After what feels like an eternity, Joss Whedon’s Avengers: Age of Ultron is finally here. Since I severely separated my ACL in my shoulder, this will be a short, simple review since typing is a challenge.
When Tony Stark jumpstarts a dormant peacekeeping program, things go awry and Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, including Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, The Incredible Hulk, Black Widow and Hawkeye, are put to the ultimate test as they battle to save the planet from destruction at the hands of the villainous Ultron.
Here are my simple, spoiler free thoughts on the film:
Age of Ultron is highly entertaining. Just as fun as the first but with higher stakes. James Spader as Ultron was terrific and menacing, though also a little cartoonish. I’m not that familiar with him in the comics so I don’t know if that’s how he’s supposed to be. He proved to be a great foe for The Avengers, especially the way he was able to manipulate people and the way he tore the group apart was really cool to watch.
Vision was awesome, Scarlet Witch was pretty cool even if her abilities seemed to range in power for no explained reason, and the Hulkbuster vs Hulk scene will fire you up. The love stories were ok, though not always necessary, and the humor throughout felt very forced on occasion. The movie comes in at 141 minutes and I probably could have kept watching for another hour, the characters are just too awesome to be around.
The issue with Age of Ultron is that it follows the same formula as most of the other Marvel films. Winter Soldier was great because it played out like a political thriller versus the standard Marvel movies we’ve come to love and enjoy, but they don’t pack the same punch they initially did back when Iron Man first released. Whedon and Marvel have their set style but I’m glad that Whedon is turning the directorial reigns over to the Russo Brothers for the final chapters, as the world gets darker and less comedic, Whedon’s style fits less and less into that mold.
Regardless of this, the hints of darkness and what phase 3 of the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) holds in store for us are as prevalent as can be in Age of Ultron. No matter what happens at the end, the boat has been rocked and the scale is slowly starting to tip which, for fans, is incredibly exciting.
All I’ll say is have fun, enjoy the show and prepare for a lot of big, bad and awesome battles in the sequel that lives up to the hype.
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