Movie Review: "Avengers: Age of Ultron"
The first Avengers film was an experiment that could have gone horribly, horribly wrong. It was something that had never been before. Taking four characters that had headlined their own solo films, toss in two more, and hope for the best. It was a recipe for over bloated disaster no matter how successful Marvel had been so far. The whole thing could have imploded and possibly spelled the end of the MCU, but Marvel had other ideas. They hired Joss Whedon to write and direct the film and he used his uncanny knack to get to the heart of any character to make a summer blockbuster filled with explosions feel like an intimate character study. It was lightning in a bottle and audiences ate it up. A sequel was inevitable and now that it has arrived the question is can the follow up re-capture that sense of excitement and wonderment.
The answer is... for the most part. Like all sequels that came before it, "Avengers: Age of Ultron" goes bigger than the first film, which is impressive in an of itself, because the first movie was pretty huge.
The Avengers are scouring the world for Loki's staff. They locate it at a HYDRA base in the fictional country of Sokovia run by Baron Wolfgang von Strucker. They are also confronted bymutant miracle twins, Pietro (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen) Maximoff. The team escapes with the staff which Thor (Chris Hemsworth) plans to take with him back to Asgard. Before he can do that, Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr) and Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) decide to use the staff to complete Stark's Ultron program. Ultron is a program that Stark devised as a global defense initiative to replace the need for the Avengers. Loki's staff gives the program sentience and it becomes a fully functioning, android (James Spader). Ultron escapes Avengers Tower, finds the twins and sets in motion a plan to eradicate the human race from the face of the Earth.
Let's start with the positives of which there are many. You can tell that these actors truly enjoy each others company and they bring a sense of easy camaraderie to every scene that they appear in. Director Joss Whedon's dialogue comes to crackling life in the hands of these talented actors. One of Whedon's strongest suits is taking a character that has maybe not received the best characterization int he past and he turns that character into a fully fleshed out person. Black Widow (Scarlet Johansson) received that treatment in the first Avengers film and this time it's Hawkeye's (Jeremy Renner) turn. Throughout the film, Hawkeye goes from the guy with the bow and arrows that you're probably just "meh" about to the beating heart of the film. It's in these quieter moments where the movie really finds it's voice and shines brightest.
Series newcomers Olsen, Taylor-Johnson and especially Paul Bettany's Vision, breathe new life into the film. The introduction of these characters help give movie goers and idea of where this franchise and the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a whole will go when the current actors inevitably decide to move on. Pietro and Wanda joining the team, also introduce viewers to a key part of Avengers lore and legacy, the belief that everyone deserves a second chance and no one is beyond redemption.
A film like "Avengers: Age of Ultron" is only as successful as it's antagonist and the movie has no issues in this regard. James Spader brings the right amount of menace, humor and campiness to the role. In one moment you are chuckling and the next you are chilled to the bone as the full scope of Ultron's plans become apparent.
The movie isn't without it's flaws. Being the flagship of movie universe that spans multiple films means part of film's running time needs to go towards setting up future conflicts. "Age of Ultron" succeeds when it comes to seeding the conflict that will come to fruition in "Captain America: Civil War," but it flounders and the film drags in the middle when Thor leaves the team to undertake an ill-defined mission. Assuming this film takes place after the previous three solo Avengers films, things are down played or ignored in this film which is a little puzzling, especially the dismantling of SHIELD.
Unlike it's predecessor, the second Avengers film reads more as your typical summer movie blockbuster, but thanks to the charm and talent of it's actors the film still ranks as a success in the MCU series.
Grade: A-
The Avengers are scouring the world for Loki's staff. They locate it at a HYDRA base in the fictional country of Sokovia run by Baron Wolfgang von Strucker. They are also confronted by
Let's start with the positives of which there are many. You can tell that these actors truly enjoy each others company and they bring a sense of easy camaraderie to every scene that they appear in. Director Joss Whedon's dialogue comes to crackling life in the hands of these talented actors. One of Whedon's strongest suits is taking a character that has maybe not received the best characterization int he past and he turns that character into a fully fleshed out person. Black Widow (Scarlet Johansson) received that treatment in the first Avengers film and this time it's Hawkeye's (Jeremy Renner) turn. Throughout the film, Hawkeye goes from the guy with the bow and arrows that you're probably just "meh" about to the beating heart of the film. It's in these quieter moments where the movie really finds it's voice and shines brightest.
Series newcomers Olsen, Taylor-Johnson and especially Paul Bettany's Vision, breathe new life into the film. The introduction of these characters help give movie goers and idea of where this franchise and the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a whole will go when the current actors inevitably decide to move on. Pietro and Wanda joining the team, also introduce viewers to a key part of Avengers lore and legacy, the belief that everyone deserves a second chance and no one is beyond redemption.
A film like "Avengers: Age of Ultron" is only as successful as it's antagonist and the movie has no issues in this regard. James Spader brings the right amount of menace, humor and campiness to the role. In one moment you are chuckling and the next you are chilled to the bone as the full scope of Ultron's plans become apparent.
The movie isn't without it's flaws. Being the flagship of movie universe that spans multiple films means part of film's running time needs to go towards setting up future conflicts. "Age of Ultron" succeeds when it comes to seeding the conflict that will come to fruition in "Captain America: Civil War," but it flounders and the film drags in the middle when Thor leaves the team to undertake an ill-defined mission. Assuming this film takes place after the previous three solo Avengers films, things are down played or ignored in this film which is a little puzzling, especially the dismantling of SHIELD.
Unlike it's predecessor, the second Avengers film reads more as your typical summer movie blockbuster, but thanks to the charm and talent of it's actors the film still ranks as a success in the MCU series.
Grade: A-
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