The Avengers

Welcome to another episode of Lights....Camera....Popcorn!

Today's review is The Avengers.

Written and Directed by Joss Whedon.

Screen Story by Zak Penn & Joss Whedon.

Based on Marvel Comics "The Avengers" created by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby

Review #158

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action throughout, and a mild drug reference.

Runtime: 142 min

Cast

Robert Downey Jr. ...Tony Stark / Iron Man

Chris Evans ...Steve Rogers / Captain America

Mark Ruffalo ...Bruce Banner / The Hulk

Chris Hemsworth ...Thor

Scarlett Johansson ...Natasha Romanoff / Black Widow

Jeremy Renner ...Clint Barton / Hawkeye

Tom Hiddleston ...Loki

Clark Gregg ...Agent Phil Coulson

Cobie Smulders ...Agent Maria Hill

Stellan Skarsgård ...Selvig

Samuel L. Jackson ...Nick Fury

Gwyneth Paltrow ...Pepper Potts

Paul Bettany ...Jarvis (voice)

Alexis Denisof ...The Other

2012 is being billed as the summer for comic book movies. Now this is said every year but with The Avengers already launched. The Amazing Spiderman and The Dark Knight Rises following respectfully in the coming months. This year could actually be it. It's very rare that 2 heavyweight comic films come out in the summer to go after the money let alone 3. But here we are ready and waiting to see if it was worth all the fuss.

Leading off is The Avengers which is by far Tinsletown's biggest and most ambitious comic film/franchise. The challenges surrounding this one were MASSIVE even before the first line of dialogue was typed on the page. The biggest challenge was pun intended "assembling" The Avengers themselves. The entire cast with the exception of Black Widow, Hawkeye and Nick Fury all starred in their own tentpole solo films. Was it going to be possible to bring everyone together and make this work for the greater good?

My friend and I had a spirited debate about this very topic and he made the cardinal sin of referencing The X-Men as an example of how it can be done. He's a big X-Men fan so his opinion is a little biased but it was also heavily flawed. So I proceeded to school him on why his thought is way off. It breaks down into 2 main points.

1) With the first X-Men film the only hurdle that Bryan Singer had to jump (and it was a BIG one) was finding the perfect guy for Wolverine. The entire film hinged on his look and performance. If they got him wrong then the film no matter how entertaining would have been a disaster.

2) The franchise fell apart after the second film. 20th Century Fox didn't learn a very valuable lesson. You can't follow X-Men 2: X-Men United with a horrendous third installment that just turns the mutant world upside down. It was a bad choice and it just kills the argument that the X-Men franchise is worth standing along some other comic book successes.

The Avengers presented a whole new level of collaboration that The X-Men could never comprehend. They had to take the principal talent from Iron Man, Thor, Captain America and The Incredible Hulk (with the 3rd Bruce Banner) and make a Marvel team film with them. Easier said than done.

Well apparently it was as easy to do as it is to say because....THIS MOVIE ROCKED!!!!

Plot

Nick Fury is director of S.H.I.E.L.D, an international peace keeping agency. The agency is a who's who of Marvel Super Heroes, with Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Thor, Captain America, Hawkeye and Black Widow. When global security is threatened by Loki and his cohorts, Nick Fury and his team will need all their powers to save the world from disaster. 

The funny thing about the challenge of having all of these major characters mesh together in 1 film is that this is exactly how The Avengers played out in the comic. Their egos made it very difficult for them to get along. I'm not implying that there were ego issues on set. But the idea of having the people working together after owning the spotlight from their own personal films is an interesting parallel. This dynamic is what makes The Avengers so enjoyable. The heroes all have their own ideas about the world and how they can protect it. Now they are asked to work together when that's not part of their hero DNA. You get a recipe for some exploding drama. The other aspect that this move NAILED is the importance and weight of the group's "biggest" character to the story.

The Hulk.

The Hulk has set himself apart from what people would deem the traditional superhero. In fact, the Hulk isn't a hero at all. He could care less about saving the world. All he wants to do is be free of the hold that Bruce Banner has on him. Hulk wants to be his own man and Banner won't allow it. This is why Hulk goes berserk when he's released. His anger stems from being imprisoned in Banner's conscious. This part of the character is displayed expertly by both Mark Ruffalo and the CGI Hulk. Banner has nothing but contempt for S.H.I.E.L.D. You combine that with Hulk's natural desire to SMASH! 

You got problems.

The blueprint was followed pretty closely to the letter when it comes to The Avengers disdain for each other early on and the Hulk's participation or lack there of. Until the time finally comes for them to put everything aside and fight for the safety of the world. When that happens, the movie just shines. The action in The Avengers is top notch from start to finish. The internal battles between Avengers members were fun to watch. The highlight though is in the last 20 or so minutes when Loki's army attacks NY. Joss Whedon does a great job giving each member, including the useless ones Hawkeye and especially Black Widow equal time to show off what they are capable of. As a gigantic Hulk fan it was a treat to see him let loose on the bad guys. I had so much fun watching my favorite superhero just destroy everything in his path.

I loved every second of it.

The action of course would have meant nothing if the story didn't serve it's proper purpose. Now there have been some complaints about the film's run time. At just a hair under 2 and a half hours, the initial reaction is that the film will drag. It doesn't. For those who believed it did let me explain something. Before anything else, The Avengers is an origin story. The team members need to be explained and developed for people who haven't seen the crossover films or read the comic. That takes time to get into and in my opinion it was done well. You don't at any point get the feeling that the film is boring or lacking punch. For a film chock full of big time superheroes and villains, The Avengers has a lot of heart and emotion. You feel for these characters and what they are all thrust into. Especially at the end. Wave after wave of other worldly creatures appear to destroy them and they just don't stop fighting.

How can you not be on their side.

Joss Whedon was tasked with putting together a film that showcased some of the comic world's most iconic characters. And make it not only bankable but worth seeing. He not only accomplished that but he was able to put The Avengers in the conversation of best Marvel movie ever made. The subsequent sequels will ultimately determine what place at the table it belongs. If this film is any indication of how the series will be then earth's mightiest heroes will also be earth's mightiest film franchise.

On the 5 star scale. The Avengers gets the full house. 5 stars with a resounding "Worth Every Penny" recommendation.

That's a wrap for today. Up next is The Avengers. 

Yup you read that right. I'm seeing this bad boy at least 1 more time.

Until Next Episode...."I'll Save You A Seat!"

"D"