The Avengers

The idea that the film avoids the need to expose itself as a savage, because it will count on viewers familiar with previous films, is completely odd - firstly, a brief exposition of Hawkeye and Natasha is needed, secondly, guys need to compare their steel / divine cocks and find out who has the bigger one... we'll spend about half of the film doing that, and when everyone slaps each other and Captain America teaches us that there's only one God, there's finally a team event. As to how many minutes have passed, it cannot be said that we have complete information about who, what, why and for how much, but once Whedon starts to bend steel in tons and have one shot more spectacular than the last, it actually doesn’t matter. In addition, the characters start spewing one-liners (which unfortunately is a bit worse with the Czech dubbing), the Captain is a little annoying (a little so he can still appear as the good guy) and The Avengers offers exactly why people go and see "Marvel" films. A ballbusting hero party, legible, clear, polished and heavy on tone. You may miss the fact that the whole story is actually a tragically mechanical acceptance of "classical invasive awkwardness" without a fundamental contribution to the mythology of the heroes. The other half is simply pure pleasure from the enormously pompous spectacle. But I still can't shake the impression that nothing happened for half of the film and that we don't know anything more about the characters than before. I am inclined to think that Whedon did the work through careful maneuvering. The entertainment is decent, but as a separate fictional world, it doesn't make much sense - what the first Iron Man and partly Thor were able to do simply shrunk to an exhibition match of stars full of skills competitions. Edit: when I remember the meaty second half and how I also gave Battleship 3 ***, I capitulate and improve my rating :-) [75%] (04/25/2012)

An entertaining team film whose success is primarily based on funny lines, interactions between the individual Avengers, and rich visual effects. What’s more, it’s no small bit of redemption that Captain America somehow feels more complete in the context of the Avengers, and that his character doesn't come across as comically as he did in The First Avenger. A viewer unfamiliar with the world of the MCU and its previous films need not despair, as The Avengers works quite well as a standalone film. That said, some familiarity with the previous films will certainly enhance the overall experience. If you have a close relationship with the Marvel universe, it's highly unlikely that you won't like The Avengers. From my perspective, it is a slightly overrated film, but that didn't keep me from giving it a fairly high rating, because it's simply entertaining. (07/11/2017)

Yes, the story is sterile and stale, the emotions non-existent and the pace of the narrative is rather erratic, inflated at the end into a charmless presentation of risk-free superhero action. But it doesn't matter, The Avengers is still the chosen one, a film that represents the most basic Marvel idea of colourful comic book characters quite perfectly and surgically accurate. All the clichés are deliberate, skilfully adapted to build an adequately simple plot that best suits this kind of team-ups and that doesn't unnecessarily distract from its primary intention: the entertaining interaction between the diverse heroes, the development of their relationship and the careful interplay with previous (and of course future) instalments of the Marvel Universe. It’s a great COMIC-BOOK movie, with utterly likeable archetypal characters, a charismatic villain, and effects like something out a fan's wildest wet dreams. It doesn't play on civility like Nolan, it plays only for the devoted fans of Tony Stark, Captain America, Thor or the Hulk, and in a perfectly balanced and precise way, as if all those legendary books suddenly came to life and took to the streets of Manhattan, without any questions or delays. The actors are without exception excellent, with the cherry on top in the form of the incredibly sexy Scarlett, before whom, as an enemy I would have knelt down on the spot and desperately cried "Capture me, Lord, capture me!" :)) 90% (05/24/2012)

The Avengers are getting better. The disappointment of the movie theatre is slowly but surely fading thanks to the DVD, and the only problems I really have are with the character of Hawkeye (or rather, his wooden performance) and the fact that the film wants to be endlessly breathtaking at times while making fun of itself, which is a strange game I haven't yet bought into. (05/14/2012)

I went to the 9:30 pm screening, after a very physically exhausting day, and I told myself that if this film manages to entertain me enough to keep me awake, I will give it five stars, and here they are. Now seriously: Avengers is a perfect blockbuster with great sense of humour, incredible chemistry between the characters and amazing action. If you are not looking for the brooding of Batman or the ambition of the Wachowskis (or anything “more”), and you only want good fun at the cinema, you can’t do better than this, it has no competition among the light summer blockbusters. And I’m saying this as someone who didn’t like too much the previous Marvel films and is also not a member of Whedon’s fan club. But there’s one little quibble: Next to the other superheroes, Black Widow and Hawkeye look so out of place and meek. And it’s also weird to see Auntie Robin in SHIELD’s control centre. Hulk/Banner rulez. (05/09/2012)