A SUPER
HERO
BLAST
IN IMAX 3D
MARVEL’S THE AVENGERS
By John Delia
The power that Marvel’s The Avengers has amassed from major hits by each of the sci-fi action heroes pushing the release of this film has reached near fever pitch, and it’s about time the super hero team came out to play. Wild, rowdy and fantastic this fabulous five kicks butt with an imaginative two hours plus that has me wanting more. If you are into adventure/action and fantasy then don your cape, grab your hammer, slide you arm into your shield and wear Hulk green in support of Marvel’s The Avengers.
Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), The Incredible Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Captain America (Chris Evans) and Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) have been summoned by Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) who heads up a peacekeeping unit called S.H.I.E.L.D. for a war only united they can win. With Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) under the control of Loki (Tom Hiddleston) who has obtained the mighty Cosmic Cube, it’s only a matter of time before the villain takes over the world and destroys all of mankind. Working with unlimited power from the Cube and an army of aliens, Loki gets the upper hand. When the super heroes figure out it’s better to pull together in order to win the war, things start looking up for the salvation of the Earth.
The fun filled film under the command of writer/director Joss Wehdon (in addition to Marvel’s The Avengers, he also wrote the screenplay for Toy Story and Aliens: Resurrection) is a non-stop frenzy of special powers lighting up the huge IMAX 3D screen. Wehdon spares no expense in creating some of the most diabolical monsters using very cool special effects as foes for his heroes to combat. The final assault is a crazy roller-coaster ride that with the use of excellent 3D had me rocking in my chair.
I found myself wondering prior to seeing the film if they really could bring the bevy of superheroes together without falling over each other’s feet, trying to one-upmanship each other or a competition on giving the best smile in the middle of a monster attack. But, the fearsome five put on a great show with death defying stunts, good acting during the drama and some very funny wisecracks that had my sides aching from laughter.
To tell you the truth I was not really fond of both the Captain America: The First Avenger and Thor films because it felt like setups to this film instead of a movie that I could hero worship. The stories was ineffective, inferior special effects bothered the action and the actors looked like they were walking through there rolls with little or no chemistry for their characters. BUT, and that’s a capitalized but, these two characters alone impressed me in The Avengers, let alone having the charisma of Iron Man, Black Widow and The Hulk along for back-ups.
How do you work The Incredible Hulk into a film like this without it looking hokey? A tip of the hat to Wehdon, as for me Mark Ruffalo put on the best performance as Bruce Banner, the nervous mild mannered guy who when mad can move buildings, swat space ships and save the world while creating laughter among the cheers. You’re the man Mark Ruffalo and I can’t wait to see you in The Avengers 2.
The Avengers has been rated PG-13 by the MPAA for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action throughout, and a mild drug reference. Unless I’m mistaken here, I did notice some foul language one or two time during the film as well. The film was reviewed in the IMAX 3D format and is available in Digital 3D and RealD. Marvel’s The Avengers is based on the ever-popular Marvel comic book series “The Avengers†first published in 1963.
FINAL ANALYSIS: I’m hooked, bring on Red Skull. (A)
Additional Film Information:
- Cast: Robert Downey Jr. (Tony Stark/Iron Man), Chris Evans (Steve Rogers/Captain America), Mark Ruffalo (Bruce Banner/The Incredible Hulk), Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Scarlett Johansson (Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow), Jeremy Renner (Clint Barton/Hawkeye), Tom Hiddleston (Loki), with Stellan Skarsgård (Selvig), Clark Gregg (Agent Nick Coulson) and Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury)
- Directed by: Joss Whedon
- MPAA Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action throughout, and a mild drug reference
- Genre: Sci-fi, Adventure, Fantasy, and Action
- Running Time: 2 hrs 22 min
- Opening Date: May 4, 2012
- Distributed by: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures