Score: **** out of ***** (A-)
Directed by Joss Whedon
Starring Robert Downey, Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, James Spader, et. al.
Runtime: 141 minutes
Rating: PG-13
Long Story Short: Joss Whedon unleashes his follow-up to the 2012 superhero all-star blockbuster and delivers another smashing success. The action soars in a variety of fun fights and battles, as the Avengers are challenged by AI nemesis Ultron. While there's maybe a little too much going on this time around, we get more of the same great work on the heroes and their relationships too. Highly recommended.
You might notice a few cosmetic changes to this review, but overall this is not a significant change in review style from my standard, as I had mentioned I would try. I started writing this in a different style, but decided that I was doing too much describing, taking too long to do it, and still not getting to even my amateur-level analysis. So I may try some tweaks through the coming months, but probably nothing huge. Well, here is the first summer movie of the year and it's quite a doozy! One of my most anticipated films of the year, though even this doesn't crack my top three.
Since saving the world from Loki-led alien domination last time, the Avengers have been cleaning up the leftovers. At the beginning here, they assault one of Hydra's (evil organization) final strongholds to recover a powerful instrument. Heading back to HQ in NY, the team is confident and ready to party. However, a new villain rises from the very center of this victory in the form of artificial intelligence Ultron (Spader). He calculates that the greatest source of danger in the world comes from humans themselves - none more so than the Avengers.
With the help of a new set of super twins, Ultron scatters the outgunned and outwitted Avengers. Once again, it will take the Avengers working as a true team to stop their foe, but divisions are now greater than ever.
Age of Ultron is bursting at the seams with characters, both familiar faces comfortable in their roles and a few new ones as well. Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark/Iron Man stands out the most due to his relationship with Ultron, but it is definitely an ensemble effort. Downey, Jr. delivers the goods as always with both his humor and his quasi-anti-hero attitude. Chris Evans' Captain America is seen mostly as Stark's ideological opposite once again, and Thor (Hemsworth) also gets relatively little to do (most of it not even having to do directly with the film's main events). Instead, we get a refreshing, closer look at "the Ringos", Hawkeye (Renner), Black Widow (Johansson) and the Hulk (Ruffalo). Hawkeye brings in some of the first family elements we've seen in these films and delivers some strong scenes. Meanwhile, the Hulk and Black Widow are drawn to each other and we get a closer look at what makes them tick. The relationship is intriguing, and hopefully will be explored further later on.
James Spader voices the villain Ultron, and what a good choice he was. Spader brings a laser intelligence to the villain, someone who toys with and menaces the Avengers simultaneously. He unfortunately fades and becomes more generic as the film progresses; more on that later. The new super twins are played competently by Elizabeth Olsen and Aaron Taylor-Johnson. Frankly they're largely plot devices, but they bring some charisma with them. And then we have a whole train of cameos from old friends, from Samuel L. Jackson to Hayley Atwell. Nice to see them, and they are neither frivolous nor feel bloated.
Joss Whedon proved in the first Avengers, among many other things, that he could make a kick-ass blockbuster that also fully utilizes its characters and their relationships. He shows the same skill here, if not quite reaching the same heights in doing so. Age of Ultron brings the fireworks expected of this kind of tentpole film. There are three main battles, each nicely distinct. We start with the Avengers' raid on Hydras base, just giving a taste of their capabilities - and effectively foreshadowing events to come. In the middle is a no-holds-barred slugfest between Iron Man and the Hulk that is a showstopper. And the finale is an ensemble epic much like the one from the first film. I view it as continuity rather than copying, but admittedly it drags a bit and is overall less thrilling. Ultron enters between the first and second battles, but unfortunately never rises to his potential (he is involved in a fourth big battle that I had actually forgotten about initially). He simply fades to the background, becoming almost a symbol against other diversions, some worthy some not.
All the action just described gets a considerable boost from the great character work that Whedon and his actors produce. I've already mentioned the surprising but welcome focus on the lesser-known Avengers, but a theme taken from the first film and amplified is the conflict between Captain America and Iron Man. This works quite well in several powerful scenes, and if anything I would have liked to see more on this (and a bolder statement at the conclusion). Sadly, like Ultron these Avengers too have to make room for just a little too much extra stuff. A new character comes in in the latter half representing connection to an even bigger Marvel universe, and it's the point of overload.
***
I was pumped coming out of the theater after seeing this, and while I realize now it's not as good as the first, it's still a damn good movie. Seeing Furious 7 with a better RT score makes me sick - don't always trust the critics (or me, probably)! Yeah, there is too much going on in Age of Ultron. But considering just how many characters and stories Whedon was juggling, it is incredible what an outstanding job he did as both writer and director. It's quite unfortunate that he is now done with the series. And I didn't even get to mention above that Ultron retains the first film's sense of humor; has quite good pacing considering its runtime and "bloat"; and is much better written than most blockbusters. There is some top-notch entertaining action, and a fun to watch cast with interesting dynamics. While this doesn't quite rise to an A for me - at least not yet - I still highly recommend it to anyone looking for a fun flick to see early this summer (and essential viewing, of course, for fans of superhero movies).
"Avengers: Age of Ultron movie poster." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avengers:_Age_of_Ultron#/media/File:Avengers_Age_of_Ultron.jpg
No comments:
Post a Comment