end this review by saying that the final credits scene was hilarious in its casualness, reminding us once again that the film never forgets the humor beneath the seriousness. Cap might not have said it, but for the first time in cinematic history, the Avengers have assembled, and the way it was done has made it one of my favorite comic book films of all time, if not my absolute favorite.