10 years in-the-making, the Marvel Cinematic Universe culminates in an epic event in “Avengers: Infinity War.” Directed by Joe and Anthony Russo with the story written by frequent collaborators Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, the latest Marvel flick gathers almost every single hero in the franchise as Earth’s Mightiest Heroes gear up for their most dangerous foe yet, Thanos, in a race to collect all six Infinity Stones.
Boasting more than 60 characters, the film sets the stage for next year’s still-untitled “Avengers 4” which will neatly wrap up the 22-film-arc that the MCU has been treading since 2008’s “Iron Man.” Originally a two-parter, the twin sequels were eventually separated, but like any film in the franchise, they will have a common plot thread running through them.
*Minor Spoilers Ahead*
First things first, the movie is a long one - and understandably so considering the number of moving pieces that needed to be tackled on top of introducing Thanos. But the burden of the runtime is almost rarely felt as the Russos was able to keep the plot running. Oddly, “Infinity War” felt even better paced than “Captain America: Civil War” despite having more characters. Perhaps it’s due to the fact that there is one main storyline, instead of having to also introduce new characters on the side.
Despite all its successes, Marvel Studios films are not necessarily known for their villains. If anything, it’s their recurring waterloo. Except for a handful of great ones such as Loki, “Spider-Man: Homecoming’s” Vulture and “Black Panther’s” Killmonger, most bad guys have been generic and one-dimensional. And to market this film as Thanos’ origins story is a ballsy one, because if he falls under the same underbaked antagonist category, the whole thing won’t work, at all. Surprisingly, despite years of pent-up anticipation for the Mad Titan, he not only delivers, he’s arguable one of the best bad guys that the MCU has seen thus far. But while his characterization was spot-on (good intentions, bad ways), it’s also important to laud how the CG work on Brolin, coupled with the actor’s incredible performance.
Aside from Thanos’ strong introduction, arguably fans’ most awaited part of “Infinity War” is seeing everyone gathered together. While most of the Earth-bound heroes have had run-ins with each other, as well as the Asgardians (Thor and Loki), the Guardians of the Galaxy has remained isolated until now. And with several big egos and personalities banding for the first time, it was pivotal that the Russos, as well as Markus and McFeely balance the organic humor, sensibility and intensity all within the comic book movie genre sandbox of the film given that there are some pretty high stakes on the table. In the end, the creative team found a good mix of everything that kept the audience seamlessly switching gears when it comes to tone and feel of the movie.
As all films, “Infinity War” is not without its flaws. It’s glossed over a lot of important stuff, especially with regard to the Asgardian refugee ship wreckage.From the looks of it, everyone aboard that craft was wiped out and it basically cancels out “Thor: Ragnarok’s” purpose of seeing Asgard destroyed. It’s also unclear what exactly is happening between Bruce Banner and the Hulk after the green raging monster refused to come out at a time when he was needed the most. Perhaps it has something to do with the creature’s initial bout with Thanos that left him stunned. Lastly, while it was nice to see second-tier minions like the Black Order (Ebony Maw, Cull Obsidian, Proxima Midnight and Corvus Glaive), they were underutilized in the film, which is very disappointing considering the skills and power set they supposedly have.
However you feel about the MCU, what that franchise is able to do is arguably one of the most revolutionizing schemes when it comes to the business of Hollywood movie-making, and all 10 years’ worth of narrative and build up lead to “Infinity War.” The movie was done the best that it could given all the things that it’s ought to accomplish within a two hour and thirty minute runtime. While some characters received the shorter end of the narrative stick, it was necessary to ensure that it’s focused rather than just a collection of vignettes featuring everyone’s favorite character which would’ve resulted in a disjointed mess. At the very least, that’s supposed to be expected considering the massive cast.
It’s going to be a long year waiting for “Avengers 4,” and undoubtedly countless theories will come out in the course of one year as to what goes down in that movie. But with the way Infinity War left things, literally anything can happen. The main thing is that, it looks like Marvel will be taking it back old school style with the assembly of the original six Avengers.
WATCH: Marvel Studios' Avengers: Infinity War Official Trailer
PS. If you’ve seen the film, please don’t spoil it for those who haven’t. You rob them of the experience, and nothing will compare to the feeling of seeing this film personally in cinemas.
— ALD, The Summit Express
 |
| ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ Ensemble Poster/Marvel Studios |
Boasting more than 60 characters, the film sets the stage for next year’s still-untitled “Avengers 4” which will neatly wrap up the 22-film-arc that the MCU has been treading since 2008’s “Iron Man.” Originally a two-parter, the twin sequels were eventually separated, but like any film in the franchise, they will have a common plot thread running through them.
*Minor Spoilers Ahead*
 |
| Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange, Tony Stark as Robert Downey Jr., Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner and Benedict Wong as Wong in ‘Avengers:Infinity War’/Marvel Studios |
First things first, the movie is a long one - and understandably so considering the number of moving pieces that needed to be tackled on top of introducing Thanos. But the burden of the runtime is almost rarely felt as the Russos was able to keep the plot running. Oddly, “Infinity War” felt even better paced than “Captain America: Civil War” despite having more characters. Perhaps it’s due to the fact that there is one main storyline, instead of having to also introduce new characters on the side.
Despite all its successes, Marvel Studios films are not necessarily known for their villains. If anything, it’s their recurring waterloo. Except for a handful of great ones such as Loki, “Spider-Man: Homecoming’s” Vulture and “Black Panther’s” Killmonger, most bad guys have been generic and one-dimensional. And to market this film as Thanos’ origins story is a ballsy one, because if he falls under the same underbaked antagonist category, the whole thing won’t work, at all. Surprisingly, despite years of pent-up anticipation for the Mad Titan, he not only delivers, he’s arguable one of the best bad guys that the MCU has seen thus far. But while his characterization was spot-on (good intentions, bad ways), it’s also important to laud how the CG work on Brolin, coupled with the actor’s incredible performance.
Aside from Thanos’ strong introduction, arguably fans’ most awaited part of “Infinity War” is seeing everyone gathered together. While most of the Earth-bound heroes have had run-ins with each other, as well as the Asgardians (Thor and Loki), the Guardians of the Galaxy has remained isolated until now. And with several big egos and personalities banding for the first time, it was pivotal that the Russos, as well as Markus and McFeely balance the organic humor, sensibility and intensity all within the comic book movie genre sandbox of the film given that there are some pretty high stakes on the table. In the end, the creative team found a good mix of everything that kept the audience seamlessly switching gears when it comes to tone and feel of the movie.
As all films, “Infinity War” is not without its flaws. It’s glossed over a lot of important stuff, especially with regard to the Asgardian refugee ship wreckage.From the looks of it, everyone aboard that craft was wiped out and it basically cancels out “Thor: Ragnarok’s” purpose of seeing Asgard destroyed. It’s also unclear what exactly is happening between Bruce Banner and the Hulk after the green raging monster refused to come out at a time when he was needed the most. Perhaps it has something to do with the creature’s initial bout with Thanos that left him stunned. Lastly, while it was nice to see second-tier minions like the Black Order (Ebony Maw, Cull Obsidian, Proxima Midnight and Corvus Glaive), they were underutilized in the film, which is very disappointing considering the skills and power set they supposedly have.
 |
| Chris Pratt as Star-Lord, Vin Diesel (voiced) as Teenage Groot, Zoe Saldana as Gamora, Pom Klementieff as Mantis, Bradley Cooper (voiced) as Rocket, Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer in ‘Avengers: Infinity War’/Marvel Studios |
However you feel about the MCU, what that franchise is able to do is arguably one of the most revolutionizing schemes when it comes to the business of Hollywood movie-making, and all 10 years’ worth of narrative and build up lead to “Infinity War.” The movie was done the best that it could given all the things that it’s ought to accomplish within a two hour and thirty minute runtime. While some characters received the shorter end of the narrative stick, it was necessary to ensure that it’s focused rather than just a collection of vignettes featuring everyone’s favorite character which would’ve resulted in a disjointed mess. At the very least, that’s supposed to be expected considering the massive cast.
It’s going to be a long year waiting for “Avengers 4,” and undoubtedly countless theories will come out in the course of one year as to what goes down in that movie. But with the way Infinity War left things, literally anything can happen. The main thing is that, it looks like Marvel will be taking it back old school style with the assembly of the original six Avengers.
WATCH: Marvel Studios' Avengers: Infinity War Official Trailer
PS. If you’ve seen the film, please don’t spoil it for those who haven’t. You rob them of the experience, and nothing will compare to the feeling of seeing this film personally in cinemas.
— ALD, The Summit Express
