Avengers: Infinity War

No matter how saturated the superhero genre has been since the late 2000s (and its effect on our wallets up until this point), there's no denying that no matter what we may feel about the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a whole, it managed to accomplish the feat of maintaining a long running connective narrative for its genre. During its run, this franchise managed to not only create heroes stories in their own adventures but also 3 team up ventures in the Avengers series (yes Civil War is essentially Avengers 2.5). This expansive narrative over 10 years of 18 movies have been leading up to an event most fans have been waiting for, especially with long running actors contracts that are going to expire soon, which brings us to Avengers: Infinity War. The marketing campaign was boastful to what people have been clamoring for to incite their own theories on which characters are going to die and it gained positive critical reception. I entered the auditorium cautiously optimistic while being ready not for the movie that I want but what it will have and left it very excited for the second part of this story coming up next year.

Note: With a Marvel comic book film of this magnitude with the enormous amount of content, there's going to be a spoiler section down below the vague non-spoiler one. 

MCU entries to watch relating to this: The most important ones that cover not only the escapades of the team but also the Infinity Stones include Iron Man, Thor, Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy 1 and 2, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and The Captain America trilogy. An honorable mention goes to Doctor Strange. Everything else is irrelevant and filler. Observing these will give a sense of the origins of the original Avengers members and what state the world is in following certain events. However, if you don't have the time for any of these and would like a condensed summary, Screen Junkies created a 17 minute video giving a run down on what you need to know from every MCU movie up to Infinity War: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5sb8LBeaQQ

Plot: Taking place 2 years after the Avengers broke up in Captain America: Civil War, the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy find themselves facing off against malevolent planet ruler who endeavors to collect 6 Infinity Stones to become unstoppable in his ultimate goal. This is a reward for the fans of this franchise who have been watching since Iron Man as they are many details involved for those who can spot them. This feels like the reverse of Civil War's action dialog ratio where the battles are in excess while the exposition conversations are kept necessary and push the story forward instead of dragging. The pacing is kept on fast where it matters most and lets the audience feel the strain of the conflict at hand. Everything fans of the franchise have been waiting for in terms of a conflict worth 10 years of build up through 18 movies and the enjoyment factor would also depend on your emotional investment in the events that transpire here.

Because this is a culmination of all of the developments these characters have been though, the plot doesn't have any room left to add in that department since its goal is delivering the experience and stakes the audience deserves. One of the best compliments this story deserves is it avoids being the cluttered mess it could have been if mismanaged and steers itself in a clear concise manner. With so many things happening and the fast pace at hand, the long runtime here is a valid criticism since there are a few dragging moments and a lot of action, the latter of which might get somewhat tiresome. Another thing to factor in is the emotional investment here ultimately depends on your feelings towards the protagonists on screen from what you've seen them go through and how it culminates in this experience. Personally there was enough of that in here, despite one key conflict lacking that feature preventing the climax from packing a full gut wrenching punch (more about that in the spoiler section).

Characters: Even though there is a large roster of established heroes here, only a handful are front and center to pay attention to. The characters to focus on are Thanos (Josh Brolin), Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr), Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), and Thor (Chris Hemsworth). Thanos is the ruler of the planet Titan whose aspirations he wants to achieves requires him to hunt down all 6 Infinity Stones. More details about his character is in the spoiler section down below but long story short for those of you anxious about him, the directors stated that this movie is about him as a main character and the film walks the walk on that statement. Not only is the CGI on him great but Josh Brolin's performance as this scene stealing powerhouse villain elevates the experience.

Tony is the technologically advanced genius leader of the Avengers who joins a group to protect one of the Infinity Stones. Robert once again delivers as a man using his own resources and adapting to dealing with new people while somewhat learning from his past experiences in trying to keep his world safe. Stephen is a master of the mystic arts who wields one of the aforementioned stones and finds himself joining Tony in a dangerous mission. Benedict is good in his portrayal where he flexes out his snarky smart mouth against Roberts and conveys his growth from when we last saw him. Thor is an Avenger and king of Asgard whose bad luck leads him to meet up with a certain team of space dwellers and quests out to stop Thanos. Hemsworth is great in this team up flick where his interactions allow him to display his growth from his recent ventures (being a marked improvement over his last film). Honorable mentions goes to Star Lord (Chris Pratt) and Gamora (Zoe Saldana) for their roles in the plot and performances that accompany them.

Humor: Now many of you who have read my past MCU reviews probably know how I feel about the comedy in this franchise. One of my biggest concerns coming in was how it was going to be handled considering the roster of characters. Thankfully the writers constrained themselves with having the jokes set to the few people you would expect to do (such as Drax, Thor, Iron Man) and are packed in smaller digestible bundles. Almost none of these gags approach a cringe worthy level of face palming disappointment (though only some moments manage to come close but those are very few and far between).

Action: For those of you wanting more action and limited exposition conversation, Infinity War heard your wishes and said "hold my beer". The high budget effort put into these battles shows from the small scale down to the large in scope variety. The movie acknowledges we have an idea of what's going on and jumps into the threatening nature of Thanos and his forces. With a diverse range of heroes in factions, some team up moves are worth watching for that fan pleasing delight (if you've already seen this, you know which moments they are). One thing that might be a bothersome is layering a lot of the fights one after another could get tiresome after while and might require caffeine in your system to keep up. But that's more of a minor nitpick since these filmmakers are here to deliver on the promising conflict from 10 years of work from 18 movies of build up.

Overall Consensus: Avengers: Infinity War rewards fans of its cinematic universe by delivering desperate stakes, great performances, fast pace solid storytelling, and a roller coaster of awesome action. ⭑⭑⭑⭑🍿🎟 Runtime: 2 hours 30 minutes PG-13

Reasons to watch it: You like any of the aforementioned actors. You are a fan of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. You don't mind predictable choices made for plot convenience that are mostly natural. You are interested in seeing how the powerful stones are utilized. You don't mind action movies that are 2.5 hours with fast pacing and lots of battles. You want to see the studio deliver one of its best comic book movie villains with plenty of character development. You have enough emotional investment in most of the well established heroes (including the Guardians of the Galaxy due to their importance here) to see what happens to them in this major storyline.

Reasons to avoid it: You dislike any of the aforementioned actors. You aren't a fan of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. You dislike predictable choices made for plot convenience that are mostly natural. You hate action movies that are 2.5 hours with fast pacing and lots of battles.

Coming up next: April Anticipation has concluded on an explosively satisfying engaging blockbuster with Avenger: Infinity War!!! It managed to mostly deliver to it audience something that will stick with them for a long while and entice more theories about part 2 coming up next year! Overall this month of reviews have been mostly positive, though some of the entries started to weaknesses to slow down the momentum of enjoyment and quality. With the power of the MoviePass card recently granted to me (might as well use it to my benefit while the service is still around for the time being), the summer season has officially arrived with a lot of anticipated releases many of us are looking forward to. The announcement for the May review roster will be updated on the Screening Spectacles facebook page later this week. Be sure to like and/or follow it to keep up with upcoming entries!

Spoilers!!!!!
Spoilers!!!!!
Spoilers!!!!!
Spoilers!!!!!

  • Pros
    • The Ending: Despite the efforts of Team Cap, Thor, and Iron Man, Thanos gets all of the Infinity Stones and wipes out half of humanity including the majority of the Avengers. The only survivors are Nebula, Tony, Thor, Bruce, M'Baku, Okoye, Steve, War Machine,  Black Widow, and Rocket. Thanos winds up on another planet inside a cabin and watches a peaceful sunset. It's amazing in its execution and leaves the audience stunned by those who disappeared while being anxious to watch part 2 next year.
    • Thanos killing off Loki and Heimdall: The death of these characters had been something on my wish list for a while. The former started off pretty entertaining to watch as he became a competent threat to the Avengers and solid rival to Thor. But then he lost his mojo and momentum post-Avengers down to the point where Tom Hiddleston should move onto better career choices. The latter admittedly was another minor character with limited screen time and a talented actor who deserves better roles than this. Watching Thanos murder them actually brought a smile of relief to me where I'm like "Thank you man! Go do your thing to everyone else! You earned it." Hopefully these deaths will stick so that Tom Hiddleston and Idris Elba can move onto better career moves.  
    • Gamora and Thanos: The relationship between Thanos and Gamora has only been talked about in little bites at a time from her being the favorite daughter down to her being forced to train with Nebula and the bad things he did to the latter. One of the most fascinating scenes features Thanos on her planet and showed when he attacked her planet, which separated her from her family and leading to their meeting. Of course when it was revealed he actually loved her (in his own twisted manner) and in order to retrieve the Soul Stone, he needed to exchange a loved ones soul for it. Seeing him tear up as he sacrificed Gamora was executed very well. 
    • Gamora and Star Lord's romance: Over there adventures together, these two have had some nice watchable chemistry in their bond. Both of them are working to become better versions of themselves after moving through personal dilemma to make a relationship on that level work. It came together very well when Gamora asks Star Lord to make a promise to kill her in case their attack on her adoptive father doesn't work to prevent him from having her (since she knows the location of the soul stone). When their attempt on the villains life doesn't work and has her in a hold, that struggle to find the will to kill Gamora is very tragic to watch and the performances sell it well. Unfortunately Thanos uses the reality stone to make Star Lord's gun useless in doing the deed and knocks him out. 
    • Thanos as a character: His mindset of overpopulation being a threat to his own planet was actually compelling in how it was written. Before he throws down with the protagonists, he gives an explanation of his background is very fascinating. As a ruler of Titan, his responsibility as its caregiver is front and centered as he views the universe is in danger from overpopulation. As a villain to express genuine emotion as he's very firm in his goals is to be commended and something to look forward to as we will see him probably celebrate that win in part 2. 
    • Moments during the Battle of Wakanda: As a whole it was another fine action bonanza but there are moments (aside from the ending) that are worth watching. One of them being Bruce using the rocket fist of the Hulk Buster suit to defeat one of the Black Order members. Thor's return with the use of Storm Bringer was kind of cool in seeing a demigod laying down the thunder on his descent. One more was another Black Order member being killed by one of their large devices shredding up the field. 
    • Team Iron Man: These members include Iron Man, Star Lord, Doctor Strange, Spider-Man, Mantis, and Drax. The manner in which Tony is meeting new people to team up with to try to beat Thanos with is very entertaining to watch. The best sense of a team up comes from this oddball group with the serious moments down to the writing of their comedy. Plus Spider-Man managed to get two upgrades: The Iron Spider suit and a formal promotion to Avenger. 
    • Thor Ragnarok is irrelevant: It's no secret that Thor: Ragnarok was one of my least favorite Marvel entries. However, the combination of first 10 minutes of Infinity War shows those surviving Asgardians dead, Loki being killed by Thanos, Thor relaying his family history with the Guardians, and being given a new eye by Rocket leaves that movie feeling much less impactful. Everything that came out of it didn't matter at all with what transpires in this Avengers film.
    • Usage of Mantis: For someone who could have been left to the sidelines like Team Cap, it's greatly appreciated that the writers remembered Mantis' empath capabilities and had her put them to use in trying to put Thanos to sleep. It's good that she's not just seen as comic relief but as a worthy Guardian member in this team up.
    • Red Skull returns: A welcome surprise that this deserves credit for is revealing Red Skulls fate. In his last battle with Steve Rogers, Red Skull attempted to use the Tesseract (which was actually the Space Stone) and it didn't destroy him but rather send him to planet Vormir, where he served as guide to the Soul Stone. It can present a possible opportunity to be used in Part 2 just in case Marvel wants him to reunite with Steve Rogers. 
    • Team Thor: The members of this crew includes Thor, Rocket Raccoon, and teenage Groot. The better writing given to Thor allows him to be an improved demigod from his experience and his interactions with Rocket and Groot become that wish list item audiences never knew they wanted. Not only can Thor understand what Groot is saying but his exchanges with Rocket have a solid balance of sweet and comedic. What was a cherry on top was the formation of Storm Bringer and Groots branch arm being used in the weapons creation. 
    • Excellent usage of the reality stone: In Thor: The Dark World, we never really saw the reality stone in a proper state and it was a surprise to see it in action. The scene where Star Lord, Gamora, Drax, and Mantis go to Nowhere to find the Collector who was last seen with it. Everything looked intact and our antagonist appeared to be standing there. It was then revealed to be a warped reality as it was shown to be a burning ruins of what was once the slums. 
    • Thanos vs Team Iron Man: My personal favorite aspect of the climax wasn't the Battle of Wakanda (which has some cool moments) but rather Thanos battling Team Iron Man on planet Titan. Moments of teamwork after great to watch that include Strange using his glyphs to help Star Lord run and jump above to take some shots at Thanos, Mantis using her empath skills to pin down the giant, Spider-Man using Strange's teleporting circles to get some punches in as well as catching his teammates with his webs and extra suit legs, and the best part being Thanos blowing up part of a planet to rain down meteors on our heroes. Even the resolution was executed well and alluded to Doctor Strange's master plan after looking at the possibilities with the Time Stone before the battle. 
    • The Black Order boss battles: Cronies of our main antagonist are four battle hungry aliens whose strengths shouldn't be underestimated. They serve their purpose well in the battles against the Avengers with the destruction to nearby cities being more than guaranteed. The fact that it's exhausting trying to kill them is an added bonus of a worthy struggle. The best standout among them is Ebony Maw, who captures Doctor Strange in the first act. 
    • Post credits scene: Nick Fury signaling for Captain Marvel and letting out a "Motherf-" as he disappeared is the only reason I picking this part as a pro.
  • Cons
    • Team Cap: Members include Steve Rogers, Bruce Banner, Falcon, War Machine, Black Widow, Vision, and Scarlet Witch. It's really hilarious how the marketing campaign focused on his group a bit but that conflict is the least important. This team suffers from the overcrowding issue that leaves them with less screen time but a few of them have moments to shine. Honestly that issue is understandable and a minor one that could be fixed in Part 2.
    • Bruce Banner/Hulk: As mentioned before, this is a minor one since Part 2 could rectify this better with the writing. But Thor Ragnarok somewhat started an arc for Bruce and Hulk that had potential to move forward in a good direction. However, the execution here is a mixed bag that left more to be desired. Apparently Hulk was embarrassed after being beaten by Thanos in the opening 10 minutes and was so mad he refused to switch with Bruce in the fights that actually needed him. Meanwhile this has affect Banners mannerisms and the awkward moments displayed with him are kind of cringe worthy (but again very small and few) and slow things down in a bad way. 
    • Scarlet Witch and Vision Romance: One noticeable problem that hold this back is the relationship between Scarlet Witch and Vision for variety of reasons. The screen time for their bond isn't something to write home about and while it may have worked in the comics, the execution in the cinematic universe leaves much to be desired since nothing much of value was done with it in their few scenes together in Civil War. Emotional investment in the problem of Vision having the Mind Stone on his body making him a target isn't exactly something the writers were able to translate well from his appearances in Age of Ultron and Civil War. Despite the efforts of their actors to sell their actions, the concept of being forced to kill a loved one to prevent the villain from winning doesn't pack the impact one would like where the stakes are just that high. If this tragic romance had the emotional investment necessary to pack a punch, the climax a whole would have been complete to help boost my score of the film. 

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