Review of The Avengers (2012) by Madmandonna — 03 May 2012

The Avengers is not as good as The Dark Knight, I'm just going to say that from the off, the storyline is escapism and it has some genuinely funny moments in it, but it doesn't have the deep characters or visual spectacle. Joss Whedon's script keeps the film going, and lets be honest, this film could have been a train wreck. What makes The Avengers tick is the relationships that each of the characters have with one another. This is where the film really takes flight, when all the characters are in a pressure cooker together, it gives the film weight and suspense especially with Mark Ruffalo's Hulk. Joss Whedon should be given a lot of credit for crafting such a cohesive and well thought out script.

The film script is what keeps it above board, visuals have never been Joss Whedon's strong suit, but I did notice a wink to his first feature film Serenity in a zoom shot near the finale. The film doesn't look bad by any means it just has the same sheen that the other Marvel films seem to sport, but it had to be this way to fit all the heroes together. But lack of visual flair is sometimes what makes me dislike these movies, they look too clean and have a sheen that makes it look too cartoony for my personal taste. The Xmen films and Burton and Nolan's Batman films seem to not have these "sheens" to them, which make them visually more appealing to me.

I've also never been a fan of 3D even when it works superbly like in Avatar, its just a gimmick to make more money most of the time. So I'd recommend watching Avengers in 2D, as it doesn't add anything to the film being in that third dimension.

Its very difficult to score this film as it is by and large a fantastic superhero film, thats enjoyable from beginning to end. Is it as all engrossing and goose-bump inducing as The Dark Knight, well no. Is it better than Spiderman, well yes, but I was never a fan of Sam Raimi's Spiderman anyway. Is it better than Thor, enjoyment wise its about the same. With no back stories to get through in The Avengers the time certainly flies by, it is great summer film. Is it anything more than that, sorry Joss, no its not.