The Avengers

Glorious!!  It’s the only word I can use to describe this unapologetic summer blockbuster.  As a childhood comic fan, I have a smug sense of revenge in that something that was looked upon with ridicule and aloofness by the mainstream throughout my childhood is now the most respected form of box office revenue and power.  Every year the topics about movies revolve around which superhero movie will be released and which big name will be starring in it.  Just a little more than a decade ago all superhero movies were B-movies (remember Dolph Ludgren as The Punisher or Roger Coreman’s never released Fantastic Four?).  Now Super Hero movies are almost guaranteed box office gold with scripts and talent to match their immense budgets.  These performances  even command and demand the respect of the Academy Awards (R.I.P. Heath Ledger).

The Avengers is an unprecedented epic and I don’t use that term gratuitously.  The Avengers is the culmination of five Marvel films over the last four years.  The 2008 ‘Iron Man’, followed by ‘The Hulk’, ‘Iron Man II’, ‘Thor’, and finally last summer’s ‘Captain America’ were all pieces of the puzzle that culminated in all of them gathering in this ensemble film called ‘The Avengers’.  Each film, like the comic book, had it’s own story and flavor and brought its’ unique magic to this film that is greater than even its’ impressive parts.   If you are even a partial comic or film fan, you have been eagerly building your anticipation for this film and The Avengers delivers on everything it promises.

Joss Wheldon was a surprise choice to direct this film given it’s size and scope.  He was best known for the ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ TV series, but he turned out to be a perfect choice and has just put his career into the A-list.  Wheldon manages to have an ensemble cast where each hero shares an equal burden of the story while managing to retain their uniqueness from their own film vehicles.  Not an easy feat.  Each character is given their time in the spotlight, but even after 2.5 hours, we are still wanting more.  The film deftly balances comedy in with the action and drama without ever spilling over into campiness. The action scenes are frequent and intense and yet blissfully free of jerking camera motions that all action films seem to use these days.  There is not a scene that is wasted and every moment has a meaning that is vital to the story.

I suppose one could say that the Avengers is a sequel to five different movies.  All the actors, save one, have returned to reprise their roles.  Mark Ruffalo is the third actor to take on the role of Dr Bruce Banner aka The Hulk.  This time I think they finally got it right as Ruffalo’s Banner ends up being one of the most interesting characters in the film and brings something darker to the role that neither Eric Bana or Edward Norton ever did  (that’s saying something given that those two are known for their dark roles).  Banner is mild mannered and low key in his nerdiness (is that a word?), but just underneath his calm exterior you can sense the darkness that resides within him.  It’s a perfectly understated and reserved performance that plays off nicely against Robert Downey Jr.’s over the top Tony Stark.

Now, the story itself:  We’ve been seeing hints of The Cosmic Cube (now identified as the Tesserac) in the last several films.  We know it is a mysterious object that contains potentially unlimited energy.  Director Nick Fury of the spy agency S.H.I.E.L.D  (played to cool perfection by Samuel L Jackson) keeps the source in a hidden fortified government facility.  The Cube is too powerful to keep hidden for long and attracts the attention of Loki,  Thor’s mischievous Norse brother.   Loki sees the Cube as a way to establish himself as ruler of Earth and make himself the King which he felt Thor robbed him of in Aesgard.  Recognizing the threat to the world, Nick Fury activates the dormant Avengers Initiative.  It’s the government’s plan to assemble the world’s superheroes into an elite fighting force.  

The problem is that with superheroes comes super egos and trying to get all these different personality types to work as a unit is near impossible.  Each is different and unique and used to going it alone.  Wheldon’s genius is that he does not sacrifice any of the character’s individuality in an effort to make them work as a team.  As the action mounts and the danger escalates, the Earth’s mightiest heroes band together and begin to work as a team.  You cheer for them as a group even more than you did for them in their individual films.  Hats off again to Wheldon for putting together this symphony of character interplay.

The two heroes without powers; Black Widow and Hawkeye (played by Scarlett Johansson and Jeremy Renner) were given equal time and respect and held their own in the storyline as well as the battle scenes.  Johanssan brings a dangerous beauty to the role of the Russian super spy Black Widow.  She is both sexy and lethal.  Renner was underutilized, but did a more than competent job in breathing life into a stale hero.  The two had a mysterious past that was hinted at and I wish could have been more fully explored, but hey, the film was already 2.5 hours and you have to leave the audience wanting more.  I thought Renner’s interpretation Hawkeye was much more interesting the comic book character ever was.

Chris Evans hit a perfect note as the All American square jawed  out-of-time super soldier Captain America.  The Captain is the epitome of a good soldier, but that doesn't mean he follows orders blindly. Despite being 70 years out of date, he ends up being the unofficial leader of the team.  No easy accomplishment as power wise, he is dwarfed by the likes of Thor, The Hulk, and Iron Man (respectively?).  Tony Stark's trademark sarcastic rants are still a joy to watch and Chris Hemsworth manages to keep Thor's Shakespearean quality even in the modern high tech surroundings.

No good super hero movie can thrive without an epic villain.  Tom Hiddleston gives us a diabolical and conniving Loki whose performance is almost on par with legendary film villain Hannibal Lector (played by Anthony Hopkins in ‘Silence of the Lambs’, who ironically also plays Loki’s father Odin in ‘Thor’ [small universe]).  Loki is more evil and cunning than his portrayal in ‘Thor’.  Gone is any trace of inner conflict or turmoil, which I actually enjoyed in the first film.  As Loki himself states at the beginning of the ‘The Avengers’ “I am burdened with glorious purpose”.  Much like Hannibal Lector, no matter what chaos is going on around him, you always get the feeling that it is exactly how Loki planned it.  I hope to see more of Hiddleston in other roles as I feel he is a great actor.

This film can be enjoyed by all audiences and Wheldon gives enough under the radar presents to leave the fanboy base with an unfounded sense of smug superiority. The questions that comic nerds argued about endlessly as kids are addressed here, like “Who is stronger; Thor or The Hulk?” or “Could Captain America’s shield survive a blow from Thor’s hammer?”   intellectual nirvana for the fanboy population.  I was worried that the film could not live up to the hype, but it did and in many ways surpassed it.  All future superhero movies will be measured by this one.  It’s an exciting film for people of all ages and all levels of understanding of the superhero world.  A great accomplishment that was worth the four year wait.

I rate this film **** stars