The Avengers. This film has been on everyone's mind since the first cameo by none other than Nick Fury in Iron Man. Since then, everyone waited after every newly released Marvel film for another piece of the Avengers puzzle. When we finally got the teaser after Captain America, the stage was set. It was actually happening. The Avengers on the big screen. Then I saw it and it...wasn't what I thought it would be. I had one rule, love the story more than the fx (thank you Michael Bay for teaching me that, ass). I left the theater feeling content. Not excited, not reflecting on how awesome it was, I just left. I took another look at the movie to see why I felt the way I did. This "epic" film wasn't epic because (among other things) there was nothing new, nothing to blow my mind, nothing that made me jump out of my seat and high five everyone within 3 feet of me, nothing different from what I had seen from the films leading up to it. Now to get this out the way, I am not a Nolanite. Sounds like a something a Smurf would [frick]. I have been a comic book fan since I saw the Batmobile at age 3 so my standards were set a bit higher than the average movie goer with average knowledge about these beloved characters.
(Note: there are "spoilers but with the success of this film, I doubt I'm ruining anything for anybody).
The first major let down was Loki taking control of Hawkeye. The fact that it happened so early on pretty much cemented the fact that he wasn't going to be in the film much. They needed a reason to cut down on the cast to focus on the more familiar and popular characters. Other than the "new" Hulk, he was the only unexpected thing in the film. I had high hopes he would show me things throughout the movie I never would have imagined. Sadly, it wasn't that way. What helps in making a movie great is not knowing what's going to happen and being shown things you've haven't seen before. From the trailers alone, many of us could predict the film from beginning to end, in form that isn't too specific. It was at this time when I think Antman and Wasp should have been in the film, to increase the "Wow" factor.
So skip ahead a few scenes and we join Steve Rodgers in the gym. We watch as he completely destroys the weight bag he is working on. He then goes to pick up one of many other weight bags laying on the ground to start again. This scene, I'm guessing, is supposed to show off Captain's strength. What bugged me was that it was a waste of a scene. His strength didn't mean much during the rest of the film. He held his own but didn't do too well against Loki, then he later jumped from a plane, then we got to watch him mostly get chased and run away when trying to repair the Helicarrier. He got his hits in but he wasn't fighting anyone special. Then came the war. He jumped off a bus, showed off in front of the cops and basically did nothing more than crowd control. In all honesty, if Captain America was to be a big figure, he should of been fighting more with Iron Man and Thor (the power players) than Black Widow and Hawkeye (not so powerful players). Now I know what your thinking "Your a dumbass, Cap can't fly, what did you expect him to do?". Well...way I see it, Batman can't fly yet he can whip ass and it's entertaining for a guy with no powers. Cap is the Super Soldier yet does hardly anything super. Is it just me or does anyone else feel it should have been Cap to hop on the alien vehicle and fight the aliens instead of Widow? He was grounded too much and really didn't show the hero we easily see every week in The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes series kickin ass.
Now if your not bored or pissed off yet because you think I'm being picky, let me get one thing off my chest. I can be "picky" because this isn't some team no one has heard of or some group of superheroes no one cares about. I had high expectations for a high profile team in a highly anticipated movie and although it delivered in some ways, it wasn't the film it should and could have been. Things might be this way because the film was supposed to be kid friendly, who knows and no movie will be amazing to everybody but this is how I feel. You can continue to read or leave now, your choice but I will express my opinion. Now, back to my analysis.
Iron Man was one of the few characters who worked from the second he entered till the end of the film. He didn't feel forced, he wasn't boring and he had a very active role. Active meaning he kept the story going and pushed the line. He said the things no one would say, he showed his charisma and humour while also showing his genius and doing it all while still being able to be a hero. He created tension and drama, something that movie really needed. It was more uncertainty that messed with the group than ego and ego may have been the better road. Cap about being a soldier, Thor about being a god and Iron Man about being...well Iron Man. We got a taste of this but that's it.
Iron Man's role was perfected. The same compliment's are given to the Hulk. He was the shaken bottle we were all waiting to pop, and did he. Again, his character in his entirety was shown. The nervousness, the strain of trying not to let the Hulk out, the intellect and genius when working with Iron Man and of course what rounded it all off was his "secret" to keeping the Hulk under control, the one answer that no one expected. Staying Angry. The Hulk bashed, the Hulk smashed but to top it all, he was in control.
Lastly come the gods of Asgard, Thor and Loki. Thor, who is portrayed amazingly by Chris Helmsworth, has yet to impress me. This god, since his introduction in Thor, has had his ass beat more times than a god should. Powerful and still never one to turn down a fight, I found it almost hilarious the battle between him and Iron Man. Tony may be a genius but someone like Thor should have been able to make quick work of him. Now this one on some level, I can let go. Thor has a growing love for humans so he may have been holding back. Still, with kind of damage the Iron Man armor has taken in the previous films with minimal effort, the power of Thor and his hammer should have been more than enough to handle the Iron Avenger. Another issue was his role during the war. He didn't seem to be the almighty god that loved to fight and could take anything and anyone. When fighting the Frost Giants, I saw Thor: God of Thunder. Since then, I don't know who I have been watching.
Then there is Loki. For him to be a villain for the second time, I feel his game should have been stepped up alot more. Now granted, it already had but hear me out. He is the Master of Mischief and very very good user of magic. The mischief should have been bigger. We don't know how the people of Earth felt after his attack at the party or if the event was even a world wide concern, because Loki was kept locked up in the Helicarrier for the majority of the film. Plus, Loki should have used his magic to play with the minds of the heroes, the classic manipulation to turn them against each other. There should have been more of the evil magic we know him to use. Instead, all he did was change his clothes and duplicated himself. The rest of his strength lied in his staff. There is also the fact that he was made a fool of multiple times in the film, which only further downgraded his strength as a villain. So how was the all powerful Asgardian defeated? He was treated like a Looney Tunes character by the Hulk. That was a serious let down and it basically made all his work and efforts look like a joke when that's all it took to defeat him.
The thing that really ruined the entire film for me was the scene in the middle of the city where the heroes took a stand. You know it, where the camera circles them as they look at the city. I thought that was going to be it, the scene that sent chills up and down my spine but after seeing it so much in the countless trailers and tv spots, it just wasn't important anymore. Maybe that would have changed if someone had of said those words...the words we all wanted to hear uttered in the midst of battle "Avengers Assemble!". Yet, for whatever reason, we were deprived of that.
The Avengers is now #3 on the list of highest grossing films of all time, however I don't believe the movie is good enough to be in those ranks. Many of you, I have seen, tend to agree with me on this. Films like The Dark Knight, Spider-Man 2 and X-men: First Class are much better films and movies that never get old, no matter how many times they are watched. Overall, there was nothing new, nothing that surprised me and no drama to build or complicate the story. It was very straight forward. Catch the bad guy, bad guy gets loose, beat the bad guy, go home. With the Avengers 2 already confirmed, I am afraid of how it will turn out with what I've seen with this film. Then again, it may have the "2nd movie is better than 1st" result when released. This film is by far NOT the best cbm of all time, in my opinion of course. I will look forward to The Amazing Spider-Man, The Dark Knight Rises and of course next year's Man of Steel. So let the bashing begin, I know how things work on this site. Trolls, come and play and thank you for reading my article.