Avengers: Age of Ultron

I become obsessive when it comes to all things Marvel, whether it is films or comics or even figures, to the point of where I get a little nutty so it is natural to assume that I would go and see the biggest summer blockbuster out this year; in fact, it was necessary and has been commanded from on high.  I have been so excited about this film coming out since last year as I love characters that make up the Avengers alone or together and the actors that play them and I couldn't wait to see their latest escapades.

Avengers: Age of Ultron is the 2015 superhero film by Joss Whedon, a sequel to all of the recent Phase Two films of Marvel Cinematic Universe as well as 2012's The Avengers also directed by Whedon who wrote the script too.  Whedon has brought back the original Avengers cast; Robert Downey Jr. (Sherlock Holmes), Chris Hemsworth (Rush), Mark Ruffalo (Begin Again), Chris Evans (Snowpiercer), Scarlett Johansson (Lucy), Jeremy Renner (The Bourne Legacy), Cobie Smulders (How I Met Your Mother), Paul Bettany (A Knight's Tale), Stellan Skarsgård (Good Will Hunting), and Samuel L. Jackson (Pulp Fiction).  As well as the original Avengers cast, Whedon chose to bring more of the Marvel Cinematic Universe cast in such as Don Cheadle (Ocean's trilogy), Anthony Mackie (The Hurt Locker), Hayley Atwell (Cinderella), and Idris Elba (Luther) to fill in minor roles in Avengers: Age of Ultron while bringing in new cast members Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kick-Ass), Elizabeth Olsen (Godzilla), and James Spader (Lincoln),to take on the more major roles, the latter of which taking over the antagonistic role this time around.

Rating: 10

Recommended To: Marvel Cinematic Universe fans; superhero fans; action fans

Favourite Characters: Steve; Vision; Hawkeye; Quicksilver

Favourite Part: Thor: IS THAT THE BEST YOU CAN DO?
Ultron: [Laughs and summons more drones with his arms outstretched]  THIS is the best I can do. This is what I've been waiting for. All of you against all of me!
[Battle ensues]
Steve: You had to ask...

Good Points: Great sequel to previous Marvel Cinematic Universe films; action and comedy perfectly intertwined; ambiguous ending was great; best outing of the characters yet

Bad Points: Very busy at points

Having defeated Loki in The Avengers and the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D., the Avengers - Tony Stark (Downey), Steve Rogers (Evans), Thor (Hemsworth), Bruce Banner (Ruffalo), Natasha Romanoff (Johansson), and Clint Barton (Renner) - have become a well-functioning team, working with one another to take down Hydra threats as well as gathering intel on the sceptre Loki used in The Avengers to control Clint's and Dr. Selvig's (Skarsgård) minds.  Avengers: Age of Ultron begins with the Avengers raiding a Hydra outpost led by Baron Von Strucker (Thomas Kretschmann, King Kong) where they know Loki's sceptre is.  During their raid, the Avengers come into contact with two of Strucker's experiments AKA "Enhanced" individuals - Pietro Maximoff (Taylor-Johnson), who has superspeed, and his twin, Wanda (Olsen), who can manipulate minds and project energy.  As Stark is about to retrieve Loki's sceptre, Wanda hits him with her powers, making him see a terrible future which leads him down a dark path, as the rest of the Avengers capture Strucker.  Once back at Avengers Tower, Stark and Banner discover an artificial intelligence inside the sceptre and secretly start to complete Stark's Ultron global defence program.  Unbeknownst to the scientists, the Ultron program (Spader) becomes sentient and eradicates J.A.R.V.I.S. (Bettany) from Stark's mainframe and attacks the Avengers who are gathered together for a party in a body constructed of some of Tony's robot drones.  Though they stop Ultron from trying to kill them the first time and are furious that Stark and Banner didn't tell them about the Ultron program - though Stark more so, the Avengers know they have to stop him before anyone else can get hurt and work together to do so.  Knowing the Avengers will be coming after him, Ultron recruits the Maximoff twins to distract the Avengers so they won't thwart him, using their grudge against Stark who they hold responsible for their parents' death, to entice them.

Joss Whedon has outdone himself with Avengers: Age of Ultron, it is a great sequel to The Avengers as well as the previous Marvel Cinematic Universe films especially the Phase Two films.  Bringing back the old characters we have grown to love over the years because they are pretty much the same as they have been previously but they have been able to develop more therefore the audience get to see new aspects of the characters that have yet to be ventured into, their pasts, fears, motivations, something that makes them more interesting as time goes by because we are then constantly learning something new about them.  As well as old characters, new ones were brought in to provides new relationships to be formed and progress the overall Marvel Cinematic Universe plot as well as Avengers: Age of Ultron from becoming an regurgitation of The Avengers; the new characters need to be utilised so that they bring something of their own to the franchise as well as drawing out other aspects of already established characters and fortunately Whedon and co. succeeded with this.  One question that came after The Avengers was how this team would work really as they were forced together initially because of Loki's threat but it is clear to see that now the Avengers have developed to work as a team since the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D. and work together well, Captain America and Thor are a great example as the combination of Thor hitting Cap's shield as a form of attack, something they didn't do in The Avengers.

There was a perfect combination of action and comedy, building suspense and lightening the tense moments in a perfectly choreographed dance - something Whedon has been great at for years throughout his ventures.  If there wasn't some humour interjected throughout the action could have been boring and overwhelming after a while, like Transformers film after a while where there is just constant action and destruction with little conversation interspersed towards the end - the Avengers are in constant communication, quipping and sniping at one another at any given moment, a quality that the audience love them for because a superhero has great comebacks or wit within the pages of a comic book.

Given the amount of characters Whedon included this time around, I went in hoping they are what drive the film and Avengers: Age of Ultron delivers on presenting the audience with a character-driven, action-packed, comic book adaptation as Tony's motivation to save the world goes awry.  Many films have fallen flat in my opinion because they haven't utilised their characters better and Age of Ultron could have too if Whedon hadn't followed traditional narrative structures where the heroes are almost thwarted by the villain and have to pick themselves up and come together that will lead to a climatic, epic battle.  We need to relate to our heroes and while they may be superheroes, Whedon, and the others behind the Marvel Cinematic Universe, have made the Avengers relatable with character-driven films, something I always love about this franchise.

As if handing over the baton to the next directors of the next Avengers film, the Russo brothers, Whedon concluded the film in a way that satisfies the main plot with Ultron, the ending of Age of Ultron was left open enough to allow the franchise to continue, leading into Captain America: Civil War and eventually into the Avengers: Infinity War.  Building a new team of Avengers and involving the Infinity Stones in the plot progresses the overall Marvel Cinematic Universe plot and entices the audience, encouraging them to watch sequels to Age of Ultron such as Captain America: Civil War and Thor: Ragnarok to name a couple where some of the characters we love will be back.  With the way they left Age of Ultron, it will be interesting to see how they will bring the Civil War storyline - a story I love from the comics because of the conflict that arises amongst the heroes in the Marvel universe and this could allow the audience to see a darker side of Captain America if they stick closely to the original story as much as they can.

To put it simply, Avengers: Age of Ultron is the best outing of the characters yet.  They are an established team even though they are heroes alone and it's their relationships with one another and as a team that drives the plot as well as the conflict.  As said previously, the characters have developed over the years, we have seen new aspects of each character every time, and I think that is because the actors are becoming more comfortable in their roles and with one another, allowing their own personalities and relationships shine, drawing the audience in because it feels as if it could be real.  Hopefully the characters will get better and better and we see different sides to them - a darker Steve Rogers, Tony Stark as the antagonist to Steve, more of Natasha and Clint's past.

I may be predictable given the characters that are in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the Avengers specifically but Steve/Captain America was my favourite character and seems to always be, at least for now.  I have loved the character of Steve Rogers/Captain America since I met him through the comics because he's such a strong, powerful character with a great heart; he's an inspiration, a symbol but he's also a normal man with strength and weaknesses which make him interesting.  Even since Captain America: The First Avenger, Steve has always been a great leader, never backing down from a fight or leaving someone, especially a friend, behind - a sense of loyalty that comes from the age he was raised in given that it was just after a time of war - and trusts his teammates to a point because he feels it is the best way they will function as a team.  While he may be the man out of time, he is slowly finding a place in this new time and is becoming comfortable with those around him such as Sam Wilson (Mackie) as well as the other Avengers, laughing and joking with them like he used to with his comrades in arms in the 1940s AKA the Howling Commandos and that's one of the great things about Steve, he isn't uptight despite his army discipline and his polite nature, he does have a sense of humour that comes out every so often that is appealing.  As I've said, Chris Evans is getting better and better with each time he portrays the character and I hope that he continues to do so and brings more to the character each time, possibly bringing a darker tone to the character that I have seen him capable of in Snowpiercer.

While Steve is always number one in my heart, Paul Bettany's Vision was a very close second for a number of reasons.  The key reason is that Paul Bettany portrayed him; ever since his arse entered the screen in A Knight's Tale where he portrayed Chaucer and acted as herald to Heath Ledger's William before his jousts.  He is up there with Chris Evans because he has a presence that I find appealing, he's funny yet there is an edge of seriousness about him, something a number of British actors have I have found.  The character of Vision is a wonderful addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and it's great to see Paul Bettany in person rather than a disembodied voice.  I was excited for Vision because he's a character that I've wanted to see brought to life for a while because he's fascinating; he's a contradiction - he's all knowing yet naïve, a robot but with thoughts, feelings, desires, and a mind like a human.  Whedon timed bringing him in extremely well because it makes him even more vital to the Avengers as he brings the team together again after conflict arises, something that is needed in these dire times.

I do try to limit myself to one character in each book or film review, sometimes two if another really stands out, but every so often, there is another character that stands out for me and I have to mention it.  This time around it's Clint Barton/Hawkeye.  We have never really seen Clint just as an Avenger; he's been the agent guarding Mjolnir then mind controlled by Loki before he joined the Avengers in the final battle so this time he has been given a bigger role, showing how integral he is to his team even though he may seem pointless.  Like Steve, he is loyal and trusting towards his teammates and accepting of everyone's flaws, seeing their potential outweighing their past.  To top it all off, Jeremy Renner's humour came across more this time around - sarcastic and full of clever remarks, keeping the atmosphere tight even when he's hurt - which is excellent because we didn't really see it last time and it's what makes Jeremy Renner and Hawkeye so great and a perfect partner to Scarlet Johansson's Black Widow.

If you read my X-Men: Days of Future Past review, I mentioned about Quicksilver being featured in both that and this film but with different actors and backstories so they were distinct from one another and I think Taylor-Johnson's Quicksilver needs a mention in my review because I adored him.  He was cocky, he was funny, and he was loyal and though he started on the wrong side because of his past, he chose the right way in the end, something he didn't have to do.  While Scarlet Witch was integral to Ultron's plans to crack the Avengers, making her more prominent in the film, Quicksilver shone because of the nature of his character as he brought more humour to particular scenes - such as grabbing Mjolnir during a fight at superspeed which unexpectedly takes him down, moments like that are what make superhero films great and Whedon and Taylor-Johnson did the character proud with this fantastic portrayal.

I found it difficult to find something I didn't like about Avengers: Age of Ultron because I loved everything about it so it took a great deal of consideration until I found my only bad point.  Given how many characters there were this time around and how much action was involved, there was a lot going on onscreen so sometimes you had to pay attention if you wanted to notice as much as possible.  Fortunately though, key action scenes where majority of the characters were involved - the obligatory collective Avengers fight scene for example - were slowed down meaning it wasn't too overwhelming and the audience were able to see what their favourite character was doing.

Thor: IS THAT THE BEST YOU CAN DO?
Ultron: [Laughs and summons more drones with his arms outstretched] THIS is the best I can do. This is what I've been waiting for. All of you against all of me!
[Battle ensues]
Steve: You had to ask...

There were so many moments that I loved in Avengers: Age of Ultron so it was hard to pick just one part to talk about but this one stuck in my mind more because it's just a wonderful example of the humour that comes from Whedon, the cast, and comic books as a collective.  The casual way Chris Evans delivers Steve's line, with a hint of sarcasm, is just wonderful because it's just simple and sarcastic, something I adore because it is very similar to my own sense of humour and it's just a perfect reaction to Thor coming from Steve, exasperated with his friend and teammate who is confident beyond belief because of the power he possesses.  It may seem silly to like such a simple part but it's these simple moments that make a film as it cuts up the action with some light humour that reconnect us with the characters during tense moments, a formula that Marvel have cracked.

Avengers: Age of Ultron has lived up to and beaten The Avengers in my eyes; it's a fantastic sequel, bringing back old characters that the audience love and adding new ones that bring something new to the universe and they drive the plot having developed better as a team since The Avengers.  It's action-packed, funny, and even a little romance thrown in and even though it gets a little busy during the giant fight scenes, it's not too overwhelming and for me, Avengers: Age of Ultron is the best outing of the characters yet as the actors continue to get better each time and explore new aspects of their characters and hopefully they will continue to do so.  I can't wait for Ant-Man or Captain America: Civil War and I highly recommend that everyone should see this film as it is entertaining and full of interesting characters.

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