Thoughts on Avengers: Age of Ultron (BEWARE SPOILERS!!!)
- I really enjoyed the film, but I enjoy all of the Marvel Universe films at least at face value.
- One of the best aspects of the pic is that the team is a team now. Sure they have their issues, but it is so awesome to see them banter together. Namely, the party scene in the opening, which is LOADS of fun!
- The team action scenes ROCK! The setups that allow for epic moments like Thor hitting Cap's shield with his Hammer. Every one of those works so well!! But...
- ...the coherence of the action leaves a bit to be desired. I saw this film in 2D on a smaller screen, yet there were some parts (like the Hulkbuster sequence) where I was hard pressed to tell what was going on during my first viewing. Some of it moved at Man of Steel speeds which I wasn't a fan of. I wish Whedon pulled the camera back like he did in the first film to give us a better visual understanding of the complex action.
- The story is a mixed bag, in that it sets some awesome things up while leaving other things dangling. It's great to see scenes like Stark and Rogers verbally fighting in the yard because of their differing opinions (which is a precursor to Civil War next year), but sequences like Thor's vision, where he finds himself in Asgard then a pool of some special something or whatever, were confusing and really went nowhere. Considering Thor: Ragnarok isn't coming until November 2017, that's a long time to wait for a payoff.
- That said, the complaint that the film feels like only a setup for future installments isn't true at all. If anything, this is more streamlined than Iron Man 2, but not as satisfying as movies with no baggage like Captain America: The Winter Soldier (the best film in Phase 2) or Guardians of the Galaxy.
- One of the concerns I had going in was the film stretching to accommodate too many characters. My fear was correct. While it was nice to see some much needed depth for Hawkeye, the newcomers like Scarlet Witch, and especially Quicksilver and Vision, were sorely under-utilized.
- But, here's the next point. They are under-utilized because with a 2 hour and 20 min runtime, you can only get so much done. Develop new characters in spinoff films, not in a group movie that is already over-crowded. I really wish they could have used the growth time from them on the villain.
- Speaking of which, WOW! Ultron is an awesome villain! He may not have multiple layers to him like Loki, but he's questionably the most intimidating antagonist yet in the MCU. I just wish he was in the movie more!
- Also, the New Avengers team. At the end of the movie, when Cap showed the new team was Falcon, War Machine, Vision and Scarlet Witch, I couldn't help but be underwhelmed. Am i interested to see where they take this? Absolutely! But, every one of them is a supporting player with considerable less depth, charisma and charm than Stark, Thor or even Bruce Banner! I like all of the characters, I'm just worried that Part 1 of Infinity War (more on that next) will be this team.
- Overall, I enjoyed the movie a lot, despite the numerous issues I had with it. The pacing is all over the place and there are way too many plot lines, but the characters are so much fun to see on-screen together, Ultron is a kick-ass villain and the action sequences (even if at times confusing) are some of the most epic put on film to date! I'm skeptical about Civil War and more so, Infinity War with having to juggle even more characters than this, but I'm hoping the two-film break up and standalone movies will do a better job setting us up in advance! As of right now, my film rankings of the MCU below.
1) The Avengers
2) Captain America: The Winter Soldier
3) Iron Man
4) Captain America: The First Avenger
5) Guardians of the Galaxy
6) Thor
7) Avengers: Age of Ultron
8) Iron Man 3
9) Thor: The Dark World
10) The Incredible Hulk
11) Iron Man 2
