An alien invasion, classic characters, huge explosions and even bigger movie stars all come together to create Marvel’s “The Avengers” — the best superhero film to date.
Set a short time following the end of “Captain America: The First Avenger” in present-day New York City, “The Avengers” starts after Loki, Thor’s demigod brother, steals an unlimited power source with the intent to rule Earth and the universe. As each avenger (Captain America, The Hulk, Thor, Iron Man, Hawkeye and the Black Widow) is invited for service into S.H.I.E.L.D., an Earth defense organization headed up by Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), conflict among their personalities and their motives ensues, creating the drama that propels the plot forward.
Hands down, this movie is my pick of 2012 so far and ranks in my top five or 10 of all time. The CGI and special effects were unreal — even better than those of “Iron Man 2” or anything else I have seen. You don’t even notice what’s real and what’s CGI because it all looks and feels completely real.
Oftentimes with action movies, the characters get lost in bad acting. However, “The Avengers” doesn’t disappoint and the characters are nailed spot-on by the actors. They all seem real, with their own issues and internal battles, which helps drive the story forward. Only when they come together can they take down evil, and even then it might not be enough.
While every actor was outstanding, I would have to say that my favorite part(s) of the movie involve the Hulk. Hands down Mark Ruffalo (“13 Going on 30”) was the right choice for the roll of the green giant, scientist Bruce Banner’s “other guy inside.” My favorite part is during the final battle (spoiler alert) when the Hulk slams Loki around like a rag doll for about 20 seconds after Loki gives this speech on how the Hulk is dimwitted and no match for a demigod. Loki is left cringing in pain and making high-pitched breathing noises. This scene gets big laughs.
After a couple actors’ failed attempts at playing the Hulk in movies (once with Eric Bana in 2003 and again with Edward Norton in 2008), Ruffalo finally got at his essence of being somewhat misunderstood. In “The Avengers,” the Hulk is finally shown off as a really big toddler (though not in a negative way).
I liked the integrity that the creators kept from the prequel movies to “The Avengers.” We see Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts from the Iron Man movies, Natalie Portman as Jane Foster from Thor and Clark Gregg as agent Phil Coulson, who has appeared in all of the films. Every one of the superstars comes back in their superhero role.
After talking with a couple of people who hadn’t seen some of the other movies, I discovered that while it wasn’t totally necessary to have seen “Thor,” “Captain America,” “Iron Man” or “The Hulk,” it would have been nice to have known the back stories of each character before catching “The Avengers.” I have seen them all and I’m also very familiar with the comics, and someone with likewise knowledge won’t have any problems following along.
For this film, don’t forget to stick around until after all of the credits. Doing so might just give you a little bit more of the Avengers before you leave the theater. There are two scenes that give hints to the next movie.
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