The Avengers: Movie Review

Earlier this week, Joss Whedon's The Avengers closed out the Tribeca Film Festival, and for two reasons:

1. A large portion of the film was shot and takes place in Manhattan.
2. It turned out to be a great movie.

For those who have somehow missed the promotion campaign, The Avengers follows some of the Marvel Universe's biggest heroes (Iron Man, Captain America, Hulk, Thor) coming together to fight a common threat, Thor's brother Loki.

Film Poster - Photo Courtesy of Yahoo Images

A major strength of the film is the cast. Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark/ Iron Man is still ever-so charming, and quick to defuse the situation with his humor while also being one of the bigger ticking time bombs due to his impetuous nature. Chris Evans delivers Steve Rogers/ Captain America's earnest spirit in spades. He does get a big awkward trying to deliver all of the jokes regarding Cap's issues adjusting from being frozen in 1945 and waking up in our modern age. Chris Hemsworth's Thor does not lose his grandiose ego, and is an asset for the action sequences due to his comfort with physical roles. The biggest revelation of the big four is Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner/ Hulk. Ruffalo is the only one coming in to the film not having played the role before, but he does so with quick wit, ease, and a shocking amount of menace. He perfectly captures the dual struggle of Banner, where Ed Norton and Eric Bana stumbled in previous incarnations of the character. It is no wonder Marvel signed him up for six more films in the role.

The remainder of the cast is just as strong. Samuel L. Jackson is still pompous and commanding as Nick Fury. Scarlet Johannson makes for a wicked fun and tormented Black Widow. Jeremy Renner does not get too much to do as Hawkeye in the beginning, but steps it up admirably by the second half of the film. Greg Clark delivers laughs and heart as Agent Phil Coulson, who has been bringing the gang together in all of the individual films leading up to this outing. Finally, Tom Hiddleston as Loki is a sheer delight. Where he came off a bit too-big in Thor, he delivers a worthy-villain performance here. His sneer is menacing without being comical, unless it's a moment where we needed the audience to laugh along with him.

Everything you may have loved about big superhero movies is in place; including big action sequences and clever quips that run amok. Whedon's script is tight and reasonably well-paced for a film that is bringing together so many characters, each with their own franchises, and not get bogged in exposition. A smart decision made is to have all of the characters already aware of each other, and more concerned with figuring out who's side everyone is on rather than Superhero Basics 101. Still, each character does get a moment to shine, and show why they are a member of the team for those who may be coming into this movie cold (which is not recommended but a reality).

This is a great movie for action-comedy movie fans, comic book geeks, and certainly acceptable for families with slightly older kids (nothing potentially inappropriate or awkward is presented regarding language or sexuality). Enjoy the sheer giddiness at seeing all your favorite heroes joining forces.

Warning: There is not one, but two bonus scenes after the credits begin to roll with this film. There is one after the main credits, and one after the second set of credits. Both scenes are well-worth the wait for two distinctive reasons.

Grade: A