Ten years in the making from the Marvel movie machine and after all the hype and over bloated expectations, Marvel delivers everything they promised and more with ‘Avengers: Infinity War’. This will be a challenge to write about without giving away spoilers as almost every scene in this film contains spoilers. It is action from beginning to end, yet never losing sight of the fact that these are fully fleshed out characters that we have come to love over the years. How the characters from 22 different movies can all be squeezed into one feature is a miraculous logistical achievement in itself, but to have it feel that the flow is natural with everyone getting their screen time among frantic pacing is beyond miraculous. The Russo brothers more than earned their paycheck in bringing this all together.
Marvel has always been criticized for having weak, one dimensional villains (with the exception of Loki). Thanos is the Russo brothers answer to this critique. They ,along with actor Josh Brolin (the actor behind the CGI), have created the baddest of the bad. Truly an unstoppable monster, yet not one who acts evil for the sake of being evil. His quest is to gather the 6 Infinity Stones (which have been MacGuffins in most Marvel movies) and to assemble them in a gauntlet which will make him the most powerful force in the universe. Despite the non-stop action, we delve into Thanos’s past and psyche to see what drives him to collect all the Infinity Stones. One will be surprised that it isn’t sheer malevolence, but horrified at his plan of universal genocide.
‘Avengers: Infinity War’ opens directly following the events of ‘Thor: Ragnarok’. The threat that Thanos represents is immediately made apparent as we feel traumatic losses within the first few minutes of the film. The movie also links directly to the aftermaths of ‘Black Panther’, ‘Dr Strange’, and 'Captain America: Civil War’. All in perfect concert. The true joy of these ensemble cast movies is seeing the characters we know and love play off each other in different combinations. Despite the film’s somber tone, the humor and wise cracks define our favorite characters and to see Thor and Rocket Raccoon or Tony Stark and Star Lord trading barbs is worth the price of admission alone. It’s also fascinating to see earth bound heroes such as Tony Stark and Captain America interact on a mystical or cosmic scale. Kudos to the Russo brothers in creating a story where this seems plausible.
Have no doubt though, as we see the continuation of our favorite characters and their storylines, Thanos is the true star of this movie. We’ve come to a point where CGI technology is so advance, that we forget we are watching a computer generated character. You actually feel Thanos is a living being, not just a wooden animation. Of course we fear Thanos, but Josh Brolin is able to bring the subtleties of expression and emotion to Thanos whereas we begin to understand him as a being, not just a monster. We feel his unflappable singular desire to assemble the Infinity Gauntlet, so much so that he makes horrific choices. Even through his most heart wrenching choices, he feels that what he does is just. Thanos views himself as a savior, not a villain, which makes him an even more unstoppable force.
Most of the action takes places with groups in three different places: Space, the planet Titan, and Earth. Each of these story threads are woven perfectly to come together in a final battle for existence in Black Panther’s Wakanda. The Battle Royale is indeed a Battle Royale with each hero demonstrating what makes them super-heroes. All I will say, in terms of a semi-spoiler, is that the end is not what you expect (unless you are a comic nerd and know the story already). After 2.5 hours, you will leave the theater dazed and confused, but still wanting more. The Russos have created an action film with depth. A finale (that concludes next year), that dazzles and amazes. If you are not up-to-date on all the Marvel movies, you might be lost, but you will still enjoy the ride.
I give this film **** 1/2 out of 5 stars
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