Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Review

181min

Genre:      Comic-book, Action, Adventure, Fantasy

Directors:  Anthony Russo and Joe Russo

Cast:        Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson…more

Writers:    Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely, Stan Lee… and more

-Synopsis-

Still reeling and unable to move on from the finger-snapping, universe-contracting events of ‘Infinity War’, a group of disparate and very changed surviving ‘Avengers’ turn to a desperate last-ditch effort—a daring caper through space and time to undo what cannot be undone—setting up a final fateful clash with the mad purple Titan while risking making things even worse.

SPOILER ALERT!: Given the nature of this film and its global cultural impact, we’ll try to avoid too many specifics about story and character, but will have to divulge something or the other about its main narrative path . . . and yes you guessed it, it’s time travel.

Just over a decade after the rebirth of His Downeyness and a special suit helped to unleash a daring ‘cinematic universe’ project, flawless formula and ambitious Marvel master plan which would change the face of superhero film, not to mention revolutionise the very concept of blockbuster filmmaking for an entire industry (for better or worse)—Marvel Studios, their president Kevin Feige and directors Joe and Anthony Russo return with one of the most anticipated films in modern history, coming full-circle in the MCU and delivering the most epic of swansongs for its original players.

There’s a reason why the final film of the MCU’s ‘Phase 3’ and the culmination of their first generation of films (or Infinity Saga) is a daunting three-hour affair—after all, there’s just so much to do. Not only must it deal with the epic events of ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ and payoff the enormous cliffhanger with which it left us, but must also pay tribute to its galaxy of beloved stars, while delivering an appropriately grandiose emotional rounding-off of twenty-two films, and a decade of global audience investment in this game-changing movie experiment.

This cinematic goliath is truly the definition of epic, and about as big as blockbuster filmmaking gets these days, both living up to ‘saga’ moniker and re-defining it. Yet given the ten years of spectacle and movie magic which led up to last year’s first part of a two part ending in ‘Infinity War’, ‘Avengers: Endgame’ is ironically slightly anticlimactic—but fear not, this is about the most ambitious and glorious anticlimax you’re likely to witness.

‘Avengers: Endgame’ really is a stunning canvas of visuals and emotions, coming off like an enormous live-action comic-book or mighty volume of a graphic novel, trading in real pathos and sombre self-reflection to great effect (for the most part), no mean feat for a broad superhero film this big and with this many moving parts. All of which underlines its credentials as multi-billion dollar character drama about trauma, loss, grief, and the impossibility of truly moving on . . . or finding closure—all revolving around perhaps the most titanic cast ever assembled.

But fear not, Marvel has not loss its sense of fun, quite the opposite in fact, injecting the comedic sensibilities of its more recent films and delivering bags enormously entertaining action and plenty of gut-busting humour—and if you think ‘Thor: Ragnarok’ changed the way you looked at ‘Thor’ and ‘The Hulk’ forever . . . you ain’t seen nothing yet. Indeed everyone gets their time in the sun in what is surely the biggest ensemble movie ever made, but if you’re looking to spend plenty of time with your favourite new Avengers you might be slightly disappointed, as ‘Endgame’ is more of a swansong for the oldies, placing them as the beating heart of the piece.

As you might expect the latest and biggest film in the MCU delivers a gargantuan spectacle to add to the unexpected emotional gravitas, proving every inch a feast for the ears and eyes, beautifully formatted for IMAX if you get the chance to experience it. It features wonderfully choreographed action sequences and fulfils the comedic promise of your favourite superheroes travelling through time, giving us a satisfying but balanced nostalgia fix, all vividly captured by cinematographer Trent Opaloch (District 9, Captain America: Civil War) and headily scored by the great Alan Silvestri (Back to the Future, The Avengers).

It’s a testament to the scale of the cinematic achievement here that ‘Avengers: Endgame’ ultimately conquers all despite having arguably the most compromised narrative of all the Avengers films, if not the entire MCU. Given the epic and unpredictable events of ‘Infinity War’, and its finger-snapping dusty conclusion—which most people figured was a red herring as it was happening—‘Endgame’ starts the game with a weak hand and proves slightly predictable.

Like all films or series which trade in time travel when it’s not the sole focus of narrative, ‘Endgame’ stumbles over plot holes and leaves too many loose ends, opening up too many possibilities but exploring only a few, while passing it all off by self-referentially discarding the movie time travel lore which came before. And by making time travel just so damn easy and accessible, it opens a Pandora’s box in the MCU that cannot be so easily closed without feeling lazy or opportunistic—and simply knowing it’s now an option puts the emotional gravitas of what has come before, and what’s yet to come at risk.

Yet all the troublesome but understandable narrative choices—and a plot which couldn’t really have gone any other way—are elevated to the stratosphere by the myriad of qualities at play here, and the masterful conducting of the Russos, as they leverage a decade of personal investment in these globally beloved heroes to put both the characters and the audience through the emotional ringer, while dealing them a fate designed to break our hearts. All-in-all an epic and potentially global record-breaking conclusion to the Infinity Saga and Marvel’s Phase 3, plus a self-reflective and fitting tribute to one of the most ambitious and successful cinematic experiments of all time . . . and the few who started it all.

The Bottom Line…

A triumphant blend of mind-bending spectacle, humour, emotion and genuine pathos, ‘Avengers: Endgame’ delivers an epic cinematic balancing act from Marvel and the Russo brothers which should not be possible with a film of this nature and scale, overwhelming any and all narrative limitations while crossing the emotional t’s and dotting the i’s, memorably riding the Avengers as we’ve known them off into the sunset—but leaving us all asking the same question . . . what now?

Similar films you may like (Home Video)

Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)

The world’s greatest Superheroes reunite to protect the Earth from the menace of a rogue A.I. program that threatens humanity as we know it, as ‘The Avengers’ combat the powerful ‘Ultron’ and his super-recruits they will have to face the consequences of past actions which threaten to destroy the team and doom humanity to extinction.

Directed by Joss Whedon and starring Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson and Chris Evans among others.

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