Well, let's talk spoilers since this is a spoiler review and if you haven't seen the movie yet go see it you do not want to be spoiled trust me you don't now leave. For those who have seen the film, stick around!
Let's start by talking about one of the film's biggest surprises; Thanos dying in the first 10 minutes. I was in a state of disbelief when they actually did it. I didn't know what they'd do for the rest of the film. Would there be a main antagonist at all? Would there by another, even more serious threat? It was perhaps the most surprising part of the film for me, because killing off the character who was the main character of the last movie is so bold, but it worked. It set up a feeling of hopelessness found throughout the first act that I loved. The characters go through some minor changes, such as Cap not feeling hopeful as always and Thor's new, um, look (We'll get to that in a bit), but the character that I really like what they did with here was surprisingly Black Widow. Scarlett Johansson did an excellent job portraying Natasha's need to help people, but knowing she can't, at least not fully. This is easily the best Black Widow has been in a movie, and that says a lot, considering how much I enjoyed her role in The Winter Soldier. Robert Downey, Jr. also pulled off arguably his best performance as Tony Stark, particular in the scene when he comes back to Earth and he faces off against Cap. Downey pulled off Stark's anger to absolute perfection, and it's one of the best acted MCU scenes I've seen to date, and possibly even the best. Basically everything from the first act was great and a solid set-up for what was to come.
My only real problem with it was the pacing, which made some things feel rushed, particularly Clint's turn from Hawkeye into Ronin, which wasn't really developed that much and I wished they delved into that further. Still, that scene where he takes down all those guys in Japan in one take was really well done, and reminded me of the Russo Brother's first Marvel movie, The Winter Solider. It felt more violent and realistic than many Marvel action set pieces, like that film, and if it had a sequel with Hawkeye in it similar to it, I could see this scene being in the film.
Anyway, let's get to the second act, the part that worried me the instant I heard they were doing it; Time travel. This is something I did not want to see incorporated into the film ever since it was rumored back even before Infinity War came out. The thing is I love the way they do it in this movie. I like the idea that time travel can't change the past, but rather it only creates a new future for the people who visit it. Apparently, this is how it was done in the comics at some point (I don't read comics, so I can't say), and it's a unique way to do time travel. It also doesn't erase the previous movies, which would make the build-up to this movie feel irrelevant and kind of pointless, and several of the great movies that took place before Endgame would either be erased or altered drastically. This also leads to some of the best scenes in the movie, like Cap vs. Cap, which, while brief, was super fun and well-choreographed. In this brief scene, it was interesting to see the older, more jaded Captain America face off against his pre-Winter Soldier self (I know I've referenced that movie multiple times now, but it's one of my favorite MCU movies), and see the differences between them, which was apparent in pretty obvious ways.
My favorite scene in the second act however was the interaction between Thor and his mother. His was something I was not expecting, and it made the whole "Fat Thor" idea worth it. I liked his arc of falling from grace and learning he still be worthy because 1. It makes sense for his character, because he went through hell throughout Ragnarok and Infinity War and 2. It was different for his character in the best way possible. His character in this film has been extremely divisive, with praise and hate going in both directions, and I understood the hate on my first watch, However, on my second watch, I realized that this was the best way to take his character because he would've gone through a PTSD-type scenario and not want to do much in the way of hero work. It really was a wonderful arc and it lead to this great moment on old Asgard. This felt like he was saying goodbye to his old life and realizing he was meant to do something other than rule Asgard.
One other scene that stuck with me was the scene where Cap and Tony go to the 1970s and Tony sees his father. That scene felt like his character's arc was finally concluding, and in a smooth and brilliant way. I didn't expect them to pull Howard Stark into the film, but I liked how they did it and the scene itself had great dialogue and acting. I'm glad they put that in the movie.
Now, let's talk about the major death in this second act, that being that of Black Widow. When I first saw the movie, I was mixed on her dying because, while I thought the scene was very effective, I would've preferred if Hawkeye had died. After my last viewing, I understood it better, because it was important for Hawkeye's character to understand he can bring back his family, but that's a cause for sacrifice. I could see this playing a big role for his character in the rumored Hawkeye Disney+ show, where he trains the next Hawkeye. Just a thought.
Okay, now let's talk about that final battle and just the last hour in general. No matter what you thought about the rest of the film, you have to admit this last hour was glorious. The start of it was already great, with the "Big three" taking on Thanos, and especially when Cap gets to wield Mjolnir, which made me want to stand up and clap and I yelled an audible "Oh!" when that happened and other people did the same when I saw it opening weekend. It reminded me of the scene in Star Wars: The Force Awakens when Rey grabs the Skywalker lightsaber, and that's a good thing, because I had a similar reaction to that scene.
And then, all the heroes come back. This scene gave me all the chills. The imagery of these two massive armies coming together and colliding is amazing, and the way everyone comes in is great, and I'll admit a got real close to tearing up when that happened. The music, all the great characters, and just the pure scope was all to much to take in at once. And then Cap yells the line (You know, THE LINE) and the movie becomes absolutely insane in the best way possible. The action and FX in this scene are off the charts insane. I don't even know how to describe it. I guess it's like comic book nerd heaven, and I'm 100% for it. It was just insane and wonderful and emotional all at the same time.
It all ends perfectly with Tony Stark's sacrifice. The scene where you realize just how much Thanos would effect the Avengers, and that this movie was willing to kill the character that started it all. That scene where he sees Peter, Rhodey, and Pepper for the last time was so beautiful and well done. That scene was great, but the scene that got me going was between Happy Hogen and Tony's daughter where Happy sees he'll get her all the cheeseburgers she wants was the part that got me most. Maybe it was the fact that Tony actually died had sunk in at that point or the call back to the first Iron Man movie delivered by that film's director, I don't quite know, but either way, it was beautiful.
The ending that's left many people polarized was the very last scene in the movie where Steve comes back as an old man and gives his shield to Sam. This was polarizing not for the end of Cap's arc, which I believe we can all agree that it was the perfect way to end his story, but rather by how did he get there and back and he gave the shield to Sam rather than Bucky. With the first point, in the scene in the 1970s, he gets four Pym Particles rather than the two needed to get back to 2023. Seems pretty self-explanatory, especially considering the fact he's wanted to live a life with Peggy. The other point I entirely understand, however. Sam getting the shield was something unexpected, but there seems to be reason for it. Bucky has been seen as a terrorist and a murderer before, so that probably wouldn't be the best image for the Captain America title. Sam has shown to be loyal and good to the general people, so it makes sense on the level. However, it would make more emotional sense for Cap to give it to Bucky, since he's his best friend, but maybe it will make more sense once I see it in the films.
Alright, now that I've covered the main points I wanted to discuss above, here are some other points I wanted to talk about, but didn't know where to fit above.
- Nebula had a lot of screen time in this movie. I believe this is the most screen time she's ever had in an MCU movie to date, and her arc was one of the most compelling to me. This was a surprise to be sure, but a welcome one that made me really like this character. I'm excited to see what they're going to do with this character in the future.
- Really enjoyed Hulk here. The effects on him were excellent, and you could tell Mark Ruffalo was having the time of his life playing this new Professor Hulk. I liked the awkward humor he brought to the role, and his scene with the Ancient One was really cool. Not much else to say, just really like what they did with him.
- Don't understand why Captain Marvel was in this movie. Remove her from the film and literally nothing changes expect for Tony escaping, which could've easily been switched to him and Nebula repairing the Benatar and escaping. She didn't add much, and Brie Larson seemed plenty bland acting wise.
- I wonder if Loki was actually the rat that let Ant-Man escape the Quantum Realm. Perhaps we'll see that in the Loki series? I don't know, I just wanna know what happened to that Loki after he escaped with the Tesseract.
- Ant-Man really was a fun addition to the film. The scene where he sees his daughter older was emotional, and he added a nice amount of levity to the film that made me laugh pretty hard at points (That's America's ass!).
- The scene in the elevator with Cap and all the people from Winter Soldier was a fun throwback. It was worth just to hear Cap say, "Hail Hydra". Man, Cap did get a lot of the best fan service moments, didn't he?
I believe that's it for my thoughts. This is a 3 hour long film, and there's a lot to say about it, even for a movie its length. I'm sure I missed something, but those are all the points I felt a need to discuss, and that's all I have to say about that. Bye.
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