Avengers: Infinity War (2018)

“Avengers: Infinity War” stars Robert Downey Jr., Josh Brolin, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Sebastian Stan, Chris Pratt, Benedict Cumberbatch, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Holland, Anthony Mackie, and Chadwick Boseman.  Released on April 27, 2018, the film has the Avengers teaming up with the Guardians of the Galaxy to prevent Thanos from destroying the universe.

The film is directed by Anthony Russo and Joe Russo, who also directed the last two Captain America solo films, “The Winter Soldier” and “Civil War”.  It is the third film in the Avengers film series and the nineteenth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.  Ten years ago, Marvel changed the way we look at superhero cinema by developing an ever-lasting franchise known as the Marvel Cinematic Universe.  Starting with “Iron Man”, almost all of the films in the MCU have received plenty of praise from critics and audiences alike as well as some big bucks at the box office, and from the looks of it, this is the type of franchise that isn’t slowing down anytime soon.  The introduction of Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury at the end of “Iron Man” marked the beginning of the decade-old journey for Tony Stark and the rest of the superheroes like Captain America, the Hulk, and Thor.  But like all journeys, this one may have reached its end.  This latest chapter in the MCU has been on everyone’s list of highly-anticipated 2018 films since the first trailer was released.  Not only did it have almost every character in the MCU in the same film together, but it also involves an epic battle between the Avengers and the big bad purple guy himself, Thanos, who was first introduced during a post-credits scene in the first Avengers film back in 2012.  We’ve been waiting for that moment for at least six years, and now that it’s finally here, does it live up to its hype?

Following the events of “Captain America: Civil War”, the Avengers are still divided due to the Sokovia Accords.  But when one of the members discover a powerful threat in the form of Thanos (Brolin) and his plot to search for the Infinity Stones, they must assemble once again to protect the entire universe from his wrath.  The film showcases three different factions of the entire Avengers team: one lead by Steve Rogers (Evans), one lead by Tony Stark (Downey Jr.), and one that consists of Thor (Hemsworth) and the Guardians of the Galaxy.  These teams have different missions to accomplish in order to take down their common enemy.  While it’s incredible to see some new team-ups and witty banter between the characters, it felt like the latter two factions were a bit more focused than the former faction lead by Rogers.  Whether it’s a bad thing or not is still up in the air for me, but aside from that, this is another home run from the Russo Brothers.  The directors are very familiar with handling plenty of important characters together in one plate, and it shows.  With this many characters in “Infinity War”, they made it seem like it’s possible to juggle a lot of character depth with the film’s extensive use of visuals and storytelling.  The cast delivered some of the best chemistry that I had witnessed in the Marvel Cinematic Universe by far, with Downey Jr., Pratt, and Brolin being the main highlights as Tony Stark, Star-Lord, and Thanos, respectively.  Thanos is another MCU villain done right.  Not just because of how tough or intimidating he is, but also because of his quest for limitless power.  I’m not sure if I can explain it without spoiling it for you guys, but I can say that the character of Thanos was handled really well and Josh Brolin did an amazing job with his performance.  Hopefully he can copy that type of success with his portrayal as Cable in “Deadpool 2”.  Another thing that the Russo Brothers did right was the mixture between humor, action, and emotion.  The humor never felt out of place, the action was intense and extremely well-choreographed, and the emotional depth wasn’t too sappy or forced due to Alan Silvestri’s musical score and the Russos’ direction.  Like the last two Captain America films, “Infinity War” offers plenty of different ingredients to its superhero formula that not only made it somewhat fresh, but also intense and frustrating for people who want their beloved superheroes to survive the fight.  My only flaw with the film was its runtime, which is close to two and a half hours.  While it’s necessary to tell a story this huge, it can be pretty draining from all of the intense action and emotion, most notably the film’s final act.  Remember “Transformers: Dark of the Moon”? “Infinity War” is like that, minus the giant transforming robots, the Michael Bay-like explosions, and Shia LaBeouf.  Plus, it’s a few minutes shorter than “Dark of the Moon”.

Overall, “Avengers: Infinity War” once again changes the course of the Marvel Cinematic Universe in an exciting and bold way.  This film proves that the Russo Brothers have found their footing in the form of superhero filmmaking.  Filled with an overstuffed, yet extremely talented, cast, intense action, and a well-told story, this is another well-earned entry in the miraculous 10-year-old franchise.  It can be a bit devastating for the little ones, but I think hard-core fans of the Marvel comics and MCU films will adore every minute of it.

A-