A Reel Review - AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR

Here is an unbreakable axiom; the final chapter of a story needs to be a culmination of all preceding chapters…where every character, threat, and situation is justified in having a purpose and effect on the ending. Marvel’s unprecedented 19^th film, AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR, is the beginning of the final chapter, and has the massive task of making a decade’s worth of films count.

Thanos (Josh Brolin), and his gang of murderers (Tom Vaughan-Lawlor, Terry Notary, Carrie Coon, Michael James Shaw), begin collecting the powerful Infinity Stones, which will give him the power to wipe out half the life in the universe. The Avengers, Earth’s mightiest heroes, have been broken up, but encounter the threats in all different locations. Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Spider-Man (Tom Holland), and Dr. Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) travel to the far reaches of the galaxy, while Captain America (Chris Evans), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen), Vision (Paul Bettany), Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), and Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman) fight off the threat on Earth. Meanwhile, Thor (Chris Hemsworth), encounters the Guardians of the Galaxy (Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Pom Klementieff, Bradley Cooper), and search for the only weapon to kill Thanos.

The structure of INFINTY WAR is built like a WWII film of old; where a large-scale war is fought out on several different fronts. The effects of the preceding chapter, CIVIL WAR, are still being felt…as the Avengers are fractured, broken up, and barely on speaking terms. The threat of Thanos, his army, and his evil thugs doesn’t quite bring Earth’s Mightiest back together, but instead has them dealing with the bad guys on their own in different parts of the planet and in space.

There is a lot of ground to cover here, and directors Joe and Anthony Russo are up to the task. The film blazes from location to location, fighting battle after battle, picking up more information and characters as it goes along. The separate “teams” that the Avengers find themselves in drives the film, and the distinct personalities we’ve come to know and love over the years have plenty of room to collide, clash, and fight together in fascinating ways. There isn’t a lot of time to dig in and explore characters, but the rest is so strong it’s not really a problem.

While digging in isn’t on the menu, letting heroes be heroes is. The Russo’s let these characters do what they do best in their punching, flying, kicking, blasting, and swinging…and every scene is a joy. There is a lot of reliance on the characters’ past histories, and while anyone who comes into this cold may be confused (why would you begin with final chapter?), there is a tremendous payoff to be had as nearly every Marvel film comes into play here. It’s an astounding achievement.

Once the fighting kicks in there is a lot to enjoy. The battles are a thrill, and the might of Thanos gets stronger as he collects the stones…and even after a decade of Marvel superhero movies, it’s difficult to imagine just how our heroes will come out on top here. Thanos, who has been hinted at and peeked at several times over the years, arrives with a bang and takes his rightful place as the villain we’ve been waiting for. He’s powerful and ruthless, but most importantly, his motivations are clear and interesting, and one could make the argument that his reasons for wiping out half the life in the universe are actually on the side of the right.  

With such a large cast, the Russo’s have their work cut out in giving the actors space to express their characters. Robert Downey Jr. has great chemistry with Tom Holland, Benedict Cumberbatch, and eventually Chris Pratt, and gets some heavy lifting to do. Also getting an emotional arc is Zoe Saldana and she handles it very well. Chris Evans as Captain America is different from the Cap we’ve seen in previous films, and time-wise he feels a little short-changed here. Josh Brolin rules the film as Thanos, and expresses an incredible character despite the CGI covering. There are also a ton of small cameos, along with one whopper that is sure to stop some hearts.

And speaking of heart-stopping, the finale of INFINITY WAR offers a cardiac-arrest moment which will leave fans staggering out of the theatre and re-define the genre of superhero films. It’s a bold and ambitious decision which leaves only a few standing…and while Thanos believes the selection of who lives and who dies is random, the film gives hints here and there that it may not be; there is something even bigger at work yet to come. With that, this final chapter begins as an astounding piece of entertainment and storytelling. It’s vast stage, and ability to go from pulse-pounding action to tears to laughs to holy-shit-did-that-just-happen moments elevate it from its superhero genre. And we still have one more to go.

BOTTOM LINE: See it