Movie Review - The Avengers

The Avengers (2012)

Starring Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Chris Hemsworth, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hiddleston, Gwyneth Paltrow, Stellan Skarsgard, Paul Bettany (voice), and Samuel L. Jackson

Directed by Joss Whedon

Yes, I'm about sixty days late to the party here...and unfortunately the raves that I've been hearing for two months concerning The Avengers set expectations that were too high to be achieved.  While this is a decent comic book flick, it's still a part of a genre that I'm unable to really relate to because on a purely cinematic level I rarely am able to feel any modicum of tension for the formidable, unflappable, and nearly immortal main characters.

Seeing as how everyone has already seen this third highest-grossing movie of all time, I'm not going to waste time detailing a summary except to say that this gathering of Marvel's Superhero Elite does prove to be successful once it brings its cadre of power players together, but the round-up of these heroes is where the film lacks.  I must preface my "complaint" by saying that i watched The Avengers at the end of a three-movie, seven-hour marathon so that may have something to do with my lack of excitement for the product, but I do also think that I'm maybe using that simply as an excuse for my disappointment in the movie since everyone else seems to be fawning over it.  The whole thing eventually comes together rather nicely and the final ninety minutes really does seem to fly by, but I couldn't help but find myself in a state of ennui during the first hour.

It doesn't help that Robert Downey, Jr., is as annoying as heck in this.  His egotistical Tony Stark plays fine in a movie on his own where he's the main player, but when you put him amidst a group of other more unselfish folks, his character rings obnoxious more than anything else.  [Yes, I realize that's probably the point -- he's kind of a jerk unlike these other guys -- but it still didn't make his character any more tolerable to watch for extended periods of time.]  The less said about Chris Hemsworth's Thor the better (fortunately, his part was minuscule).  Oddly enough, it's the Iron Mans and Thor flicks that I found most successful in the Marvel universe so not caring for those characters here was a bit odd for me.

Mark Ruffalo kinda steals the show with his Bruce Banner/Hulk.  It's a shame the Hulk movie didn't star him as opposed to Ed Norton.  Surprisingly (considering my disdain for his movie), I found Chris Evans' Captain America a big improvement over his eponymous film.  It's also nice that a bit of the focus went to Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow as she's not only pretty on the eyes, but has a storyline that's at least a bit intriguing.

In the end, the whole thing is silly nonsense, but director and screenwriter Joss Whedon is able to at least direct action sequences without relying on Michael Bay-esque nonstop camera cuts and his script has a few witty moments which provide a needed boost.  Some may call this the greatest comic book movie of all time, but coming from a non-comic book fan, I didn't find it as impressive as the millions who did.

The RyMickey Rating:  C+