The Avengers

There have been a lot of buzz about the Avengers, and for good reason. It proposes an extraordinary movie experience by combining different superheroes in one film. The individual films all managed to rake in considerable amounts of profit, and with The Avengers being released, one can assume that it will be even more successful.

Just a warning, this post may contain giveaways. I tried not to spoil anything, but if you find something on this entry, I'm sorry!

I was never a big comics fan, but even I anticipated the release of the movie, which is the reason why I saw it on the first day of its release. Here are my reasons: 1) Jeremy Renner is in this movie, and if you have been reading my blog entries, you'll know that I'm a big fan of his. 2) Cobie Smulders is also in this and I can tell you now that seeing Robin Scherbatsky transform to Maria Hill is probably one of the best parts of the film for me. I'm not used to seeing Cobie Smulders act this way, and it was interesting to see her versatility as an actress. And she holds a gun rather well. 3) I did a Marvel movies marathon in celebration of the coming success f The Avengers, and I was very pleased with each and one of them. 4) I get to see all these fantastic characters in one movie, and that is a cinema goldmine in my honest opinion. Witnessing Chris Evans, Robert Downy Jr, Samuel L. Jackson, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansonn, and more is probably one of my favorite film moments.

This movie had me the moment it started. First of all, I want to express my appreciation to how the film started as it focused more on the characters that weren't present in the previous Marvel films - Hawkeye (although he had a cameo in Thor) and Maria Hill. I guess, in a way, it allowed them to have their own shining moment before they were placed besides the big shot superheroes. It also allowed the audience to know who they were, and what their roles were in the movie. That was a slick move by Marvel, and that made me like this movie way before the action started.

I also liked how organized the movie presented each star. Starting with Agent Romanoff, played by Scarlett Johansonn. I think she was the next character to be featured because she only had a supporting role in the second Iron Man movie (My review of Iron Man 2 here: http://mrfilmreviewer.blogspot.com/2012/04/iron-man-2.html) Then the Hulk was presented, probably because the Incredible Hulk (http://mrfilmreviewer.blogspot.com/2012/04/incredible-hulk.html) was released in 2008, long before this movie. Then they showed Captain America, Iron Man and Thor. The sequence and coherence of how each character was presented was very well-thought out.

Allow me to do a quick run through of the cast since they were all exceptional. Jeremy Renner did not disappoint at all. He played both sides of his character with ease. Every time I see him, I am left in awe of  his talent. Cobie Smulders had the stern face almost throughout the film, but all she needed were her eyes. I never noticed it until now that she has very expressive eyes. She didn't have much lines that express her emotions but I always knew how she felt, whether it was anger, doubt, or sadness through the expression on her eyes.

Scarlett Johansonn was still hot as Agent Romanoff. I personally think that the character evolved and was much more dynamic. I also liked how Scarlett Johansson made me believe in the character more. I think she did an even better job portraying Romanoff in this film, probably because she had more screen time, more lines, and more interactions with the other characters (as she should).

Chris Evans still embodied Captain America. The way he portrayed the characted was very similar to how he did it in the first Captain America film (http://mrfilmreviewer.blogspot.com/2012/04/captain-america-first-avenger.html). I thought it was really cool to have that level of consistency.

Robert Downey Jr. was still hilarious. He had the best lines, much thanks to the way he delivered it. He also seemed a lot more intelligent in this film, if that is even possible. If I could trade lives with one of the characters, I'd pick Tony Stark for sure. Robert Downey Jr. just made the character a likeable one.

As you might have read in my previous blog entry on the Hulk, The Incredible Hulk was my favorite out of all the Marvel movies. Edward Norton was a beast, literally and figuratively, in his portrayal of the Hulk. I was a little worried I might not enjoy the sudden changes for the Hulk. However, Mark Ruffalo was plain awesome! Ruffalo as the Hulk just impressed me as much as I was impressed by Norton.

Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston were the perfect parallelism to the Cain and Abel story, except former's relationship is a lot more exciting. They are gods anyway (or at least one of them). Tom Hiddleston plays the villain with the perfect amount of conviction. He is the perfect villian for the whole gang of Avengers.

Samuel L. Jackson never ceases to amaze me with he films he does. He also plays Nick Fury in a very believable manner: bossy but vulnerable, caring but also cunning.

Having said all of these, the person that stood out the most for me was Clark Gregg as Phil Coulson. I've always liked the character but in this movie he quickly rose to one of my favorite characters. It was also good to see a couple of scenes centered around him. He's a supporting character, and he did just that.  I was also hoping Gwyneth Paltrow and Natalie Portman would return and I was so glad both of them were featured in the film.

I think what makes this film incredible is the fact that somehow it managed to grab the best parts of each marvel film and mix it into this heavenly creation. It had the quality of the script of Iron Man which I thoroughly enjoyed. It was funny, and it was also dramatic at the same time. It had wit, but it also had emotions. It had the cinematography and visuals of Captain America. It had the heart pounding moments similar to the Hulk. It gathered the best materials and the film became a one of a kind product. I also enjoyed the balance of showcasing all characters. I got enough of each character even though Iron Man and Captain America were there. The film managed to allow each character their own individual moments.

If that was not enough, they also managed to choreograph an hour's worth of intense battle with the evil forces. I think the best part of this long and fun-filled scene was the blocking. Each character got to interact with the other characters, fight side by side with different heroes. The use of space, horizontally and vertically, in this scene was very effective. I think it added more danger, and a lot more excitement.

Sorry for this rather lengthy post. There are a lot of things I could talk about and I could probably write triple this length, and it still would not depict the level of satisfaction I had after watching the movie. Worth the time, worth the money! It deserves all the hype it is getting. If there is a superhero film that will make it to the list of the greatest films of all time, I won't be surprised to see The Avengers on that list. I may even put money on it.

Personally, I want a Nick Fury movie showing how he trained Hawkeye, Romanoff, Coulson and Hill, and his other allies. That would be very interesting! That would bring the characters in the background in the foreground. This will also enable viewers to be more familiar with these characters. Maybe in the next Avengers movie, these characters will have a lot more screen time.

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