The Avengers (2012); action comedy drama film review

Poster artwork for the action comedy drama film The Avengers.

Powerful Pack by Linh

The blockbuster action film from Marvel, The Avengers, that is also called Avengers Assemble in the United Kingdom, and based on the comic book with minor alterations made for the film adaptation is directed and co-written by Joss Whedon (Serenity, The Cabin In The Woods). Most of Whedon’s vision for the film’s premise is realised, and the cast assembled to portray the team of superheroes are superb. Whedon, who is mostly known for his work in the television series Buffy The Vampire Slayer, brings together a group of individuals who all manage to work as a team on the screen. All the superhero characters have already appeared in films leading up to this film’s release, which makes it easier to attract an audience and create a larger fanbase.

AWESTRUCK AVENGERS: Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Captain America (Chris Evans) prepare for the battle ahead in the film The Avengers. Image: Marvel Studios.

In The Avengers, Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) of the spy agency S.H.I.E.L.D, is experimenting with the special cube of unlimited sustainable energy called the Tesseract, when he is rudely interrupted by Loki (Tom Hiddleston). Loki uses his sceptre to “cast a spell” on Dr. Selvig (Stellan Skarsgård) and Clint Barton/Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), making them his followers, then destroys S.H.I.E.L.D headquarters as he departs with the Tesseract. 

Nick Fury sends out orders to his spy agents Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) and Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) to enlist the help of Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) and Bruce Banner/The Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) respectively. Meanwhile, Nick Fury convinces Steve Rogers/ Captain America (Chris Evans) to join the fight against Loki. After the team have captured Loki in Stuttgart, Germany, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) drops in to take Loki and the Tesseract back to Asgard. The team warns Thor that Loki has sent an army to destroy Earth and the Tesseract is missing, so he agrees to hold Loki in custody until they find the Tesseract. However, Loki’s plans of ultimate power and control look likely until the team of superheroes can work together to stop the invaders on land and in the air.

HULK HORROR: Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) escapes the rage of the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) in the film The Avengers. Image: Marvel Studios.

The battle scenes look spectacular and are brilliantly edited so the action from the air and on the ground blend and move smoothly from one character’s fight scene to another.  The hand-to-hand combat and fight scenes leading up to the big battle in Manhattan are excellent; Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow and Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye give each other powerful punches and kicks before calming down to a brief emotional moment of shared history from their past; the forest fight scene between Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man and Chris Hemsworth’s Thor is a comical masculinity-contest and seems to help establish an understanding of how they can use their powers “with” instead of “against” each other.

HOTSHOT HAWKEYE: Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) makes a perfect hit as he leaps through the air in the film The Avengers. Image: Marvel Studios.

Throughout the film, there seems to be an underlying message of “power” and “unity”, which involves the superheroes assembling as a group without losing their own individuality, and the idea of how power can be corruptive and destructive as well as easily shared to assist humanity. The “power” which Nick Fury and Tony Stark/Iron Man seek pertains to an energy source that is clean, unlimited and sustainable which can provide power for everyone’s daily needs. The “power” which Loki craves is the control or domination over others and a desire that they must serve him as their ruler. In an ironic plot-twist, the power of the Tesseract is used to unleash destructive forces upon Manhattan, New York, prompting the superheroes to use their powers to fight back.

HEROIC HEAT: Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Captain America (Chris Evans) and Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) fight off a fiery foe in the film The Avengers. Image: Marvel Studios.

The film uses a variety of special effects in audio and visual depictions, including motion-capture technology for Mark Ruffalo to physically portray The Hulk. In the past, the giant green monster was usually computer generated and voiced by Lou Ferrigno. The film’s visually stunning and breath-taking action sequences are some of the best work for the Marvel comic book film franchise. The Avengers exceeded expectations at the box office in Australia in 2012, as it is a fun, exciting and fast-paced film where every scene counts.

AGILE AVENGER: Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) lies low as Bruce Banner unleashes The Hulk in the film The Avengers. Image: Marvel Studios.

Director: Joss Whedon

Writers: Joss Whedon (story, screenplay), Zack Penn (story), Stan Lee (comic book), Jack Kirby (comic book)

Cast: Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Samuel L. Jackson, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hiddleston, Stellan Skarsgård, Cobie Smulders, Clark Gregg, Gwyneth Paltrow, Alexis Denisof, Jenny Agutter, Powers Boothe, Harry Dean Stanton, Stan Lee, Donald Li, James Eckhouse, Lou Ferrigno (voice), Paul Bettany (voice)

Producers: Stan Lee, Jon Favreau, Alan Fine, Patricia Whitcher, Jeremy Latcham, Louis D’Esposito,  Avi Arad, Kevin Feige, Victoria Alonso

Cinematographer: Seamus McGarvey

Original Music Composer: Alan Silvestri

Film Editor: Jeffrey Ford, Lisa Lassek

Production:  James Chinlund (Production Designer), Billy Hunter, Randy Moore, Benjamin Edelberg, Richard L. Johnson, Gregory S. Hooper, Jann K. Engel (Art Directors), Victor J. Zolfo (Set Decorator)

Costume Designer: Alexandra Byrne

Languages: English, Russian and Hindi with English subtitles

Running Time: 2 hours and 20 minutes

3D Iron Man 2 (2010); action adventure film review

Poster artwork for the action adventure film Iron Man 2.

Standard Sequel by Linh

The first Iron Man film was an unexpected and thrilling viewing experience, becoming an instant hit and catapulted Robert Downey Jr. to super-stardom after years in the cinematic wilderness.  The sequel was highly anticipated and much hyped, but sadly, the result is ordinary. Even though Iron Man 2 is released in 3D, it has made little difference in enhancing the story, but would definitely bring in more money.

METAL MATES: Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) and James Rhodes / War Machine (Don Cheadle) join forces to battle Whiplash's robot drones in the film Iron Man 2. Image: Paramount Pictures.

Iron Man 2 retains only minimal amounts of the snappy spontaneity in dialogue, clever editing is diminished, solid characterisation is scarce and the middle drags on for too long. The sequel loses some of the spark seen in the first Iron Man, but the performances are strong enough to sustain interest.

RUSSIAN ROUGE: Ivan Vanko / Whiplash (Mickey Rourke) seals a deal with Justin Hammer in the film Iron Man 2. Image: Paramount Pictures.

The film opens in Russia, with the death of Anton Vanko (Yevgeni Lazarev), Ivan’s father, and reveals he was working alongside Howard Stark (John Slattery), Tony’s father, in creating a uniquely powerful piece of technology. Ivan (Mickey Rourke) cradles his dead father in his arms as he vows revenge against Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), while a cockatoo watches on forlornly.

The dark and depressing scenes in Russia are strongly contrasted with Tony Stark’s latest expo promoting his technological creations that depict shiny new armour under bright, colourful lights, surrounded by wealthy and prolific people.

Tony Stark reveals to the public via the media that he is Iron Man and he will use his technology to benefit humanity. He is then seen defending himself and his technology at a Senate Inquiry chaired by Senator Stern (Garry Shandling), against claims of his technology being dangerous to society and it can be used as a weapon to cause destruction and death. 

The audience soon discovers Tony Stark is ill and he believes he may be dying.  He promptly promotes his assistant Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) to be Chief Executive of his company and hands over much of his duties to her. Meanwhile, Ivan Vanko is building one of the most formidable and destructive armour/weapon in preparation for a fight to the death against Iron Man.

WILD WHIPPING: Ivan Vanko / Whiplash (Mickey Rourke) stops and destroys traffic on the Grand Prix circuit in the film Iron Man 2. Image: Paramount Pictures.

The leading cast remains the same, with the exception of James ‘Rhodey’ Rhodes, who was originally played by Terrence Howard and replaced by Don Cheadle in the sequel. In Iron Man 2, Rhodey gets some mean and mighty action as War Machine, but he lacks the sincerity, which Terrence Howard exuded in the first film.

Robert Downey Jr. continues to impress as the billionaire Tony Stark/Iron Man, but he needs more action and less moping around in this sequel. Gwyneth Paltrow is gorgeous as Pepper Potts, who is feisty and ferociously independent as in the first film, but hardly features in the sequel.

Oscar nominee Mickey Rourke is a stand out as Ivan Vanko/ Whiplash, a villainous Russian hell-bent on avenging his father’s death and creating an outfit complete with electrifying whips to annihilate Tony Stark/Iron Man. Ivan’s love for a pet cockatoo shows a softer side underneath his rough and muscular exterior.

MYSTERIOUS MAIDEN: Natalie Rushman /Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) hides her double identity in the film Iron Man 2. Image: Paramount Pictures.

Director Jon Favreau co-stars as Tony Stark’s chauffeur and assistant Harold ‘Happy’ Hogan, bringing some comic relief but at times fails to conjure up enough laughs from the audience.

A new addition to the ensemble cast is the alluring Scarlett Johansson as Natalie Rushman / Natasha Romanoff, the assistant to Pepper Potts. Johansson trained hard to perfect her leaps, swings and swift moves for her role, but is sorely under-used as the mysterious Black Widow.

 

SECRETIVE SPY: Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) assists Tony Stark / Iron Man with some cryptic information in the film Iron Man 2. Image: Paramount Pictures.

Samuel L. Jackson appears in only a few scenes as the eye-patched Nick Fury, but is a welcome sight for his mysterious references to a secret team (possibly the Avengers) and his solid performance.

Sam Rockwell is a pleasant surprise as Tony Stark’s rival Justin Hammer, whose attempts to emulate Stark’s success fails spectacularly. Justin is comical but detestable and is a main supporter of Ivan/Whiplash in destroying Tony/Iron Man.

Overall, Iron Man 2 needs to speed up the pace in action and drama, dialogue needs to be quick, clever and surprising, the fight scenes require better editing and the special effects are average. However, the talented cast is excellent, the soundtrack is fantastic with AC/DC songs blaring during the end credits and in the film. If you wait until the end of the credits, you’ll get a sneak peak at a teaser for the upcoming film Thor which stars Chris Hemsworth in the title role.

 

AGILE ASSAILANT: Natalie Rushman / Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) is swift and silent as Black Widow in the film Iron Man 2. Image: Paramount Pictures.

Director: Jon Favreau

Writers: Justin Theroux (screenplay), Stan Lee (Marvel comic book), Don Heck (Marvel comic book), Larry Lieber (Marvel comic book), Jack Kirby (Marvel comic book).

Cast: Robert Downey Jr., Don Cheadle, Gwyneth Paltrow, Scarlett Johansson, Mickey Rourke, Sam Rockwell, Samuel L. Jackson, John Slattery, Clark Gregg, Garry Shandling, Paul Bettany, Jon Favreau, Olivia Munn , Christiane Amanpour, Kate Mara, Leslie Bibb, Adam Goldstein, Stan Lee, Jack White, Larry Ellison

Producers: Alan Fine, Stan Lee, David Maisel, Denis L. Stewart, Louis D’Esposito, Jon Favreau, Susan Downey, Jeremy Latcham, Victoria Alonso

Cinematographer: Matthew Libatique (Director of Photography)

Original Music Composer: John Debney

        

Film Editors: Dan Lebental, Richard Pearson

Production: J. Michael Riva (Production Designer), Suzan Wexler, Page Buckner, David F. Klassen, Michael E. Goldman (Art Directors), Lauri Gaffin (Set Decorator)

Costume Designer: Mary Zophres

Languages: English, French, Russian with English subtitles

Running Time: 2 hours and 10 minutes.