IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN AVENGERS
AGE OF ULTRON AND DO NOT WISH TO SEE SPOILERS THEN I HIGHLY SUGGEST YOU DO NOT
READ THIS BLOG POST. IF YOU STILL HAVE NOT SEEN IT BUT WOULD LIKE TO READ THIS
POST ANYWAYS, BE MY GUEST. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
The 2015 summer blockbuster season kicked off
with the long awaited superhero extravaganza Avengers:
Age of Ultron. Although it fell short of its predecessor, the highly
anticipated sequel reeled in $187.6 million domestically on it's opening
weekend alone. There is so much to go through in this film, so let's start with
the positives and negatives.
Negatives
New Character: The speedy character of Pietro Maximoff
(Quicksilver) was new to the Avengers films, but he felt a tad bit out of place
at times. The writing for him was a bunch of short phrases and we never really
got a significant in depth look at him. We knew that his twin sister, Wanda
Maximoff (Scarlet Witch), and he had a strong relationship due to their parents
dying when they were very young causing them to have a personal vendetta with
Tony Stark (Iron Man). Other than that, they didn't dive into this character
very well. When he took that ultimate sacrifice for Clint Barton (Hawkeye) at
the end, I didn't quite get the emotion I was hoping for because I didn't feel
attached to him. I would have liked a little more screen time and development
with him. Although I do like that Marvel is now showing that they aren't afraid
to kill off their characters.
Needs More Clarification at
Times: Another aspect I
felt this film was lacking in was clarification in some scenes. An example of
this was the scene where Thor goes on his journey to find answers from his
vision. The audience just kind of got thrown with him into this magical hot
springs where he saw the Infinity Gauntlet. Although this scene is VERY
NECESSARY for future setup, I was not really quite sure how Thor figured all of
this out so soon. Another scene where I was a bit confused was how Nick Fury
managed to get the Helicarrier out from the bottom of the ocean where it sank
in Captain America: Winter
Solider. In the film he said he had a few friends help him along the way
but that seems like a rather big task.
Character Development: This kind of falls with the whole
Quicksilver aspect of the film but I felt there was a lack of character
development with another character as well. This character was Ultron. We
didn't really get much of an in depth look at Ultron. He emerged from Stark's
lab and was just immediately evil. We didn't get an explanation of what causes this hatred
and why Baron Von Strucker had a bunch of robots lying around the Hydra base. I
would have enjoyed a little more time to development Ultron and the reasons for
his intention besides thinking the human race needs to be destroyed to be
reborn (which we have seen in multiple superhero films).
Positives:
Writing: Joss Whedon did a fantastic job with this
script. The tone was very well set. There are many one-liners throughout this
film that give the audience a comic book like tone. We get that classic Tony
Stark smart remarks from the beginning of the film and Whedon continues to
amuse the audience till the very end. There were also subtle jokes throughout
the film that are quite amusing to the audience. The storyline for this one was
more intriguing due to the characters prior stories, especially the characters
of Clint Barton (Hawkeye) and Natalia Romanoff's (Black Widow). We got a
glimpse of Clint's personal life away from the Avengers while also poking a
little fun at his place within the team. We see how he's just trying to provide
for his family, even if it takes putting his life on the line. Natalia's
troubled past gave us a preview of the darkness and chaos that haunts her.
Action Choreography: Whedon took the action from the first
film and amped it up like crazy. The fight scenes were very well shot and full
of awesome moments. I loved the hammer and shield teamwork we got with Thor and
Captain America, as well as Iron Man, Thor, and the Vision working together to
bring down Ultron. Also, who doesn't love watching Iron Man in enhanced armor trying to calm down the Hulk? The emphasis throughout thes film on having to work as
team was really pivotal and the action scenes backed it up.
Character Relationships: This was a key factor to look out for in
this film. In 2016 we will get Captain America: Civil War and finally see Cap
and Iron Man go toe to toe. There was an interesting dynamic in Age of Ultron
where the characters would bicker at times yet in the end they seemed to say
farewell on good terms. Another character relationships that drew me in were
Bruce Banner (the Hulk) and Natalia Romanoff. Although the writing was bad with
these two at times (the "I adore you" line before kissing him), I
really understood the draw between the two. Natalia said, "There's been a
lot of people in my life, all of them fighters. Then there comes this guy,
who's not like anyone I've ever met; he doesn't want to be a fighter".
This line really captured Banner's mindset towards the Hulk but showed how Natalia
understands that he really isn't just a big, green monster.
New Characters: There were two new characters to this
film that really caught my attention. The first was Wanda Maximoff. Unlike her
twin brother, I felt a sense of emotion and attachment to this character. She
showed her weakness and uncertainty towards fighting. I loved the raw emotion
that we saw with her when she let out a giant wale after her brother is killed,
as well as her ultimately finishing off Ultron. Another newbie that I enjoyed
was the Vision. We saw Stark's program Jarvis come to life through artificial
intelligence and he did not disappoint. The character served a vital part in
not only helping take down Ultron but also in being a key factor for Avengers Infinity War. My only
complaint would be we didn't get enough action sequences of him.
Future Setup: This film really did an outstanding job
of future setup. Although I would have liked more setup for Civil War, we still
saw a bit of tension between Cap and Iron Man. It was cool to see the Phase 3
Avengers team at the end led by Captain America and Black Widow, including War
Machine, Vision, Scarlet Witch, and the Falcon. Age of Ultron also did a
splendid job of getting us ready for Avengers
Infinity War. The mid-credit scene showed us Thanos is ready to go as well.
Memorable Scenes: There were a few scenes that really stood
out to me. The beginning scene was a great way to kickoff the film. We
immediately see the team all together and running straight into the action. Another
notable scene was the party scene where all the Avengers attempt to lift Thor's
hammer, Mjolnir. It gives the audience quite a few laughs and shows us how even
superheroes can relax and have fun in their free time. My favorite scene though
was towards the very end. All the team has assembled in the courtyard and are
guarding Ultron's core of destruction. Ultron approaches with his army and next
thing you know all hell breaks loose. This scene felt straight out of a comic
book. Whedon does a great job giving the audience this beautiful round shot that
shows the whole team in action. This one scene gave me goose bumps.
Overall Impression: Overall this was a really solid film. A
tad bit better than the first one for me due to its story line and in-depth character
life and relationships. Definitely a fun film that Marvel delivered with once
again.
Rating: 8.8 out of 10
