The Avengers (2012)

The longer it's taken me to write a review of this, the more it feels like I'm just repeating what everyone else has been saying - even down to making the same opening complaint about it being called Marvel's Avengers Assemble in the UK. While it initially seemed ridiculous that anyone would possibly confuse it with the '60s spy drama, it actually seems that this might have been a valid point with some people older than myself assuming that it was based on the TV show. I'm not really sure that those who might be confused about it would be the target audience for the film or that they could be convinced to give the film a try if they knew what it was about (though I suppose I can understand they would want to distance themselves from the late '90s film version of The Avengers).

Despite seeing some good films already this year, this was the first that I was really looking forward to before the year began. I'd already made sure that I'd stopped searching out new information on it, an approach I've taken ever since I got so hyped up for the original Iron Man but then felt that there was hardly anything in the final movie I hadn't already seen. However, this was also the same year that The Dark Knight was released, which I devoured equally as many trailers for but was still blown away by the final result. The Avengers falls somewhere between these two examples as I still felt like early trailers had spoiled some good moments. Tony Stark's "genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist" line actually seemed to be a different take from the trailer, coming across more like a prepared statement than something thought up off the top of his head, which was quite strange as the original seemed pitch perfect. The "Hulk catch" sequence was also on my mind towards the end of the film as something I knew was yet to come.

That said I still think most of the important plot points were kept under wraps, including a surprising one that made itself apparent within the first few minutes. Like many other reviews I have read, I didn't think that it started off particularly strong; my concern was with the first car chase, which actually reminded me of the SWAT van sequence from The Dark Knight. I've read criticism of that scene as being difficult to follow and the same seemed true here in terms of which cars were involved and who was who. It then got a bit farcical when two cars end up nose to nose, trading gunfire at nearly point blank range with no casualties on either side and seeming to just give up rather than have a compelling reason to end this part of the chase. In any other movie it would probably be a perfectly serviceable action scene, here it stands out only because there are so many better ones to come later.

After this point, although there are not any overt action scenes for a while, I can't think of any more points where I wasn't totally gripped by what was happening. Some time had to be spent on bringing the Avengers team together but I felt that this was covered with just enough detail to re-introduce those of us who had seen all of the preceding movies without leaving others in the dark. In general I found this a very easy movie to follow, the stakes and aims are always clear and to me this is what really makes a film a 'turn your brain off' experience. This has come to be more of an insult directed at dumb summer blockbusters but to me the basic story problems they often have only serve to jog my brain back into gear as it questions what the hell is going on.

Here you can just sit back and enjoy the spectacle without having to second guess characters motivations, watching actors clearly having fun and playing roles that seem made for them. I would describe this as the first really great popcorn movie that we've seen in years and for once I feel sure that is a compliment. Maybe there was part of  me that was expecting more from this film, something more meaningful perhaps but I'm in no way disappointed with the way it's turned out. It's very hard to keep it all in your head at once when trying to think of its highlights, every time I read someone's impressions I'm usually reminded of another great scene that I'd half forgotten but had been a stand out scene to them.

An awful lot of these favourite moments revolve around the Hulk, who to me still stuck out as a completely CG creation on occasions but was generally light years ahead of any previous representations. As many have noted he is clearly the star of the show, simultaneously hilarious and totally bad ass. I was also reminded of Film Crit Hulk's article on the previous Hulk movies, where it was suggested that sometimes the draw of Hulk can be the tension caused when changing would not be the ideal thing to happen. One of his transformations certainly falls into this category and also for the first time gets to show just how much of a dangerous and destructive force he can be. The whole approach taken with him shows it was written with a great understanding of Hulk and what people love about him.

Everyone has great moments in this though and I think they're unique enough to allow for people to have completely different favourites, there certainly wasn't an over abundance of 'Whedonesque' traits, which some people might have been afraid of. I've become more of a fan of Captain America over the years and he comes across well here, although I sadly couldn't take his modern uniform seriously at all. This bugged me something chronic as I loved the WW2 inspired take from his own film, here it just felt like all the practical details had been abandoned, leaving a suit that offered no protection with the look of a Halloween costume. The rubbery looking helmet/hood was the worst part, so the more time he went around with his face showing the better. I'm pretty sure that having the mask off a lot went a long way towards creating a real human connection to him and since he didn't really have a secret identity to protect either, he felt kind of freed from the usual cliché of being highly concerned about revealing his face.

It was always a concern what role Cap and the other flightless members of the Avengers would play in the final battle of the film but everyone manages to get their own moments. The battle is spread more over a vertical plane than over a large area, which forms part of the characters strategy and is also sensible to allow them all to shine. Hawkeye moves from the ground to a mid level role (while receiving a new nickname), providing an 'eye in the sky' and still managing to be part of the combat. Black Widow seemed a bit out of place to start with but once she manages to start using the enemies weapons against them she seems a much more natural and important part of the team. The big hitters are still obviously very important and have some of their best scenes at the end but the rest never feel like they are forgotten.

I saw it in 2D but weirdly I could see it working in IMAX 3D, even if it is post converted. There were some great shots that almost gave me vertigo so lord knows what it would be like in 3D on an enormous screen. I also didn't notice anything that seemed blatantly directed at the camera, which is ironically what takes me out of the experience most despite being what you expect from 3D. When you are just allowed to settle into it and get used to the 3D seeming natural, that's when it works better for me. It might well be worth another viewing to confirm this hypothesis, it's actually quite a rare occurrence for me to want to see a film again while it's still in cinemas. It's a great cinema experience and sometimes it can be worth putting up with the possibility of people disturbing you or technical issues with the screen, just to be part of a hundred strong group of strangers, laughing at the same thing at the same time. I think Joss Whedon has done a great job of creating something that appeals to hardcore fans, the general public and just works as a film overall. There's already signs that it is doing incredibly well and I imagine it feels like vindication for fans of Joss' work in the past who will be hoping that this success might lead to more great projects from him in the future.