Movie Review: Avengers: Age of Ultron

My first coherent thought after watching Avengers: Age of Ultron was: “How the heck did all that come together?” And then, it was followed by: “Joss Whedon is a freakin’ genius!”

Many of you may wonder why these were the first thoughts after seeing said movie, well to clarify, Avengers is packed with so many characters and has so much star power, but it still manages to bring together a greatly coherent and awesome story all the while exploring what makes the earth’s mightiest heroes tick. The blend is so seamless and, dare I say, perfect that there is not one moment where you look at the screen and go, well that shot didn’t work there or maybe this story arc shouldn’t have been written. Kudos to Joss Whedon for bringing together this epic movie.

Before we jump into my full review, I want to post a minor spoiler warning here.

*Minor Spoiler Warning*

Aaand you have now been warned; don’t try to kill me later. Moving on...

Story and Writing:

The premise itself is really simple. Tony stark creates an artificial intelligence and it, upon going haywire, vows to destroy the world and the Avengers must join forces, once again, to save the world.

Honestly speaking, that premise seems all too generic to a superhero movie. But what makes this movie different is , the fact that the writers have managed to take the script beyond the story and have made it into character studies. Instead of getting generic fighting sequences and visual effect shots of the Hulk smashing, we get genuine moments of awe and sympathy which makes us connect with each and every character in the team, even the villain.

Throughout the movie we see the Avengers battling their inner demons, while saving the world. We see them struggling on the verge of control before succumbing to their greatest fears. We see how much each character has evolved from the previous films. Each character has a personality which is represented and explored beautifully within the timeframe of the movie which, I think, is an accomplishment within itself. Each and every character has their motivations:

Iron man wants to protect the world, because he fears the avengers are no match for what lies beyond earth. Captain America, is afraid of going home, and not having something to fight for. Hawkeye is shown to be a guy with a family which he wants protect at all costs. Black widow struggles to come to terms with her past. The Hulk is afraid of losing control. Quicksilver and Scarlett witch struggle to come to terms with their powers and enact revenge on Tony Stark whose weapons killed their parents.

We see the birth of Vision, who is still naive but possesses infinite knowledge about the human mind. We see the motivations of Ultron and can’t help but sympathize with him because that’s what he evolved into. Each and every character arc was done justice.

My favourites were probably the story arc of The Maximoff Twins, Hawkeye and his family, Black widow and the hulk, and lastly the setup for the conflict between Captain America and Iron man.

Another great thing is that the movie provides a really good conclusion and perfectly sets up the stage for Marvel Phase 3, and that to me is probably the most important of everything. A great movie with a sloppy ending can ruin everything.

My only minor complaint is that the story also focuses a bit of its time on setting up the rest of the marvel movies lined up, but at this point it is just me nitpicking the hell out of it. All-in all, this entire movie has fantastic writing.

Kudos to the creative team, Kevin Feige, the writers (some of the greatest dialogue I have heard. The character specific banter is awesome) and of course the man who bought the whole thing together Joss Whedon.

Acting:

Each and every person in the cast brings their best to the screen. Robert Downey Jr. as Ironman, Chris Evans as Captain America, Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow (My favourite performance), Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye, Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk, Aaron Taylor Johnson as Quicksilver (another Favourite), Elizabeth Olsen as Scarlett Witch, Samuel L Jackson as Nick Furl, Paul Bettany as Vision, every other actor on screen were incredible, charismatic, and most importantly believable, because a great story without good acting makes for a shitty movie.

Now, now, I didn’t forget about Ultron, I just wanted to dedicate a whole paragraph to him. James Spader as Ultron was probably the greatest casting decision anybody could have made. I said it when it was announced, and I stick with it. The amount of emotion and character Spader provides with just his voice is incredible. Ultron isn’t the ruthless bad guy; he is a guy who thinks he is creating the perfect world. He is naive and often times childish, but always in some way or the other, right in his view of the world. His motivations are justified, and his character was one of the most different villains I have seen in some time. Awesome job James Spader!

Cinematography, editing and Visual Effects:

The cinematography and visual effects are nothing short of spectacular. Not one shot looks fake or poorly edited. Every scene has incredible character, and the best part of it all is that the 3D is not used as a gimmick. It is used to enhance the experience, not to hinder it. The visual effects on the Quick Silver and Scarlett Witch were pretty good. I was worried about the similarities Quick Silver would have with his X Men counterpart, but the visuals on this version are more than enough to show the differences.

Music:

The background score complements the movie really well, but it isn’t something I would rush to buy and listen. For the most part it doesn’t overpower the visuals and that I think is good enough.

Gripes:

Although I loved this movie immensely, it wouldn’t be right on my part to not point out a few problems. Keep in mind though that I am nitpicking. The runtime is about 2 hours and 15 minutes, so it is a long film, but the thing is you don’t see the time passing, which just nullifies the problem. There is one scene, one single scene about 13 seconds long which, I felt wasn’t really necessary, but I didn’t mind watching for the bad-assery shown in it.

Final Words:

This is probably my favourite superhero movie as of now. Incredible story, incredible acting, and incredible special effects all come together for a great movie, which I thoroughly enjoyed. My favourite moment was when the movie hit me with a surprise twist which I did not see coming, and hence the bonus points for the unpredictability.

This movie has once again cemented my belief that Marvel Studios are taking the right steps towards creating a superhero cinematic universe. This movie has made me exited for Captain America Civil War, which was set up expertly in just a few scenes.

Now if only DC can catch up.....

Conclusion:

All-in-all, a totally awesome movie, which every superhero fan, and ever avid movie goer should take a look at. I am rating Avengers: Age of Ultron a 9 out of 10.

Definitely check it out, and as with any Marvel movie don’t leave before the mid-credits scene ;-)