PLEASE NOTE - THE FOLLOWING IS A SPOILER FREE REVIEW OF THE MOVIE. I WILL NOT REVEAL ANY MAJOR PLOT POINTS FROM THE MOVIE.
“Other people move on. But not us”
And so, after 11 years and 21 movies, the end begins.
It is almost impossible now to remember a time when comic book movies were not the dominant box office force that they have become. Those old enough to remember the awful comic book movie releases of the 90s could never imagine that we would now be at this place. The Marvel Cinematic Universe is an unprecedented achievement in cinematic history, one that will probably never be achieved again.
Who would have thought back in 2006/2007 when the first Ironman movie was announced that would not only Marvel’s phase 1 experiment be the success that it was but that the comic book genre would explode the way it has? Fortunately, with Kevin Feige diligently leading the charge, the MCU has gone from strength to strength. Not all the movies have been amazing or broken records at the box office. But then again, not every movie has to do that. What is remarkable and what makes the MCU stand out is their consistency; they are yet to make an awful movie. Apart from the odd minor misstep along the way the franchise is the most successful in cinematic history, and they managed it without a lot of their A-list characters. Who knows how successful they will be now the Fox deal has gone through and they have the rights back to Fantastic Four and X-Men. However, before we focus too much on the future, we need to wrap up the Infinity Saga.
Will we finally see Tony Stark’s Ironman and Steve Roger’s Captain America die?
How will they manage to undo the snap?
And what all be the ultimate fate of Thanos come the end?
THE STORYAfter half of all life in the universe was killed due to the actions of Thanos the remaining Avengers and their allies must reassemble to attempt to revert those actions in one last stand.
OVERALL OPINIONWhere to begin? This movie is epic in terms of scale and storytelling and yet it never forgets that at the heart of it all are these characters that we’ve come to know and love over the past 11 years. Thinking on how the MCU began and looking at how far it has come, it is almost strange seeing the Infinity Saga come to a close. However, we are left with a sense that the franchise will continue despite some of the events in this movie.
Having just got home after the screening, it is very hard to talk about this movie without giving away any spoilers. Virtually everything that happens you will need to see yourself if you want to experience the appropriate emotion that the Russo’s want you to. I will say though that while it is a long movie, it is paced very well. The action scenes are amazing, rivalling some of the best the franchise has given us to date. The plot was simultaneously a little predictable but also took some surprising twists.
Marvel’s trademark humour is still present, but not over-played or under-done. Although, I will say there is one character in particular that is taken a very new and unexpected direction. During the film I wasn’t sure if it was funny, sad, unnecessary or understandable. Given some time I will be able to clarify my opinion a bit more. But it didn’t ruin anything that was going on on-screen and did have a really great payoff towards the end. There are also some returning faces that will surprise in the best ways possible too.
Was this a good finale to the 11 year story they have been telling? Yes
Was the 3 hr run time necessary? Most definitely.
Was I bored? Not at all.
There is just so much movie to process. And this is not a bad thing. Even now, there are so many moments and so many talking points that will be debated by fans and the internet for months to come. I’m sure there will be some naysayers out there (there always is for big tentpole movies like this) especially given certain aspects of the plot. However, there are plenty of movies where you can discover problems if you sit down and seriously think about the logistics. But, if like Cinema Wins, you focus on the positives this is one of the most enjoyable comic book movies in recent memory. It’s hard to say more without giving away plot details.
All-in-all, it manages to bring to an end multiple storylines that have been set-up across the franchise over the past 11 years in a very satisfying way.
THE PERFORMANCES After 11 years and countless movies the actors playing these roles perfectly embody each character so well that it’s kind of moot talking about them individually. We expect them to be always be great now. Also, as there are just SO many characters in this movie, its best to focus on any stand-out performances, monologues or lines, as well as any arcs that develop the characters in interesting ways
STAND OUTSRobert Downey Jr - Tony StarkIt’s strange to think now that RDJ was considered a casting risk back in 2008. Personally, when I heard he was to play Tony Stark, I thought it was perfect casting. And he took this role and ran with it, not only issuing in the MCU, but a new era in cinema. Here he is really giving his all to a character he knows so well and loves playing. You really feel all the emotions he is going through, especially the more tender and touching moments with certain characters.
Chris Evans - Steve Rogers If Stark is the brains then Rogers is the heart. Chris Evans has taken a character that was previously C-list in the comics and turned him into one of the best heroes on screen. Once again we get everything we would want to see from the character: heart, leadership, decency, badassery. He has some wonderful moments with RDJ and two jaw-dropping moments towards the end of the movie.
Mark Ruffalo - Bruce Banner His role in this movie may have been spoiled by the release of certain toy lines, but Ruffalo can always be relied upon to give a solid performance. Not as impactful as he was in Thor: Ragnarok or Infinity War but solid.
Scarlett Johansson - Natasha Romanoff Scar-Jo showed a bit more of the emotional side of Black Widow rather than the stoic super-spy.
Paul Rudd - Scott Lang Particularly earlier on, he has some wonderful moments, but I felt his impact got smaller (no pun intended) as the movie wore on. But that’s more a story issue than an acting issue.
GREAT AS USUALJeremy Renner - Clint Barton Like or loathe his new hair, Renner has some wonderful emotional moments.
Karen Gillan - Nebula Her character’s arc continued in this and Karen Gillan was allowed to show a bit more emotion other than “angry, cyber-alien”.
Bradley Cooper - Rocket His usual reliable quippy self. Had some great banter with some of the human Avengers.
Josh Brolin - Thanos Surprisingly, he had as much to do in this movie as in Infinity War. And he was equally as delicious as the villain.
OTHER STUFFThe ActionIf you thought the airport scene in Civil War and the battle of Wakanda in Infinity War were showstoppers, wait until you see some of the action set-pieces in this.
The CGIIt’s a Marvel movie. What is there to say? While the MCU occasionally has some wonky CGI, on the whole their CGI work is usually on-point. Once again, Thanos looks amazing (the way they capture Josh Brolin’s micro-expressions….wow) as do all the other elements. There were a couple elements utilising a certain technique that could have been better, but each time it’s used it is improved upon.
The PacingFor a three hour movie there were no dull moments or elements you thought could have cut. Thoroughly engaging throughout.
The Score/SoundtrackNothing really stood out for me on the score front, except when certain themes came in occasionally.
Nothing really standout on the soundtrack front either.
Other stuffCaptain America probably has the most standout moments in this movie than all of his other appearances combined.
The Stan Lee cameo was fantastic and didn’t give me the sense of sorrow that his Captain Marvel one did.
There are no post credit scenes, so you can leave as soon as the credits roll.
FINAL VERDICTRun time - 3h 01m
Rotten Tomatoes critics score (at time of writing) - 97%
My Score: 8.8/10 And so the Infinity Saga has come to an end. Was it worth the 11 year build-up? Hells yes. Does the franchise still have plenty of life left in it? Of course. Especially with Disney acquisition of Fox meaning Marvel has the Fantastic Four and X-Men back. I know some people will go in expecting to be blown away like they were when Infinity War came out. However, this is a very different kind of movie. It is amazing in it’s own right and a great conclusion to the Infinity Saga.
MY MOVIE RATING SYSTEM
10- Citizen F*%king Kane (A+)
9- Bloody Great (A)
8- Really rather good (A-)
7- Pretty decent (B+)
6- Definitely above average (B)
5- Middle of the road average (C)
4- Mediocre (D)
3- Meh (E)
2- Crap (F)
1- Why the hell did I waste my time and money on this abomination (Unrated)
