When we went to see THE AVENGERS Saturday afternoon my expectations were modest. In spite of breaking
the all time first weekend earnings record, this is a super-hero flick based on comic book characters. And yet, Joss
Whedon’s script and direction made it hold together and work on many levels
beyond Thor’s impressive physique, and that’s why people flocked to it.
Like most super-hero
stories, the villain, Thor’s adopted demi-god brother Loki, is clearly the bad
guy through and through. He wants to enslave and rule the Earth with the help
of some truly hideous aliens—information we get before the initial titles.
The good guys, called up
by the head of a pseudo-government agency, don’t hit it off which is one of the more
clever humanizing aspects of the story and what sets it apart from other
extreme action films like TRANSFORMERS. In their first encounter Ironman and
Thor fight over capturing Loki and in the process level a lot of terrain. As
the threat to Earth intensifies, the superheroes begin to bond—well, at least
cooperate—and the action ramps up. And the special effects are marvelous!
If you haven’t seen the
original films of IRONMAN, THOR and CAPTAIN
AMERICA, you’ll miss a lot of the more amusing references and conflicts.
The younger characters—Thor, Captain America and Natasha—are all good, but it’s
Robert Downey Jr.’s irreverent, egotistical, brilliant Tony Stark aka Ironman
who makes this movie work. Besides being a wonderful actor, RDJ has the screen
presence to give the team depth and maturity as well as drive. Without him, the
two handsome Chrises—Hemsworth and Evans—wouldn’t have risen above the comic
book characters as effectively as they did. Scarlett Johansson and Mark Ruffalo
rounded out the super-team with their usual skill and everyone pitched in the
big battle.
This movie is what a
blockbuster is supposed to be. So rent the prequels if you haven’t seen them,
then treat yourself to a very entertaining 143 minutes of action. Check out the trailer:
Have you seen THE AVENGERS? What did you think? Have you seen any other good films lately?
4 comments:
Fabulous review! Made the movie go from...oh, 5th on my list straight to #1.
I agree with you on Downey's Ironman role. It's like the comic character was drawn just for him!
I haven't seen The Avengers, but now I really, really want to buy tickets. I'm already a Robert Downey fan. Do you remember his guest appearances on the Ally McBeal show? (I'm hoping that's before you tossed out your TV, Lark.) Anyway, he played the piano and sang in a way that could break a person's heart.
It's me, Pat. Blogger pretends it doesn't know who I am, and Google points to Blogger. Huh?
Maybe I should take a vacation day, Sarah, and we can go see your top 5 back-to-back!
I loved RDJ on Ally McBeal, Pat. And yes, I had TV back then. I even downloaded the songs he sang on the show. That was when he was still a mess, but he got an Emmy anyhow. It's great to see he's gotten his act together and is making good movies.
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