REVIEW: The Avengers

The first weekend in May is here, and that can only mean one thing; the superheroes have arrived. As per every first weekend in May, a new superhero movie has hit theatres and is ready to smash box office records and redefine the definition of the word so often associated with said films: “awesome.”

And this year’s “awesome” superhero movie comes in the form of the most “awesome” movie in the history of anything “awesome” ever being considered “awesome.” It’s The Avengers, and it’s out now, and before I even tell you why it’s so “awesome,” just know that it is “awesome,” and that you’ll need to go see it as soon as you can on a count of how “awesome” it is.

Alright, does everyone still reading know how awesome this movie is? Yes? Good. Let’s proceed.

Five years worth of anticipation, build up, and marketing has led us to this very moment. Every Marvel movie since 2008’s Iron Man has been building up to this one incredibly, spectacularly, amazingly, awe-inspiringly, groundbreakingly, ambitious monster of a movie. Essentially, movies like Iron Man 2, Thor, and Captain America have served as feature length trailers for The Avengers. Anything that has happened on screen in a Marvel movie in the past five years has been meticulously planned and plotted so that we would arrive where we are right now. And, boy, did it pay off.

For the unaware, The Avengers is the ultimate team-up of the best superheroes in the world. As far as most blockbusters go, the plot is pretty standard. An alien race is plotting to destroy Earth (obviously starting out with Manhattan, ‘cause where else?) because of some glowing orb thing, and everyone has to come together to save the planet. We’ve seen this play out on the big screen hundreds of times before, but it’s different in The Avengers. Also, did I mention how “awesome” it is?

Whether or not you’re a fan of comics or Marvel movies or superheroes in general doesn’t really matter. What The Avengers is is a great summer blockbuster filled with some amazing action, some very funny comedy, and a lot of great acting. The directing is solid, the writing is great, and the effects are incredible. Like the superhero team at the core of the film, The Avengers mixes together everything great about movies and turns it into one amazing feat that should not, and probably would not, have worked had any element been even slightly different than what it was.

There’s no way that a movie focusing on six different superheroes, two of which hadn’t even been properly introduced before the film, should have worked. For example, in Spider-Man 3, things got crowded when three villains were introduced and a lot of people couldn’t follow what was going on. In The Avengers, there are two(-ish) villains, six superheroes, and about three other main characters to worry about. But, not only does it end up making sense, it ends up being the best thing to happen in any superhero movie in history.

The Avengers is able to take all six of its superheroes and give them each ample screen time and sufficient character arcs to make everything immensely satisfying. There is nothing in the film that is gratuitous or out of place. Everything is impeccably paced and brilliantly framed. Even lesser-known characters, such as Hawkeye, whos weapon is a bow and arrow, or Black Widow, whos weapon is two pistols, manage to have developed characters and enough incredible action sequences to leave everyone clamoring for their chance to see each of them in their own film. A bow and arrow might sound stupid, but The Avengers manages to make it into one of the coolest things you’ve seen on screen in a long time.

And speaking of balancing characters, does everyone remember The Hulk? He had his own movie in 2003 that was terrible and everyone tried to forget about it, and then another movie in 2008 that was good but everyone forgot about it anyways. Well, he’s back here, and this time he’s played by Mark Ruffalo. Without giving too much away, he’s easily one of the best parts of the film, and fan reaction has been so positive that Marvel is reportedly considering, again, giving him his own movie. Maybe third time’s the charm?

After the dust (literally) settles at the end of The Avengers, we are left wanting so much more. In a good way. However, while we’ve waited this long for the first film, the second one isn’t that far off. With Iron Man 3 and Thor 2 coming out next year, the second phase of The Avengers is already on its way. In the meantime, this film has enough replay value in it for you to watch it every week until the sequel comes out and never get bored.

The Avengers is an amazing film many, many, many years in the making, and you should absolutely go out and enjoy it as soon as possible. The Avengers is not only one of the best superhero films of all time, but it is also something that should be able to satisfy literally anyone who has two eyes, ears, and the capability to render emotions.

To reiterate, The Avengers is AWESOME!