
8/10
Just saw this today. I think the last time I saw a movie in a theater might have been X - Men: First Class. I'm not sure which movie I like more, but this movie was fun. Now, onto...
the t3cii Avengers run down!!
SPOILERS
- Iron Man was the only movie of this collection of Marvel movies I had seen. Luckily the movie is engaging enough where that wasn't too much of a problem.
- I made a mistake and suggested we meet up about 15 minutes before the movie started, but when we got our tickets, the theater was packed. This being a long weekend in Canada I guess I shouldn't have been too surprised, but still, big crowd. We ended up sitting in the second row (a bit uncomfortable).
- "I think they're going to ask him to join the Avengers" - My friend jokingly whispers to me as Black Widow visits Bruce Banner. I don't get to meet up with my friends very often these days, so part of my enjoyment of the movie came from the little comments and reactions we made through out the movie. As a funny coincidence, there was also the same amount of us as are Avengers (5 guys, 1 girl). I call dibs on being the Hulk!
- The movie didn't waist any time getting off of the ground, but I think I would have liked maybe a little more of a buildup to the finale.
- At one point, I had to get up and use the restroom. Was greeted by a full house. Had to leave the cinema and use one of the mall's restrooms. Ended up missing about 7 minutes. Let that be a lesson to all of you, skip the refreshment stand.
- The Hulk steals the movie, which I'm sure most of you know. I watched the movie with a very enthusiastic crowd and the audience loved pretty much all of his moments. When Hulk whips Loki around like a doll, everyone went nuts, so much so that I missed his parting (only?) comment. Still, watching Hulk tear shit up was great, although I'm not really sure I understand why he came back, and was pretty much under control, despite his total flip out at on that big Shield Ship.
- While everyone in the cast did pretty well in their roles, I think Chris Evans was simply outshone by the supporting cast. Also, Colbie Smulders was pretty much wasted on such a small role.
- Overall, I thought this was a fun, enjoyable movie. But there are a few things, in my opinion, that stop this from being a great movie....
- Loki isn't much of a villain. Sure, the actor who played him had the sense of villainous glee to him, but there really wasn't all that much to him. Would it have helped if I had seen Thor?
- Another problem is Loki's army. They really didn't seem like much of a fight. At no point did it seem like any of the Avengers were at a significant disadvantage. It makes me wonder why Loki (who did so much damage on his own) even needed them? They were really just an obstacle. This leads to my final problem of the movie...
- There didn't seem to be much consequences. Sure, that one guy died, but I never felt that New York was ever in any real danger. Even when there was the threat of Manhattan being nuked, there didn't seem to be any tension. That hurts the movie. It's a fun movie, most of the characters are likable, it never got boring, but I kind of feel that it's a movie comprised of some cool set pieces, and some comedic clips. In a way, it's not all that different from the Dark Knight. But I felt that movie had a stronger storyline, and more compelling characters. I'm not sure, though, that the Avengers series will ever be that dramatic. Nor does it need to be, I guess, but as far as my favorite super hero movies I've seen are concerned, I'd rank this below Spider-Man 2, and the Dark Knight.
- At the end of the movie, the audience applauded. I always smile when that happens, as it happens so rarely.
- Final, final scene of the movie prompted my friends to go for something to eat after. The power of cinema!
So, pretty good time was had by all. Looking forward to seeing a number of movies this summer. I will say, before the movie started, they showed the Dark Knight Rises trailer, and despite watching that trailer a dozen times, I'm still pumped for it. The audience seemed to quiet down a bit as they watched it too.