“The Avengers” is the culmination of five successful prequels based on four Marvel comics’ characters that brings them together for the first time on film. Add to that a director (Joss Whedon) who is an A-lister among fanboys. There are only two ways this can turn out. “The Avengers” is either a massive success or it is a massive failure. There can be no in-between.
Against all odds, “The Avengers” is a huge success – the actors, the special effects, the story, the direction are all near perfection – and I think there is a good argument to be made that “The Avengers” is the greatest comic book adaptation to date.
Nothing against “The Dark Knight” – I love Nolan’s bleak vision – but when it came out in 2008, it wasn’t even my favorite comic book adaptation of the year. That honor went to the original "Iron Man." As a quality film, “The Dark Knight” is solid, but in terms of watchability, I’m far more likely to toss in either of Jon Favreau’s Iron Man films into the Blu-ray player over either of Nolan’s Batman films.
The Avengers brings back Robert Downey Jr (Iron Man), Chris Hemsworth (Thor) and Chris Evans (Captain America). It also fleshes out roles for Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow (first seen in Iron Man 2) and Jeremy Renner’s Hawkeye (seen briefly in Thor), as well as features the first feature length role for Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury. Adding to what had come before is the third actor to make a feature attempt at the Incredible Hulk in the last decade. While Eric Bana and Edward Norton were caught up in the angst of being a monster, writer/director Joss Whedon and actor Mark Ruffalo have finally perfected the combination of scientist/monster bringing back some humor and the best looking CGI Hulk to date. This is definitely the best Bruce Banner/Hulk combo since Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno.
At the start of the movie, all of our heroes are scattered around the globe (or in Thor’s case, in a different world completely). After Loki (Tom Hiddleston) returns and steals the Tesseract (a power cube previously hinted at in Thor and featured prominently in Captain America) fromS.H.I.E.L.D., Nick Fury pulls out all the stops to get his “Avenger Initiative” off the ground. After failing to become king in Asgard in Thor, it seems Loki has set his sights on ruling Earth and needs the Tesseract to bring an alien army to our world to help him. But with so many superegos inhabiting our superheroes, can they come together to form a team strong enough to stop him?
All of the actors do outstanding jobs with their roles. In addition to the aforementioned performance by Ruffalo, Downey, Hemsworth, and Evans all bring the perfect mix of bravado, heart, and humor to the screen without ever skewing off into campiness. Jeremy Renner, Scarlett Johansson, and Samuel L. Jackson are also fantastic as their roles as Hawkeye, Black Widow, and Nick Fury (respectively) are fleshed out. The movie wouldn’t be complete without an appearance from everyone’s favorite S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) who gets to play a more pivotal role in “The Avengers.” And say hello to Cobie Smulders (How I Met Your Mother) who goes completely against type casting as S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Marcia Hill. She kicks ass and is another strong female character brought to screen by director Joss Whedon.
The special effects are outstanding. As I stated above, the Hulk looks the best he has on the big screen and seems much more of a character than a caricature. The movie is filled with some of the best looking action scenes I’ve seen in any movie, let alone a comic book movie. The one complaint might be Loki’s alien army (the Chitauri); they come off as your basic cannon fodder and never really feel like a legitimate threat. On a side note for Buffy/Angel fans, Alexis Denisofis the voice of The Other, the leader of the Chitauri army.
Probably the biggest credit for the success of “The Avengers” has to go to Joss Whedon. Few directors in Hollywood could have so adeptly handled a film with such a large ensemble cast. While this may be Whedon’s first comic book film, he’s been writing comics for quite some time and his love for the genre shows through in every frame. Not only does Whedon give each character their “moment,” he allows the audience to see the characters grow and truly become heroes. He also gives Smulders and Johansson more to do than simply be pretty faces in tight costumes – something most directors overlook when it comes to female comic book heroines.
With the movie already nearing the $300 million dollar mark before it opened up in a theater here in the United States, there is little doubt there will eventually be an Avengers sequel (although Iron Man 3 and Thor 2 are already scheduled for 2013 with Captain America 2 to follow in 2014). If the executives at Marvel/Disney are smart, they will lock in Whedon now to direct that film (and maybe sign him and Ruffalo to a Hulk feature in the meantime).
“The Avengers” is one of those rare movies where I was ready to sit down and watch the whole thing over again right away. (Ironically, the only other time that has happened this year was “The Cabin in the Woods” – also co-written by Joss Whedon.) “The Avengers” is not just a great comic book movie; it’s a great movie that should be fun for fans and nonfans alike.
“Marvel’s The Avengers” is rated PG-13 for comic violence. It is available in either 3D or Digital screenings. Make sure you sit through all of the credits for two different post-credit scenes (the last of which may be the funniest bit in a very funny film).
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