Avengers: Age Of Ultron
Age of ultron falls somewhere closer to Winter soldier but doesn't quite reach the levels of the first movie. I Enjoy the film, sure, but it felt a little hollow to me. At times it felt like it had a lot to say and do but not a whole lot of time to do it.
Going into the movie I knew many things. I knew Captain america, Iron Man, Black Widow, Scarlet Witch, Thor, and Hulk were all planned to be in future installments of the series. I knew 1 'avenger' dies. I knew someone got their arm ripped off, and I knew someone had kids.
One of my biggest gripes with the Marvel series as a whole is the incessant death and resurrection trope in almost every movie. Tony stark has died probably four times. Pepper potts fell to her death in iron man 3. Coulson died in avengers, only to be reborn in Agents of shield. Bucky Barnes Died, Captain America freezes to death, Nick fury died in Winter soldier, well for an hour or so. Loki died in Thor 2, And should have stayed dead. Thor momentarily died in Thor 1. and Hulk fell out of a helicopter to his death, or not, in Incredible hulk. Not to mention Gamora and Starlord dying in Guardians. Oh, and groot. Every movie in the series kills someone.
So color me surprised when they actually killed Quicksilver. Or at least I hope they actually killed him. This could very easily be another Coulson moment. Coulson sacrificed himself to give the avengers a spark in the first one. This time around it felt like he sacrificed himself to Spark his sister. which is fine, but keep him dead this time.
Moving onto the individual characters.
- Iron Man -
I have no real problems with Tony Stark in this one. He's always been a really consistent character and this one he helps carry his load perfectly. his quick wit and sarcastic banter seems a bit subdued compared to previous movies and every once in a while he seems a bit too quick to jump to threatening decisions.
His tech was cool and I enjoyed him being the creator of ultron. Made more sense than bringing in Hank Pym just to make a mad robot. This way it gave it a bit more weight and made Tony seem a bit more of a loose cannon, especially leading up to Civil War next year.
Also, didn't he retire at the end of Iron Man 3?
- Captain America -
Captain was solid, nothing outright amazing or spectacular from him. The best stuff was his comedic scenes like the running 'Language' gag. I Liked that he finally got his dance, as well as him continuing to be the leader. But overall he didn't play much of a role at all in the grand scheme f the movie.
The tension between hi and Stark was interesting, especially considering they end up on opposite sides of the Civil war. Assuming they go that route next year.
- Thor -
Tho was a bit weak in this one. Sure he had a few good scenes with the Lifting the hammer concept and I liked that Vision was ultimately able to lift it, These scenes were really the only time I thought Thor was a good character.
Otherwise he just kind of went off on his own. the Scene of him and Selvig (for some reason) going to the seeing pool felt like it was there to push the overall series forward and not so much the movie itself. Him seeing Ragnarok images is cool and all but we're not getting ragnarok for like two years. so it felt out of place to already have them shown in this.
It also felt just a bit too random for him to show up and Hammer the Cradle. I wish they at least explained where he came from.
- Hulk -
Hulk stole the show in the first Avengers. This time he felt a little less important. In the first Loki used him as a weapon against the others, in this one Scarlet Witch uses him as one. It made for a really awesome fight between Hulkbuster Iron man and Hulk. But ultimately he just kind of felt a bit too lost in the shuffle.
Banner on the other hand was fascinating. I enjoyed seeing him be the scientist. Even though he seemed to always just follow what Stark was doing and never really contributing himself.
His relationship with Romanoff was one of the better parts of the story as well. just bringing a bit of humanity to the beast.
- Black Widow -
Scarlett Johanson is still a pretty cool hero in this. she's a fun agile character. This time around though she got a little bit of character development. it's nice that we got to see a bit of her backstory. The Red Room was a visually interesting little divergence but ultimately felt more like something they could have cut out in place for a bit more actual story.
I'm expecting her to get killed in one of the upcoming movies.
- Hawkeye -
So, I think the writers were making amends for the first movie. Out of all the characters, Hawkeye got the most Character development of anyone in the film. I mean, Giving him a wife and kids, and not killing him in the finale? Damn, that's like going against every stereotype in the book. His story this time felt much better than the first movie and I hope he becomes a bit more important moving forward.
I've actually pondered doing him as a cosplay, imagine that.
- Scarlet Witch -
I like Elizabeth Olsen, and I thought she did a good job. But why do all Telekine's look fake in movies? Jean Grey was always the weakest link and in this she seemed like she was dancing instead of actually doing things. she also seemed a tad pregnant or something at times.
anyway I enjoyed her character more as the movie went on. I'm excited to see where she goes from here.
- Quicksilver -
Hey, quicksilver's back, again. I wasn't expecting much from him after the really awesome Quicksilver scene in Days of Future Past. I walked away liking him but not overly impressed. He was a decent character, nothing I haven't seen before and ultimately nothing I'll miss. The best part about him was the fact that he's the first official death in the series (hopefully)
Not much more to say about him. He wasn't quite as good as the one scene in Xmen but Overall he did more and thus I have to say I like this one better.
- Vision -
Ok, so, Ultron was trying to upgrade himself into a perfect new body. so he designs a Paul Bettany Bot? With pink skin? But then Tony puts Jarvis in there instead and now he's an avenger? Ok, sure I'll bite. Vision is an interesting character but I don't think we'll be seeing much of him in the future. He just seems a bit too good for his own good. I predict Thanos will destroy him in Infinity war and we'll never bat an eye.
- War Machine -
Hey war Machine's an Avenger now! Yep, that's about it.
- Falcon -
Did you miss falcon? well he had two scenes. One in the party, saying he's looking for Bucky. and he appears at the very end as Falcon. that's it. why was he not protecting the Helicarrier at the end? don't you think that would be a perfect part for him? team up with Rhodie to defend it as the real Avengers did other things?
- Ultron -
Ok, title Character, Must be good huh? well, Eh.
Ultron wasn't the Calculating mega computer I was hoping for. he had a bit too much personality. he acted more like a child and less like the weapon of death he was supposed to be.
His plan was a bit ludicrous too, drop a chunk of earth and crack it? Okay, why not just set off the nukes? He was looking for launch codes but why not sent Drones to set off the bombs instead? a few nukes going off and everything's clear for him. I just don't get why he would insist on such a hugely overcomplicated plan.
The animation was also a little odd. at times he seemed to stretch organically instead of moving robotically like he should have. It's a little detail but I noticed it.
Overall I liked the film. It's a rolicking ride and definitely darker than part one but I just felt like 'another avengers adventure' instead of being some big spectacle. I'm curious just how long this franchise will go before they finally conclude it. Hopefully Thanos gets his big purple ass down here and gives the Avengers a real fight.
Final Verdict: 84
Not bad, just not quite at the level of the previous movie.
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