Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Top Five Favorite Films: #3 The Avengers (2012)


All this week, I have been reviewing my top five favorite films and explained how each came to be on the list. I may, at some future point, move to the top ten, but for now these will suffice. To recap;




#3 The Avengers (2012)




At first glance, it would seem that including a film that I only first saw a couple of weeks ago, let alone making it a top five favorite film, would be asinine, and frankly, I can understand that. On paper, this is a film that had everything going for it, and everything going against it. Marvel Pictures set up all of the main characters in a truly remarkable fashion, which did nothing but raise expectations on this film to completely ridiculous levels. There was simply no way the film could ever be as good as expected because the bar was set so high. And yet, upon viewing The Avengers, all of those factors came together to craft a great piece of film.

I wonder what the planning process was originally for this film. Was it to simply tell the story itself, diving into the characters backgrounds in the short span of time that the film could give? Perhaps, but somewhere along the like, someone got the bright idea that it might work better to introduce, or reintroduce each main character in their own story and then pull the best features from each of those stories and combine them together into one large film. By combining the talents and established characters of Tony Stark (Iron Man), Bruce Banner (Hulk), Natasha Romanoff (Black Widow), Thor, Steve Rogers (Captain America), and Clint Barton (Hawkeye) into one grand epic, and yet not allowing the enormity, or ego of each dictate the rules of the film over the others, is what makes it such an amazing feat.


The film begins at a secret research facility run by the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division, or SHIELD. Run by a mysterious and charismatic individual, Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), the agents of SHIELD are trying to tap the power hidden inside this blue cube, (first seen in Captain America). The cube contains what is purported to be unlimited power. But before they can, they are attacked by Loki (Tom Hiddleston), brother of Thor and banished from Asgard, the home world of Thor.


Loki intends to use the cube to open a portal into another world in an attempt to bring an army to earth to conquer and rule it. His initial attack succeeds and Fury is then forced to initiate the Avenger’s Initiative, a secret project that would only be used in extreme circumstances. The first part of the film is the rounding up of all the various players from each of the previous movies and making them jive together in a working mechanism. Predictably, this doesn’t happen at first as the different characters and egos are exploited by Loki in an effort to gain the upper hand. However, extreme and deadly measures taken by Loki bring each of the fabled parts together in perfect motion to bring the battle literally to Loki’s (and Starks) front door. What happens thereafter is what can only be described as the most epic final showdown in movie history.


There is so much to love about The Avengers. It is an action film that doesn’t take its own material so seriously that it forgets to inject humor at appropriate moments. It’s an interesting take on character and motivation, as well as what factors can drive that motivation, and it doesn’t fall into the typical pitfalls that most team up films fall into. Sure the main characters get into a pissing contest with each other, but only in a manner which makes sense to the overall plot. Loki also serves as an excellent foil in being able to frustrate each of the main characters and still maintaining that selfish and childlike ego that despots throughout history have all shared. Loki is quite pathetic, but when someone like this also has access to powers and abilities, it can combine for a deadly combination.


No performance outshines another. Robert Downey Jr. brings the raw brains, brawns and large ego of Stark so memorably portrayed in the first two Iron Man films, Mark Ruffalo, replacing Edward Norton, finds the conflicted nature of Banner and the fine like he walks with gusto, Chris Hemsworth channels the reserved nature of Thor, and Chris Evans brings back the heart and determination of Steve Rogers. One line in particular best describes Rogers approach to a situation. When told that Loki and Thor are like gods among men, Rogers, very matter of fact, responds, “There’s only one God, and I don’t think he dresses like that.” Rogers, a natural leader, isn’t swayed by all the fantastic things happening around him. He keeps his mind focused on the mission at hand.


Scarlett Johansson and Jeremy Renner as Black Widow and Hawkeye also are amazing to watch. First appearing as minor characters in earlier films, the two have a bit of a history together, and despite not possessing any of the amazing powers of the others, can hold their own as efficiently. They both deserve to fight alongside the rest. Other performances, from Cobie Smulders, as Agent Hill, and Clark Gregg as Agent Coulson are also great. Smulders takes what would normally be an eye candy role and makes it a fully formed character who can hold her own against any adversity, and Gregg, having played Coulson in each of the previous films, is the silent catalyst that not only brings all the Avengers together but becomes the glue which cements all the parts into one formidable machine.



The Avengers works, because it took the best parts of each earlier film, and combined it into one major epic. I would contend that to truly appreciate the film, one must view each of the proceeding chapters, (Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 2, Thor, and Captain America); much like you would if viewing a series such as Star Wars or Harry Potter. Though, frankly it isn’t necessary. I saw the film with my sister, who hadn’t seen any of the proceeding films, and she enjoyed it as much as did I.

Going in, I wasn't really familiar with the characters as I never read the comics. So I approached it with an open mind. The meter by which I judge most films is was it entertaining, and/or fun. With The Avengers, you get the best of both. It’s been a couple of years since I’ve seen a film that was as much fun to watch as The Avengers, a truly remarkable film.


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