A lot has changed in the world around comic
book superhero movies since the first avengers film hit in 2012. Now shared
universes are the box office gold every studio wants to mine. The Marvel
Cinematic Universe itself is expanding at an exponential rate with numerous tv
shows and soon the number of films a year will jump from 2 to 3 with Spiderman
expected to appear on screen next year as well. So its natural to wonder after
a time away how would the group dynamic of changed in the film? Well the simple
answer is no and yes. The magic of the first film is still here though the
characters are stronger and more fractured because it’s the stakes are
higher.
The Avengers burst back onto the big screen
with a bang wrapped up in an A* tracking shot. The camera spins and looms
jumping up and weaving in and out of each member of the team as they dispatch a
load of hydra goons in a forest. It’s an incredible sequence in the way it
balances the individual little comedic character beats with the large scale
action reminding us of the fact Marvel’s best with its characters.
In fact it’s no coincidence that Marvel have so far only deployed their secret
weapon Joss Whedon (Famous for his ensemble character sci fi shows like Firefly
and Buffy The Vampire Slayer) for their avengers films which are obviously
focused on the large ensemble cast. If you read interviews with Whedon he came
back to the franchise because he felt he still had places to go with this cast
and that’s what makes the film great the action sequences are captivating the
storyline line gripping but what sells this film is the characters. Often it’s
easy to say with the solo films like Iron Man 3 and Captain America to ask if
everything is so bad why don’t the others turn up and help out and this film shows
why. Ultron is a threat strong enough to call them together. He tears them
apart from the inside. One thread throughout the film is the question of what
the avengers stand for and that isn’t decided by the end but it’s clear Ultron
definitely isn’t it/ Ultron is more than some standard bad robot. He’s created
by Tony Stark in the hope of creating a force of global protection but he
rebels like a bad teenager. James Spader’s motion capture performance as Ultron
is one of the best motion capture performances I’ve seen the way the film
utilizes his voice and body to create this genuinely captivating character is
impeccable.
In terms of the Avengers themselves there’s
a change in where the focus fall on the members of the group . Captain America
and Thor don’t have much to do because they’ve had their own solo films. But
Hawkeye who was basically an extra in the last film is a main character in this
one. So much so I’d proudly say he’s one of my favourite avengers now Renner’s
shows a new comedic side to Hawkeye that I look forward to seeing more of in
future films. Possibly the most emotional arc though is that of the
relationship between Hulk and Black Widow it goes beyond the charm of the two
to become a very deep relationship impeded by their own personal pasts. There
are new avengers as well Quicksilver (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) opens up new angles
for the action with the use of slo mo (The quicksilver stuff here is so much
stronger than the stuff in Days of Future Past). Quicksilver opens up the team
and brings a youthful vibe. Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) is another star in
the cast. Scarlet Witch’s powers cause some initial problems for the avengers
at the start but soon she proves herself in one of the most uplifting moments
of the film. Yet the new member stealing the show is the vision (Paul Bettany)
honestly it’s hard to describe how great the vision is on screen. He’s just so
wonderfully weird looking and he seems like such a young character, it will be
exciting to see him learn and grow on screen.
Avengers Age of Ultron is an entirely
captivating film that proves that blockbusters can be just as smart and
emotionally moving as normal dramas. This is the film that we’ve been waiting
three years for and its worth the wait.
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