Avengers; Endgame - Movie Review

Written by Shiggins

A Marvel.

22 films, 11 years, over $4 billion spent, with a box office of $19 billion (and rising), Marvel have created the most absolutely successful movie franchise in history, by adapting all these heroes of classic comic books and bringing them to the big screen, most of them for the very first time. From Iron Man to Avengers: Endgame, I've watched every single entry, and now I'm here to review the ultimate finale. In the end, did it succeed? Did Endgame truly give us an ending worthy of wielding the Infinity Stones, the hammers, and whatever other item you could find in this film?

Note: FULL SPOILERS AHEAD! EVERYTHING IN THIS ARTICLE IS A SPOILER!

The story of Endgame takes place after Infinity War, in which Thanos (Josh Brolin) achieved victory by snapping his fingers with the Infinity Gauntlet and wiping half of the universe. This leaves most of the Avengers on Earth, suffering and guilty, while Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr) is drifting in space, feeling the guiltiest of them all. After a surprisingly quick reunion and discovery that they can't undo the damage, five years pass with everyone in the world still struggling to move on... but hope suddenly returns when Scott Lang/Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) shows up unexpectedly and they might have found a new way to undo all the damage Thanos has caused.

Where do I even start, with everything worth talking about? There's so much to process...

Well, I'll start by being utterly thankful that the film didn't completely reverse all of Thanos' actions in Infinity War, which must have been tempting for everyone involved when they brought time travel into the story. While the Snap that wiped out 50% of all life does get reversed eventually, the rest of the events still held true. Everyone spent 5 whole years with 50% dead, the world has changed forever, Loki, Vision and Heimdall are still gone, and the Gamora that kissed Peter Quill stayed sacrificed for good. And again, they easily could have reversed all these actions and still brought out a decent film. It's impressive to see such restraint.

A scarecrow in a Marvel film...? DC crossover confirmed!

At least, I think Loki is dead. Or a Loki is dead. It's quite complicated because of the time travel, but there is a chance we've now got another Loki running around and causing mischief, or is he gone because of the timeline correcting itself in the end? Personally, I'm hoping for the former because while I do find permanent deaths important in a story, can you imagine how amazing it would be to see both Thor and Loki directed by James Gunn in Guardians 3? Oh sorry, Asguardians of the Galaxy? I can't. That's how big the potential is! Also, it'd explain Disney+'s upcoming Loki series.

As with every time travel plot, there are a lot of plot holes and confusions, more-so than in Infinity War, and that can be distracting for a lot of people. Everyone jumping back and forth, saying this and that in the most confusing science babble, saying this happened and that is going to happen and... it makes for a bit of a messy second act, albeit a fun one. As someone who has watched every single MCU film, it provided a great excuse to congratulate and reward me for checking out all 22 movies, with references and callbacks and (a few too many) repeated scenes, like watching Quill dance or the Battle of New York.

"Cry havoc and let slip the raccoons of war (machine)!"

The first act is a very different story, straightforward and downright depressing, but in the best possible way. I think we were all surprised to see Thanos, our main villain, get axed off in the opening scenes, and instead of the celebration we hoped for, we instead got a parade of change and inner conflict, which can often be the best kind for a character. Thor became a fat drunk, which is both a hilarious visual and a tragic outcome for someone so handsome and mighty. Bruce Banner fused with the Hulk to create a motion-capture beast with the intelligence of Mark Ruffalo and the dabbing cringe of a hipster celebrity. Black Widow became the de facto leader of the remaining Avengers, Captain America was in charge of a support group, Rocket and Nebula were hanging out, and Clint Barton became Ronin, a Punisher-like assassin who definitely could have had a film all on his own. Ronin was just that interesting.

Admittedly, some of these scenes do drag a little as we watch every single person be sad and different, but the strong performances by everyone involved and the fact we've gotten to know these characters so well over the years does help to keep the investment. And like most of the films, Endgame knows when to include a touch of levity and humour to keep the drama from crushing us and bringing everyone down. And it helps make the third act all the more cathartic, seeing these heroes finally rise up and destroy the almighty Thanos at the top of his game.

"WILSON! I'M SORRY, WILSON!"

Speaking of which, OH MY GOD WHAT A FINALE. If I was a nitpicky bastard, I could probably launch a tirade about countless little problems, but from Thanos launching his missiles to the end credits, I have very little to protest. Thor wielding two hammers at once, Captain America being worthy enough to wield Mjolnir in amazing fashion, Thanos destroying the shield and speeching out his evilness, that shot of Cap walking towards the army as if he's going to fight them all no matter what... "Avengers Assemble!"

All of it is gorgeous to look at, well-written, impressively crafted, and an absolute treat in every way, from the sound of Iron Man's lasers and Thor's thunder, to the crush of Obsidian Cull under Giant-Man's boot for trying to mess with the heroes, to the final snap and fading away of the titan. It's a battle scene like no other, which is impressive because you'd think I'd be rolling my eyes at yet another army fight in a movie. Even the scene of the women assembling, which is admittedly a bit forced that they all could meet up on the battlefield, feels deserved since we've seen these characters for so long. And how the only Avenger who had died in the film so far was the only woman....

Actually, that is an annoyance of mine. We lost Black Widow! I loved her, and I was ready for her film, but now she's dead? Gone, just like that? It was a fine death, sure, but it was also unfair and cruel to such an endearing character, and absolutely heartbreaking for Clint and us. Especially since the only other girl in the group at the time, Nebula, got a pretty horrible treatment as well with being left behind and tortured. The guys definitely had a better time for most of the scenes.

Even as a Titan beats the shit out of him, Captain America's teeth are damn perfect.

Iron Man's death was bittersweet, and a perfect farewell to a perfect performance by Robert Downey Jr, who was the face of the Infinity Saga, and the one who made Iron Man, the original MCU movie that made all of this possible, such a hit. When you see everyone saying goodbye or standing at his funeral, you know they're thankful for both his sacrifice, and for creating a future for Marvel. He died, but he died willingly and proudly for his family, and he was finally able to enjoy the sleep that's been avoiding him for half a decade. He can rest now.

That scene with Happy Hogan, played by Iron Man director Jon Favreau, as he discussed cheeseburgers with Morgan Stark... Yeah, that got me.

Of course, the other big ending that I loved was Captain America's, with Steve Rogers finally going back to Peggy Carter and living out his days happily. He finally got to dance with her, passed the shield to someone else, and was happy. I was so sure going in that he was going to die, but I think Endgame made the right choice. And is it just me, or did you also think Bucky knew exactly what Steve was going to do during that hug? I think he knew.

I've never been so conflicted over a never-happening ship in my life.

Weirdly enough, for all the hubbub about her finally being alongside the Avengers, we didn't get a lot of Captain Marvel. She showed up at the start in a helpful way, left the story, got a smoking hot haircut, then came back to Earth to help fight Thanos. And while it was awesome to see her take on a titanic headbutt without even flinching, I admit to disappointment overall, for two major reasons. One is obvious; She's not very fun. She stood there, grumpy and deadly, and scowled everyone into silence when they did a quip or wanted answers, as if nobody was allowed to talk to her or ask questions.. I was reminded of how much of a buzzkill Gamora used to be, and it really creates a void between Carol Danvers and everyone else when she's not joining in for both the good and the bad, standing above them rather than with them. The second problem I have with her is that she might currently have the title of "Strongest Avenger", and it doesn't feel earned. The MCU has done an amazing job of building-up Scarlet Witch, Thor or the Hulk as the strongest character, and it's a bit demeaning to see someone come in after literally one film, to take control, and be marketed like she's the best of the best. I had the same problem with Vision when he first appeared in Age of Ultron.

Speaking of the strong, I admit to some disappointment involving Bruce Banner. Professor Hulk is not only a wonderful idea that fits perfectly into what Bruce could or should be, but it also provides a hilarious image and helps to separate this group of weirdos even more from other movies out there. Hulk dabbing? That's so cringeworthy, that I'm actually impressed. However, I would have loved to have seen the transformation from Bruce to Professor Hulk, but that scene itself is one of many that had to be sacrificed due to time. And we never saw Hulk regain his courage to fight Thanos, did we? He got destroyed in Infinity War, and I was begging to see HULK SMASH PUNY THANOS in some way for revenge. In fact, is Hulk dead? We know he and Bruce were two different people, but I didn't see any hint of Hulk's personality in Endgame, so... he might be dead. Hopefully he isn't, because not only do I want more Hulk, but this seems like a perfect opportunity to include a certain supervillain known as Maestro...

We've seen Quill and Groot dance. Personally, I say Guardians 3 should have Nebula dance to the opening!

The last major character worth talking about is Thanos. Nobody saw Thanos being killed off that quickly, and I admittedly was very worried. All that drama, tension, pain and suffering, gone in less than ten minutes? When the film revealed they're going for the version of Thanos from the past, I wondered how this Thanos could ever compare to Infinity War's Thanos, and feared a watering down of the franchise's best villain, but I was glad to be proven wrong. Instead of focusing on the emotional heart and reasoning that Infinity War gave us, we were treated to the full villainous side. The side we wanted to see get destroyed. Instead of Thanos telling us why he's doing all this and how he's right, we instead saw Thanos grab a massive weapon and absolutely destroy that shield, blasting everyone out of his way, and being an absolute nightmare. Thanos was motivated before. Now, he's terrifying, and both of them work, especially since these films are technically the same story and should be treated as such. And honestly, I'm quite relieved to see him dissolve into dust, rather than get the happy ending from the comics. What a nice touch of him accepting his fate before he disappeared too.

Avengers; Endgame is not perfect, but it was never going to be. As soon as you introduce time travel, you open yourself up to a whole world of plotholes and contrivances, but the ride is so much fun and everything is so well-done that I couldn't care less about a few errors. I teared up, I cheered, I gasped, my heart raced... I had every emotion I want a film to make me feel, and I can't praise this film enough for it's writing, development and delivery in every scene. A cathartic, rewarding experience that is on its way to dethrone James Cameron's Avatar, and one that made me proud that I watched this entire franchise from start to end.

Now, bring on the DOOM SAGA! (Please?)

Film Rating: 9/10

Best Part: The entire third act.

Worst Part: Some time travel gobbledegook.

Best Performance: Robert Downey Jr as Tony Stark/Iron Man & Chris Evans as Steve Rogers/Captain America.

Shiggins:[Admin]
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Born under the stars of the Dark Gods, Shiggins owns the power of the Great Eye and is utterly magnificent in his omniscience. If you dare to discover more about someone as great as him, then go ahead. And to all my friends and family members, YOU are wrong and I should be disappointed! Not the other way round!,. You can find out about him or ask him stuff on ask.fm/shigginsishere or go to his tumblr page http://otakugajeel.tumblr.com/