Avengers worldwide release April 27! (spoilers)

[JCEFalconi]

YAY!

This movie rocks. It's the first super hero comic book movie that FEELS like it's from a comic and not some remixing with another movie (Nolan's Batman) or a dark twisted personal vision removed from the comics (Burton). It felt like it had John Cassaday art.

It's a hell of an action movie, Joss Whedon seems to use his OCD thing of EVERY-PART-MUST-FIT and so the action always makes sense, like when Thor and Iron Man are fighting after Thor takes Loki, he makes sure to put the shot of Thor keeping watch so his brother wouldn't spake during the melee.

The fights! Whedon takes the best parts of all types of action movies, the best of Bay with the explosions, the best of the Matrix-type Anime-style superpowered fighting, but also the cool as hell compact Bourne Identity fighting, and yes the Black Widow intro could well as be from Buffy.

The characters work! I'd heard some weird nonsense about egos and contracts and "not wearing masks" and I was worried the movie would just give each character X amount of screentime just so they wouldn't walk, but not one scene is useless. Every "This is X's time to show his acting chops" scene worked pretty beautifully, Loki and Thor, Tony and Banner, Banner and Black Widow, Black Widow and Hawkeye, Cap and Tony. Every character in this movie works and is interesting in a way they haven't been in any other of their respectives movies, I left the theater wanting to see standalone Hawkeye and Black Widow movies. Hawkeye was rad and Hulk is finally compelling and incredible.

The movie is funny and intelligent. I was so glad to not see any of that jock-y "Does this A stand for France?" Millar nonsense.

I've seen it two times and the only complaint I might have had is that watching it suffered a bit seeing it in a normal screen compared to IMAX.

 

[Wolfe]

I did think Thor kind of got the short straw, in terms of being given stuff to do (at least other than fight), which was a little strange considering that the villain is his brother and archnemesis. He doesn't get hung out to dry, but I felt he got a little less than the rest, maybe because he was introduced later in the movie. Black Widow got more to do than he did, though I guess that's understandable since if you hand Whedon seven heroes with only one female in the bunch, she definitely isn't going to be the one left in the lurch.

Speaking of Black Widow, I thought Johansson was good in the movie, and I rarely think she's good in things. There's usually a vacuousness there that in this case seemed abated. The one person in the movie that I thought seemed off and out of step was the chick who isn't Alyson Hannigan from HIMYM, but she's in it for like three minutes. 

Otherwise, the movie just completely rules. I loved Hawkeye. I didn't really understand at first why they bothered putting him in it, since they had enough heroes as it was, and a guy with no powers who shoots arrows seemed unnecessary and maybe even dumb, but Renner was great. That throwaway thing at the end where he's talking on comm and fires the arrow backwards was one of my favorite things (Hulk casually punching Thor and wiping the floor with Loki of course being my absolute favorite things).

I really can't wait to see it again. Getting to see it early was great, but I spent last weekend wishing up and down that I could just go back to the theater right away. 

[JCEFalconi]

I did think Thor kind of got the short straw, in terms of being given stuff to do (at least other than fight), which was a little strange considering that the villain is his brother and archnemesis. He doesn't get hung out to dry, but I felt he got a little less than the rest, maybe because he was introduced later in the movie.

Yeah he definitely has less lines, but it does makes sense, plot-wise, he's the most out of touch in the bunch, Cap also also not having too much to do dialogue-wise until they start fighting amongst themselves. But I think they made up by giving Thor the most spectacular sequences: Fighting Iron Man, Fighting Hulk, redirecting the lightning from the Empire State into the Portal (jeez how cool we saw a movie with that) and acting-wise his two scenes with Loki had a lot of meat to it, I liked that they were very Game of Thrones-ish.

Black Widow got more to do than he did, though I guess that's understandable since if you hand Whedon seven heroes with only one female in the bunch, she definitely isn't going to be the one left in the lurch.
 
Speaking of Black Widow, I thought Johansson was good in the movie, and I rarely think she's good in things. There's usually a vacuousness there that in this case seemed abated. The one person in the movie that I thought seemed off and out of step was the chick who isn't Alyson Hannigan from HIMYM, but she's in it for like three minutes. 

Yeah I think ScaJo did a good job with a pretty big part, makes sense she's the conducting narrative thread of the thing, since she's the only "normal" human in the team for most of the movie. Althought I think she just couldn't nail the jokes Whedon gave her.

Fury's assistant or stewart or whatever is Maria Hill, I thought she did a good job playing someone out of her depth.

Otherwise, the movie just completely rules. I loved Hawkeye. I didn't really understand at first why they bothered putting him in it, since they had enough heroes as it was, and a guy with no powers who shoots arrows seemed unnecessary and maybe even dumb, but Renner was great. That throwaway thing at the end where he's talking on comm and fires the arrow backwards was one of my favorite things (Hulk casually punching Thor and wiping the floor with Loki of course being my absolute favorite things).

I really can't wait to see it again. Getting to see it early was great, but I spent last weekend wishing up and down that I could just go back to the theater right away. 

The end fight was incredibly well done, avoiding the usual things that make me not want to see huge blockbuster movies. How about that continuing shot of all the avengers fighting the aliens, so goooood. Also I loved that they made a point to show how all the avengers by the end were beat to shit.

[Wolfe]

Fury's assistant or stewart or whatever is Maria Hill, I thought she did a good job playing someone out of her depth.

No, I meant the actress seemed out of her depth. I don't really know her apart from the bits and pieces of that show that I've caught, but she was the one person that I didn't think acquitted herself very well. But she's only in it a little.

The end fight was incredibly well done, avoiding the usual things that make me not want to see huge blockbuster movies. How about that continuing shot of all the avengers fighting the aliens, so goooood. Also I loved that they made a point to show how all the avengers by the end were beat to shit.

Yeah, this was all true. Bay's the easy comparison for that end fight (except, again, for the fact that it's good), but parts of it reminded me of GHOSTBUSTERS, of all things. Especially when they're on the top of Stark's tower.

Also, I was blown away when I saw in the credits that Alexis Denisof played the alien general that Loki meets with early on.

[Magoonie]

I really liked this movie for all the points you guys brought up. Hulk punching Thor out of nowhere maybe my favorite part as it was just so out of nowhere funny. Oh and Hulk just slamming Loki like a rag doll and "Puny god" was great. All the action was just so solid, I maybe wanted more fighting between the Avengers than just Iron Man/Thor and Iron Man/Hulk. The hammer vs shield part was cool.

The third act was just great action and everything just flowed great. Loki came off so much more badd ass than he was in Thor for me. And from watching Joss stuff for years it really had a great Joss feel to it including killing off a character I liked. But Agent Coulson did have a reall good death scene.

Question though, why is it when Bruce first turns into the Hulk he's just smashing everybody in sight but later on when Bruce changes for the final fight he's able to be told what to do and attacks only the bad guys not the Avengers? Is it because Bruce just let himself change because he's "always angry" or what? Oh I also really liked Tony screwing with Bruce trying to get him mad, like when he poked him with shock stick.

[Donnacha]

It was very good, though I don't love it as much as you guys.

 I missed some of the other characters they've introduced in the film series. Why didn't they bring in Rhodes/War Machine? Might have been handy. Other than that, the absences were easily forgiven thanks to the immediacy of the events.

They talk a lot in that middle bit. I appreciated that, since it established the relationships and rivalries well.

Sam Jackson needs to be more Sam Jackson when he's playing Nick Fury. Even when firing off rocket launchers he never seems all that interested. Tommy Lee Jones may not have cared much about CAPTAIN AMERICA, but he still stole his scenes.

The casual attitude to mass death in these sort of films is nothing new, but it still bothers me a bit. It's mentioned that Loki killed eighty people in two days, yet we're only invited to care when Coulson dies.

[JCEFalconi]

Sam Jackson needs to be more Sam Jackson when he's playing Nick Fury. Even when firing off rocket launchers he never seems all that interested. Tommy Lee Jones may not have cared much about CAPTAIN AMERICA, but he still stole his scenes.

I liked the steely way he plays Fury, don't forget he's not really a good-good guy, so it'd be a bit disingenuous for him to be all "Too Many Motherfucking Chitauris in this Motherfucking Triskellion" only to be have him be a baddie in the next movie.

The casual attitude to mass death in these sort of films is nothing new, but it still bothers me a bit. It's mentioned that Loki killed eighty people in two days, yet we're only invited to care when Coulson dies.

It was causal in the sense that the characters didn't seem shaken by them, but it never seemed like they didn't actually care. Although there is a clear 9/11 moment when Cap is on the ground with all the firefighters and ash is flying all around. I liked that it strutted the line between "yes, people are getting killed" and "oh, goodie all the hellicopter crashes and gunfire is missing the civillians", the stakes got high from the moment Loki appeared.

[Wolfe]

Question though, why is it when Bruce first turns into the Hulk he's just smashing everybody in sight but later on when Bruce changes for the final fight he's able to be told what to do and attacks only the bad guys not the Avengers? Is it because Bruce just let himself change because he's "always angry" or what?

It was perhaps a bit too abrupt of a shift, but I figured it the result of his conversation with Stark, about taking control of disadvantages instead of letting them control you.

[Donnacha]

Guys, we really need to push this thread to four pages just to mess with Derick. His blood will boil with all the chat he's missing.

[Magoonie]

It was perhaps a bit too abrupt of a shift, but I figured it the result of his conversation with Stark, about taking control of disadvantages instead of letting them control you.

Maybe the Stark thing but they went into that before he turned into Hulk the first time and he went apeshit then. I mean it's nothing that hurts the movie for me as Hulk really stole the movie in that last battle. I was just wondering if anybody had an answer for the sudden change in Hulk, maybe connected to the comics, since I don't read them much.

Guys, we really need to push this thread to four pages just to mess with Derick. His blood will boil with all the chat he's missing.

It's kinda funny that we're probably the only four people reading this thread for the next couple of days.

Oh and like you guys, Robin from HIMYM kept kinda taking me out of the movie every time she showed up. And wow, I had no idea about the Alexis Denisoff thing. By the way, don't you guys think Nathan Fillion would have been a great Hawkeye? I kept thinking that the entire movie.

[Magoonie]

Wolfe, what's the extra scenes we missed out on?

[JCEFalconi]

enjoying some tasty shawarmas

[Wolfe]

Guys, we really need to push this thread to four pages just to mess with Derick. His blood will boil with all the chat he's missing.

I like this plan! I'm excited to be a part of it!

[Wolfe]

Yeah, I didn't get the shawarma scene at my screening. Just the Thanos one. Which, I had no idea who that was supposed to be at the time. I thought it was Darkseid for a second before it kicked in how that obviously wasn't possible.

[Magoonie]

Yeah, I didn't get the shawarma scene at my screening. Just the Thanos one. Which, I had no idea who that was supposed to be at the time. I thought it was Darkseid for a second before it kicked in how that obviously wasn't possible.

I was in the same boat as you as I don't really know the comics too well. I know core characters but beyond that I get kinda lost in comic mythology.