Film review - Avengers: Endgame

Avengers: Endgame
Avengers: Endgame

Kevin Feige's Avengers: Endgame is one hell of a movie ... and a flipping long, brilliant one at that.

The film takes place in a post-Grape-Snap (Infinity War) reality, as our heroes fight to right their own wrongs. And if you're thinking of this being your first MCU film ... don't. This is the season finale: and it doesn't get more epic or personal than this.

Anyway, this movie is pretty great. Like, amazingly great.

If I want to be mean (which, of course, I do) then I have nitpicks: but that is it.

Some jokes undercut the drama.

Some bits are, I guess, kinda pointless.

There are ... holes of the plot kind.

Erm ... I don't like the shade of green for the Hulk?

This is not film-making perfection, but it is faultless entertainment.

The first two hours, though light on action, succinctly conclude many of the character's journeys; transforming a, quite literally, intergalactic tale of, quite literally, unfathomably epic proportions into a sorrowful psalm of loss, resilience, sacrifice and will.

We feel for these characters, after experiencing the ups and downs of their lives for, quite literally, a decade. And every moment here - every single scene where the scope is dialled in on a handshake, hug, tear or piece of fast-food - is as powerful as any smashy-smashy-boom-boom! could have been.

Then again, that final hour is just ... epicness personified. One single battle climaxes a journey-like-no-other: and, without spoilers, is more than worth the wait.

Also: if you don't audibly yell 'F** Yeah!' at least once during this movie, whether it be accidental or intentional, then you have amazing restraint.

These movies, even in the worst, Thor-The-Dark-World-iest timelines, have united a people. I've seen kids younger than Avengers Assemble and adults older than the first Avengers comic unite in jovial ecstasy over this universe and this film.

On my second viewing (it's THAT good), I saw a group of kids - no older than six - dressed as the Avengers ... which is just awesome. No one was dressed as a Raptor when I saw Jurassic World, and no one glued dog-hair to their body for Solo. But someone dared embrace that horrible shade of green - which is insane, insanely awesome and an insane analogy for this film's profound impact on culture and society.

These are not just heroes; they are idols - people to aspire to, not because they're green or in spandex - but because they will fight for what is right.

Cheesy? A little. Do I care? 'F*** No'!

I cried my eyes out over fast-food in this movie: FAST FOOD!

And whether it be Robert Downey Jr's endlessly driven Tony or Chris Evans' endlessly inspiring Steve or Scarlett Johansson's endlessly heroic Natasha or Jeremy Renner's endlessly 'finally-has-a-reason-to-be-here' Hawkeye, the cast shines bright.

This movie, is spectacular.

This movie, is entertainment.

This IS... the Endgame.

Congrats to everyone - whether it be composer Alan Silvestri's elegantly climactic score, DP Trent Opaloach's visually rich cinematography, the 10,000 VFX guys dedicated to Thanos' second chin (which is, in itself, a darn good chin) or directors Anthony and Joe Russo, who've done so much stuff I can't even list it.

They all knocked it out of the ballpark, into the atmosphere and onto Thanos' second chin... knocking the Mad Titan down in a hail of fire and fury.

But most of all, congrats to Kevin Feige, the producer-architect that IS this universe.

Go relax on a Farm, Kev. Relax like Thanos ... you've earned it.