Kevin's Watch

Posted: **Sun May 06, 2012 3:47 am**

Fist and Faith wrote:
Orlion wrote:
Spoiler
Thanos!
Really?? I was wondering what the threat was. I hope he's half as good as he has been at his best in the comics.

Spoiler

He's only in a post-credit scene, so don't get too excited... yet...

Posted: **Sun May 06, 2012 4:16 am**

My son and I just got back from it and LOVED it!!!!

Get thee to a cinema!

Doc

Posted: **Sun May 06, 2012 6:38 pm**

hope to go this week.

Posted: **Sun May 06, 2012 9:15 pm**

OH

MY

GOD

!!!!!!!!!

THAT WAS AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!

Posted: **Sun May 06, 2012 9:57 pm**

AWESOME! Joss Whedon is a genius. And, it was so great the see Hollywood FINALLY get the Hulk right!

Posted: **Sun May 06, 2012 11:31 pm**

dlbpharmd wrote:AWESOME! Joss Whedon is a genius. And, it was so great the see Hollywood FINALLY get the Hulk right!

The Hulk parts were fantastic.
Everything was fantastic.
It's like.......people who enjoyed the comics ACTUALLY made the movie.
Is that possible?

One of the best movies I've ever seen.

Posted: **Mon May 07, 2012 2:24 am**

Mr. Whedon is, indeed, a fan of comic books and not some supposedly hot-shot director that might have read one or two back in high school. Although I am not normally a fan of his--I never watched his TV shows--I do recognize that he is skilled in the director's chair and a really good director can turn an otherwise bad movie into something worth seeing. Since he also had a hand in the screenplay, his knowledge of comic books translated into the script and storyboard.

Finally, and this is another big part of what makes a movie good, is that the actors liked the characters they were playing.

So...all the right elements were in place--the correct director, the correct screenwriters, the correct actors--and these elements came together to produce synergy. The end result is a very good movie--probably the best superhero movie made to date, outshining Spiderman, X-Men, and Batman: The Dark Knight--and the new king of the opening weekend (the numbers normally tracked here cite United States ticket sales), weighing in at $200.3 million. I know that it has made over $600 million worldwide and is well on track to be a billion-dollar movie before its run is over.

The balance is right--no character is featured more than any others although we do get more background and insight into Black Widow and Hawkeye, both heretofore relatively unknown.

Some people might find a disconnect between the two Hulk movies and the Hulk as portrayed here. This is easily explained--the application of Dr. Stern's "reversal" formula from The Incredible Hulk had some sort of calming effect on the Hulk's brain/personality and Banner has been the Hulk for years now, thus giving him time to adjust to the change and how to retain some higher brain function while in that state.

Further speculation on my part would spoil too much and that I will not do.

Posted: **Mon May 07, 2012 3:39 am**

Hashi Lebwohl wrote:outshining ... Batman: The Dark Knight

Posted: **Mon May 07, 2012 3:51 am**

A fair assessment, Hashi. Whedon did good this time, though I would never call him genius... because my default position of him is that he's a twat. However, he does love his comic books, and is probably more familiar with how such a story ought to work than in his other projects.

I liked the why Bannor/Hulk were portrayed in this film. I think it was better than how Edward Norton portrayed him. In fact, I hear that Marvel Studios is seriously considering doing a Hulk sequel with Ruffalo as the Hulk because of the positive reaction to his portrayal in the Avengers. More Hulk movies can only be a good thing... for now

Better than the Dark Knight, though? I don't know. It is by far the most entertaining of all the comic book movies, but I wouldn't call it the better movie. Dark Knight has soul, meat, etc. The Avengers is 'merely' a well done comic book movie. Which, of course, might be why it was done right, no one was trying to make it into anything else.

Posted: **Mon May 07, 2012 10:16 am**

Whedon isn't just a comic fan. He wrote as well. No, it wasn't ever his career, but he did a couple years of the X-Men, plus some other stuff.

Posted: **Mon May 07, 2012 1:52 pm**

Let's be realistic--The Dark Knight wasn't really about Batman/Bruce Wayne at all, that movie was 100% Heath Ledger Joker. The problem here, which is the same problem in every Joker story, is that the plot is too contrived, even for a comic book character. *shrug*

I have to admit that I would enjoy seeing a dialogue between the Joker and Hannibal Lecter.

Posted: **Wed May 09, 2012 4:34 am**

So, am I the first here to see the movie who has not followed the majority of the comics, and most of the back story I have is based on the previous films? And only the two Iron Man and Thor, at that?

This film made me feel there was a lot of back story I didn't know. Maybe I would have been more in the know if I had seen Captain America, but since I didn't, I could only go on what was presented here. The story was told well enough, but I am sure there was much which flew over my head.

The theater was really hot, which was unusual. They are usually freezing. Fortunately, I had an arm around me and a chest to lean my head on to doze off during some of the extended fight scenes I had no interest in. Otherwise, not a bad action film. Just still not my favorite genre.

Posted: **Sun May 13, 2012 1:13 am**

Saw it today, and yes, it's probably the best big superhero movie so far. With the large cast and so much going on at once through most of it, it really should have turned out to be a mess like X-Men 3, so a lot of credit is due to the writers and director for pulling it off so well.

Posted: **Tue May 15, 2012 3:07 pm**

Watched Avengers last night and it was a fantastic experience. I had read countless reviews and was tracking the box office regularly while expecting all along that I would finally see the film on the second weekend after some of the traffic died down. Never the less I watched the film in with a capacity crowd.

I see the points that negative critics have made about the first half of the film though I wasn't bothered by any of that. I was engrossed from the first to the last (including both extra scenes). I can't remember feeling so thoroughly entertained by a film experience in a very long time.

Now I'm counting the days until the bluray is available.

It's all good. IMHO.

Posted: **Tue May 15, 2012 8:38 pm**

Saw it over the weekend.. Loved it!!!!

Posted: **Tue May 15, 2012 10:01 pm**

I guess I'll have to see this movie next weekend. Then I'll weigh in with a comparison with TDK.

Posted: **Sun May 20, 2012 2:25 pm**

Decent movie. Nothing special. Fun summer blockbuster. I thought TDK and Spiderman II were much better. I made absolutely no emotional connection with any of these "cartoon" characters. Beginning was boring. Iron Man was funny. Hulk smashed.

Wish I'd waited for the Blu-ray and saved $50.

Posted: **Mon May 21, 2012 3:23 pm**

Watched Avengers for the second time and am convinced it is the most complete comic book superhero film ever made. Unlike its darker cousins that tend to have more in common with gangster crime dramas than superhero genre films, Avengers takes the characters from the comics and does the best job yet translating them to live action form along with the environments and action comic book fans enjoy. There is genuine fun not just brooding, angst and suffering.
I didn't go back to watch Avengers a second time to be shocked or depressed I did it to feel an almost surreal joy and that's exactly what I got...again.
I may not go back a third time but rest assured I can't wait until September to get the bluray.

Posted: **Mon May 21, 2012 5:10 pm**

I've been thrice, and am now awaiting the blu-ray release. Great movie, done just right. I'm already a fan, so they didn't really have to work hard, but I'm glad they did.

For those interested in other Joss Whedon forays into comic books, I suggest queueing "The Astonishing Xmen" up on Netflix. It's a quick series of 12 minute mini-episodes. It's 'motion comics', which really never caught me as a great genre choice. However, the Whedon dialogue makes up for the general lack of pizzazz in the medium, and the whole thing is over before you lose interest in the visual aspect of it. That, and they finally get Emma Frost right.
[I enjoyed the 'Xmen: First Class' movie overall, but was not a huge fan of the portrayal of Emma Frost done therein]

Posted: **Fri May 25, 2012 3:58 am**

Saw The Avengers a few days ago, loved every second of it. I don't think it really bears comparison to The Dark Knight, it was completely different in tone and purpose. I don't have one negative thing to say about The Avengers, and that's pretty remarkable.

I particularly enjoyed the rapport between Tony Stark and Bruce Banner. Stark got all the funniest lines, but the Hulk's (minor spoiler)

Spoiler

"Puny god"

bit was great as well.