The Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) | Movie Review

What would you say is the difference between Tony Stark and you?  Well, let’s see.  He’s impossibly handsome, worth billions, has charisma up the ying-yang, is a superhero, and has the world at his fingertips.  Hmmph.  Lucky bastard.  Oh yeah, and he’s also a genius.  Sighhh…..Sounds like the perfect guy, right?  Well, there’s just one little problem.  He also has an ego the size of his bank account, and it is that ego, combined with his ultra-smarts,  that sets off the events that brings ‘Earth’s Mightiest Heroes’ back to save the world in “The Avengers: Age of Ultron“.

Marvel’s latest chapter in its ongoing saga – which will probably see us all in our graves before it ultimately ends if it keeps making the bank it typically does – finds our favorite Stan Lee creations now a fully functioning and cohesive team.  The movie doesn’t waste any time in showing us that either.  Before one single word is uttered, we are treated to an action sequence that would be the envy of any blockbuster movie today.  A rousing ‘storm the castle’ set piece – which links this film to the previous year’s “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” – reintroduces the main players, introduces some new ones, and sets up the key elements that will take us on a hell of a ride for the next two plus hours.  One of those elements just happens to be a certain mystical item from previous films that will be recognized right away, though I will not give away here.  Of course, not all goes as planned here, but they do get to kick a lot of Hydra butt and make away with the aforementioned item.

It is the opening just described that is one of the most impressive sections of this movie.  When you have a cast this size – new and old – there is always the danger that the story will get bogged down with a lot of introductions, what have you been up tos, and what’s your stories.  Not here.  Kudos to Joss Whedon and his writers for offering up a masterful thirty to forty minutes of streamlined storytelling that has the stage set and ready to go before the ice cubes in your cola have even begun to melt.

So, what do you do after a beginning like that?  Have a party, of course.  And it’s during this fun and pun riddled downtime that things start to go awry.  As we all saw in the trailers we’ve been drooling over the past few months, this is when you know who shows up.  Dim the lights and cue the orchestra pit because….

Ultron is here.

This is where our story really takes off.  Ultron is the unfortunate result of Tony Stark’s obsession to save the planet; a towering mountain of sleek steel and AI that prevents Tony’s quest for a better world into a hunt for the means to destroy it.  The ultimate party crasher, Ultron uses Stark’s shindig for a wobbly entrance that soon escalates into a showcase for the horrors-of-technology run amuck.  After Ultron escapes Avengers Tower via the internet (it looks cooler than it sounds), the team is forced into action to bring the rapidly evolving android down before it can make good on its threat to send the human race the way of the dinosaur so as to restore world peace.

In an effort to avoid spoilers, I won’t go into the specifics of what follows.  Needless to say, carnage and mayhem ensue for the rest of the film.  Just hunker down and strap yourself in.  It seems there isn’t a continent on this planet that goes unscathed as The Avengers do battle with Ultron and his mechanical minions.

There is, however, a brief respite in a remote country house where we learn something surprising about one of our heroes.  It is a touching interlude, and adds a truly human and vulnerable element to the team.  These are not simply super-powers wrapped in beautiful shells.  They bleed, and they have other soft spots as well.

The characters all get ample screen time and all of them are bringing their A-game.  Robert Downey, Jr. continues to show us that he is truly a god amongst men; though there are a few more cracks in his armor this outing.  Chris Evans’ Cap is his usual stoic self, and Chris Hemsworth as Thor brings back his lovable brawn and dry wit.  Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye, who many saw as underused in The Avengers’ first outing, really comes into his own here.  I will even go so far as to say he was one of my favorites, if not my number one.  Captain America will always be the heart of the Avengers, but Clint Barton has become the soul.  We also learn more about Scarlet Johansson’s Black Widow this time around, and what made her into the deadly assassin we all know and love.  In a particularly poignant moment, she reveals a heartbreaking secret that came about as a consequence of her dark childhood.  Who she reveals it to only makes its ultimate meaning that much more powerful.  The Hulk provides a lot of the film’s standout action moments, while his alter-ego, Bruce Banner, finds himself lowered to even greater emotional depths than in his initial outing.  This is one poor, tortured soul, and Mark Ruffalo does an outstanding job of conveying that.

Whoever it was that came up with the idea to cast James Spader as Marvel’s newest baddie deserves a Hulk-sized pat on the back.  What Mr. Spader is able to convey via only his vocal chords is astonishing.  Do you think you know Ultron from the trailers?  You don’t.  This character was not what I expected and Tony Stark’s own Frankenstein’s monster is a wonder to behold.  It’s often said that one of Marvel’s few weaknesses is its villains.  Not anymore.  Ultron goes right to the top of the list of Marvel’s baddest of the bads.  He’s a lean, mean, eloquent machine.

As for the new kids on the block, Elizabeth Olsen and Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Scarlett Witch and Quicksilver are good fun.  Scarlett Witch, who has the power to manipulate anyone’s perception of reality, is the standout of the two and it is her power that gives the film a lot of its drama, as each Avenger she comes into contact with is forced to face their deepest, darkest fears.  Quicksilver doesn’t have as flashy a show-off moment as his X-Men counterpart, but he does deliver a huge emotional punch to the gut that will be just as talked about.  Spoilers will ensue if I try to explain their relationship to The Avengers/Ultron too much.  Let’s just say, by the end of the film, they have been badly damaged by both sides.  Who will they ultimately join up with?  You’ll find out soon enough.

And then there’s The Vision, as portrayed by Paul Bettany.  The unintended offspring of Stark and Ultron has been the movie’s biggest mystery.  Beyond a couple of character posters and a shot of his eyes in the last trailer, we don’t know too much about him, and maybe that’s for the best.  It’s nice to have a few surprises waiting in the wings as you sit back and the lights go down.  I will say this:  His character is a welcome addition to The Avengers roster, and I look forward to seeing more of him in the future.  In action, he’s a wonder to behold, and a new kind of hero to help usher in Phase 3 of Marvel’s quest for global, box-office domination.

Is this a perfect movie?  Sounds like it, but not quite.

Remember how I said the beginning of the movie is its strongest part?  Well, as we venture into the film’s final act, the speed gets ramped up quite a few notches, and the deft hand at the helm finally begins to quiver.   Plot points zoom by faster than Quicksilver with Mjolnir hot on his tail.  There were a couple of moments where I thought to myself, ‘Wait, how did we end up here?’, or ‘Wait now, I don’t quite understand what happened’, or ‘Whoa, slow it down a bit’.  It’s a rush to the finish and I can’t help but feel that some moviegoers will feel a bit left behind in the dust, story wise.

The obligatory sprinkling of “Civil War” and “Infinity Gauntlet” hints are there as well, though as usual, they don’t offer much and annoy just as much as tease.  The mid-credits stinger is also nothing we haven’t seen before.  And don’t bother hanging around for a post-credits one.  There isn’t one.  Bummer.  I kind of like those.

After being built up to almost godlike status, I do feel Ultron’s later moments in the film diminish the character somewhat.  Again, I blame this on the hurrying to tie up the various story threads.  Some of the film’s more minor characters are shuffled in and out pretty quickly, and a few of the seemingly countless cameos do reek of fan service.  An action scene or two almost strays into ridiculousness at times – particularly one in my current home of Seoul, Korea involving a rocket propelled cargo container – but we are talking about a film that has a Norse God almost killing a group of World War 2 veterans in a drinking game involving Asgardian booze. Sometimes, you just have to go with it.

Does any of this derail the film?  Nowhere near it.  The joy of an Avengers movie is the spectacle of it all, and oh what a show you are in for.  The usual jokes and laugh-out-loud character moments are in more abundance this time round, and I loved them all.  I won’t make even the slightest of allusions to any so as not to ruin them, but I have to say Hawkeye’s reaction to a particular character really getting on his nerves was my favorite.  And Hulk-Buster’s repeating fist action had the theatre I was in almost rolling on the floor.  Sorry, I’ll stop there.  I’m starting to allude.

Before signing off, there’s one more thing I want to mention.  One of the most rousing scenes in the first film was the famous panning shot of The Avengers coming together on the streets of New York.  There is a nod to that scene near the end of Avengers 2 that will bring tears of joy to nerds and non-nerds alike.  What a moment.

Watching “The Avengers: Age of Ultron” is like meeting up with old friends you haven’t seen in a few years.  You’ve been together many times before, but good times are going to be had, and there are sure to be a few surprises along the way.

Starring Robert Downey, Jr, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Jeremy Renner
Written by Joss Whedon
Directed by Joss Whedon

David McGrath
Contributing Reviewer
The Hollywood Outsider