AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON - A Retro Review

The MCU's Phase Three kicks off this Friday (actually, Thursday evening) with 'Captain America: Civil War'. We here at PRC couldn't be more stoked about this movie, and we've been spending the last few weeks taking a look back at all the MCU movies that tie into 'Civil War'. Today's entry wraps up this look-back as we check out the climax of Phase Two, 'Avengers: Age of Ultron'.

You may have noticed by now that when I do these retro reviews, I tend to give some history on the project. Some backdrop for the lead-up and release of the movie. Sometimes it's just for color, sometimes it's tied directly to whatever my particular thesis for that critique is. This is a case of both, because this is not a strong movie, and maybe the expectations and demands put upon it played a part in that.

Following the runaway success of the first Avengers team-up, Marvel Studios had earned so much goodwill among its fanbase, that they could have done 'Avengers: Reading the Yellow Pages' and anticipation would still have been through the roof. Most people assumed that given his tease at the end of 'The Avengers', Thanos would be the main villain. However, in July 2013, MCU honcho Kevin Feige announced Joss Whedon was going to hold back on the Mad Titan, and pit the Earth's mightiest heroes against one of their deadliest foes - 'Avengers: Age of Ultron' was coming in Summer 2015.

Even though it was not a direct adaptation of 2012's comic arc of the same name, the fact that Ultron of the comics had just finished wiping out humanity sold him on die-hard fans as a worthy opponent for Earth's Mightiest Heroes. I don't think it's a stretch to say that this was one of the most anticipated movies of all time. The SDCC announcement and teaser footage was all but wiped from the internet, creating a sense of mystery and heightened demand for any glimpses of the film. When the first trailer hit, it broke YouTube records. The public thirst for all things Marvel reached fever pitch. Phase Three was announced nearly a year before Phase Two would even end. The hype could not have been bigger.

Then it was released. And for a while after 'Age of Ultron' came out, nobody wanted to admit the truth. For all the hope, the hype, the awesome trailers, the promise of a darker story with a nigh-invincible foe, the second Avengers film was just plain disappointing.

The initial response might have been to say to yourself "well, my expectations were just too high", and there's probably some truth to that. But there's another truth, too. It's just not a very good movie. It's not a wholly bad one either, but it damn sure isn't a good one.

There is something hollow and empty at the center of 'Age of Ultron'. From the opening sequence, the movie is almost too slick. The good guys toss around CGI bad guys in a way that makes everything seem more cartoonish than realistic, and is definitely a departure from the much more polished first film. So much is going on in nearly every frame of the opening battle that it is, at times, difficult to keep up with who's doing what to whom. There are shots of the Hulk and Iron Man that clearly look like unfinished work, and some rigging on Captain America that survived a digital eraser. Stuff like this makes the film feel rushed and slapped together.

And that, I think, points to a fundamental problem with this movie. Everything feels forced. The screenwriting is lazy and the story advances, whether or not it makes any sense at all. And unfortunately, it frequently make no sense. So the poor(ish, by Marvel standards) reception can't be blamed on too-high expectations. And if that's the case, then the blame must fall on director Joss Whedon. He wrote it, he directed it, all criticism is his. Maybe his heart wasn't in it, maybe he just ran out of ideas. But we'll get to his shortcomings in a little bit. For now, let's look at the story:

A would-be world conquerer, fueled by selfish rage, steals the film's macguffin, which turns out to be an infinity stone. There's a mid-movie squabble, in which the Hulk is out of control and must be subdued by one of his own teammates. A likeable supporting character is killed, and the villain has an army of paper soldiers that the Avengers must battle, but are not very tough. The primary villain has a plan for global domination that isn't terribly well thought out and has a glaring fatal flaw. Cap and Stark bicker until they get a pep talk from Nick Fury, put aside their differences, team up, and defeat the bad guy, with the help of a more in-control Hulk. Thanos shows up in the credits. Which Avengers movie am I talking about?

Even Ultron is confused by what he is.

While undeniably a retread, this story is advanced by the villainous robot Ultron (voiced by James Spader). Ultron is originally intended by Tony Stark and Bruce Banner to be a good guy, until he turns evil after he's given consciousness by...who exactly? The movie never stops to actually state that. Was it Stark and Banner? Was it the mind stone*? Aside from that, just what the hell does Ultron want? We're told very little about what his original purpose is, other than "global peacekeeping", but what does that entail? And once he's created, there are no growing pains. He is birthed, as it were, evil, with burning hatred for the Avengers, and Stark in particular. But no reason is ever really given for why he wants them all dead. And once that is done, then what? What is his endgame?

*unlike the tesseract (a.k.a. the space stone), which is more or less a key, the mind stone as a macguffin is much more problematic. Yes, I understand that it's a macguffin that is mostly just waiting around to be used during 'Infinity War', but still -  while it's ok to tease something for a future film, it's not ok to just flat out leave shit unexplained. Does the mind stone have a consciousness of its own? Does it have will? Did it create Ultron, or corrupt him? Why is Vision different from Ultron? Too many questions.

Ze twins.

Of course, Ultron is not the only character to suffer a lack of development. The Maximoff twins, Pietro (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and Wanda (Elizabeth Oslon) are, for two-thirds of the movie, painted as villains who team up with Ultron because of their vendetta against Tony Stark. But why? Because their parents were killed in a bombing and Stark Industries manufactured the bomb? That makes as much sense as someone who gets shot being angry at the bullet manufacturer. Once they figure out they're totally expendable to Ultron (because what bad guy ever really gives a shit about his henchmen?) they switch sides and help the Avengers. I guess their blood feud with Stark wasn't so deep, after all. The villain who kick starts the plot, Baron von Strucker (Thomas Kretschmann) may as well be just another faceless Hydra goon, as he only has a few minutes of screen time, and is killed off-screen (about which Stark has to make a joke) because...why?

I won't front. This was dope.

In addition to Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch, the Vision (Paul Bettany) is a new addition to the team, but with a personality and abilities so nebulous, all we are given to go on is the fact that he can wield Mjolnir. About that... I won't lie, that shit was badass, but still...he is an artificial being, with no soul. Or is he? Does he have a soul? How can he be worthy if he's just an android**? We should have seen Ultron trying to hold Mjolnir and failing, so we can know the rules. Even Stark and Cap concede Vision's ability to do so doesn't mean much. Without fully knowing what he is - man or machine.

**Far too often, the team uses the term AI to describe what Ultron is. And I'm by no means an AI expert, but I think they're still misusing the term. Do they mean artificial consciousness? Or just intelligence? It's actually important in the case of this movie for two reasons - Ultron has emotions that counter his logic and reason, and Vision can lift Mjolnir. They should at least discuss it for a minute. 

One of the bigger "why is this really necessary?" moments in the movie, the Hulkbuster sequence is wonderful fun. It's a geek's paradise, seeing Stark in his suit, taking on one of the most powerful beings in the Marvel Universe, and holding his own! Triumphing, even! And it goes on for just...far too long. Stark fights him instead of just trying to get him out of the city. The one time he does, Hulk escapes and Stark never tries again. And this is problematic within the course of the movie itself. 'Age of Ultron' goes out of it's way to show the Avengers attempting to protect civilians from the destruction their battles create, but at some point, it just becomes tedious to see them shuttling bystanders out of danger's way.

With so many unfinished ideas, I'm not convinced Whedon really knew what to do with this story. And far too many times, his fingerprints are visible in the clay, so to speak. You can tell when he just wanted to make a joke. Like Maria Hill's explanation of the twins; "He's fast and she's weird." Well, that's just...wildly unhelpful in explaining the powers of Scarlet Witch, and not the only time he opts for humor instead of clarification or exposition. And you can tell that he really wanted some kind of romantic angle to explore. In one of the least convincing character pairings I can think of, Black Widow and Hulk are in some kind of weird and painfully uncomfortable flirtation. Their chemistry is so non-existent, that Whedon has to rely on other characters actually pointing out that they're being romantic. And he's not incapable of doing it. In just a few moments, you buy Jeremy Renner and Linda Cardellini as a married couple. So why did things feel so wrong with Romanoff and Banner?

We know from various interviews and articles that Whedon really fought to keep Barton's family and home in the movie. This is a 16 minute sequence that grinds the movie to a halt and the purpose it serves is unclear. Yes, the Avengers need a place to lay low after Hulk's freakout and Scarlet Witch's mindfuckery, but what do they gain from going to Barton's home? Other than some knowledge they didn't previously have, none of them have any sort of epiphany, or reach any sort of conclusion that the farmhouse specifically provides. Whedon fought for it because he wanted it, because he liked it - not because it was a particularly good or creative idea. It could have happened anywhere.

There are two "rules" of writing I think about when I think about Whedon; one is that every sentence should either reveal your characters or advance the plot; the second is that you can't be afraid to kill your darlings. And so much of this film is just that - Whedon opting to go with what he likes over what best serves the story. Jokes over exposition, forced characterization that comes out of nowhere, unnecessary subplots. After production, he took not so subtle jabs at Marvel Studios, claiming studio interference, blaming them for forcing changes. But in the end, Joss Whedon is still responsible for the finished product. He can blame them all he likes, but he didn't walk away. Edgar Wright walked away from Ant-Man, Marvel wanted a more brand-friendly picture, and they got it from Peyton Reed. But Reed also delivered a solid movie. One can criticize 'Ant-Man' for being too similar to the plot of the original 'Iron Man', but it still works. 'The Force Awakens' is very similar to 'A New Hope', but it still works. A retread of old material can work, if you bring something unique, either to the plot, or to the characters. Whedon didn't do that. He held on to his darlings as tightly as he could, and he turned in a half-finished movie. And that is why it doesn't work.


FINAL SCORE - 6/10

Captain America and most of the Avengers will be seen starting tomorrow night in the insanely anticipated kick off to Phase Three of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, 'Avengers 2.5 - The Stark Knight'...I mean, 'Captain America: Civil War'. Shit looks tight, yo.

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER - A Retro Review

We're now one week away from the US release of 'Captain America: Civil War' and to celebrate this highly anticipated superhero smashup, let's take a look back at the best film in the MCU - 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier'

Spoilery Alert - This movie came out two years ago, so there actually may be a few of you who haven't seen it. Well, that's still your fault, because it's damn good, but whatever. You're warned. Spoilers are mentioned all up in hurr. 


Prior to the release of 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier', Phase 2 of the MCU had gotten off to a rocky start; 'Iron Man Three' was a disaster, 'Thor: The Dark World' lacked much of the fun as well as the character development that made the original work. But when the trailers for Captain America 2 started to drop, anticipation started to build, and the feeling was that this film would put Phase 2 and the MCU back on track.

And man alive, it succeeds. It is a wonderfully intense movie, filled with intrigue, twists and turns (the first film's bad guys, Hydra, has been infiltrating S.H.I.E.L.D. for years, positioning themselves to carry out a horrifying endgame) that actually are in service to the story. There are action scenes that are among the best in Marvel's entire 12-film library. And it still has time makes a few jokes that don't detract from the overall serious tone of the picture. Brothers Joe and Anthony Russo took the director's chair from Joe Johnston, and despite only having two small comedy credits to their name, they infused Cap 2 with something truly extraordinary. With direct influences from a spate of 70's political intrigue thrillers, 'Winter Soldier' is easily my favorite film in the entire Marvel catalog and the only one that could stay in a conversation when one compares the MCU with Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy. It also manages to feel like the most interwoven of the MCU's stories, while still maintaining the ability to stand on its own. You don't need to know that Senator Stern (the late, great Garry Shandling, reprising his role from 'Iron Man 2') has butted heads with Tony Stark, but if you do, it definitely paints a clearer picture of his motivations.

Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) is back in uniform, after the events of 'The Avengers'. Still a man out of time, he's making the best of things, while working directly for Nick Fury* (Samuel L. Jackson) and S.H.I.E.L.D. He makes peace with his lost-to-time love Peggy Carter (a digitally aged Hayley Atwell) and has a semi-friendly relationship with the Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) even if he maybe, kinda, doesn't totally trust her. Once he figures out that he can, though, Evans and Johansson have such a wonderful chemistry together, that the few moments where Steve and Natasha can just quietly talk to one another work very well.

*This is easily Sam Jackson's best turn as Nick Fury; he's not being Sam Jackson-y, he's exuding both the confidence and the moral flexibility that being the head of an intelligence agency must have. For the first time since he appeared in the MCU, Fury doesn't seem like he's all-knowing and infallible. He seems like he's on his heels, and unsure both of who he can trust and where he can go. But just because he's been knocked on his ass, doesn't mean he doesn't still have a few aces up his sleeve.

Anthony Mackie also joins the MCU as Sam Wilson, aka The Falcon, a retired soldier who now helps other veterans with PTSD. Mackie's integration into the fabric of the story is nearly effortless. A shared military background gives Wilson and Cap a quick connection, and Wilson's admiration for Cap's heroics leads him to offer his help with no hesitation. Mackie is also just plain cool in the role. He comes across as genuine and friendly, but also as a very charismatic and capable ally. And his wings look totally awesome.

In addition to the principal characters, the film boasts a large supporting cast, and even though some of them don't get a lot of screen time, what they do get is used very effectively, and gives us enough insight into their character's personality that we have a clear view of where they're coming from and what drives them. Robert Redford plays Secretary of Defense Alexander Pierce, who starts off as an ally, but still exudes a faint whiff of menace, enough of which tips off Steve to his true intentions. Maximiliano Hernandez's turn as recurring/rogue S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Jasper Sitwell (he's the bald hispanic fella who usually pal'd around with Coulson before he died) not only shocks those viewers who follow the MCU closely enough to know his name, but also gives you a very efficient way of illustrating the depth of the Hydra infestation, while also undermining the trust Steve has in S.H.I.E.L.D. itself. Frank Grillo, Callan Mulvey, and Emily VanCamp also bring their own depth to the goings-on at S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters.

Despite the huge cast, which can bog down lesser films, the story moves along at a brisk pace, and the action scenes in this movie are thrilling. They feel intimate and brutal, and never so big that you lose track of what's going on. The Russo brothers wanted it to look as real as possible, so they took cues from Chris Nolan and shot as much as they could practically. The resulting visuals are fantastic. Steve running down a hallway, smashing through doors and walls that seem to have real weight to them gives the viewer a useful idea of how strong Steve has become. A freeway confrontation with Hydra and the Winter Soldier is probably the strongest action set-piece in the movie. The masked-and-metal-armed Winter Soldier always seems to be just a half-step ahead of the good guys, and unlike his battles with the Nazis, Steve has to actually put real effort into just trying to stay alive, never mind escaping or defeating these goons.

Aside from the edge-of-your-seat action, this is a movie that takes its emotional realism very seriously, as well. Steve is just starting to get used to living his life after a 70-year ice nap, and all of a sudden, the ground he'd grown so comfortable on suffers a cataclysmic shift. Drawn in by their actions, Cap gets understandably pissed at Fury's and Romanoff's moral relativism, and hates being manipulated into doing their potentially illegal bidding. Yes, they're the good guys, but that doesn't mean that sometimes they don't do the wrong things. And yes, the eponymous Winter Soldier is revealed to be Cap's "dead" friend Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) but just because he's now a brainwashed assassin doesn't mean Steve suddenly hates him and will have no trouble killing him. Bucky was Steve's friend before he was Captain America, and he can't just let that go because everyone around him is saying "he's your enemy now." Cap cannot and does give up hope just because it seems like there is none.

In fact, things look so grim for Cap by the end of the film, you actually start to wonder if "jesus...are they really gonna kill Captain America??" Even if you rationally know "ok, they can't kill Cap", the fact that the story can suck the viewer in so much that you think, even if just for a moment, that he may die is quite an achievement.

For the Russos, the idea of putting the most honest superhero in the Marvel Universe in a sea of deceit and duplicity is a pretty solid plan. And most of the time, when you talk about a character arc, you're talking about a character who changes the way they are because of the events in the world around them. What makes 'Winter Soldier' so unique is that Cap's arc isn't how he changes because of the world, but how he changes the world itself, through the sheer conviction of his principles. Cap, the character, is just about as close as you can get to being an absolute force for good, and the Russos do a truly wonderful job of taking this character someplace unique and fascinating to watch.


FINAL SCORE 9/10


Captain America: Civil War is out next Friday (or really, Thursday night). The first trailer was amazeballs, so check that out on YouTube, and then go see the movie next week, because for the first time, I'm going to try write a timely review.

IRON MAN THREE - A Retro Review

I've been dreading this one. It's time to look back on the insult to not only comic book fans, but moviegoers everywhere, 'Iron Man 3'.

Rarely...RARELY do I walk out of a movie angry. I may be disappointed. I may be bored. I may be dismissive. But I left 'Iron Man 3' angry as hell. For starters, I was mad because the trailer for the film promised something completely different from what we were given. Not only were we promised Iron Man's arch-nemesis, the Mandarin, but we were also promised Extremis and several scenes that hinted that this might finally be a foe too strong for Tony Stark to defeat.

Long before this movie came out, when they announced that Jon Favreau would give up director duties, I thought "ok, maybe it's for the best." Iron Man 2 wasn't the greatest, and putting in the writer of 'Predator' and 'Lethal Weapon', two of the all-time great 80's action movies seemed like an interesting idea.

Basically...yeah.

Instead, what we got was a snarky, disdainful movie that has a major tonal shift from everything that had preceded it, and a handful of half-baked plot threads all leading to a major twist which is completely unnecessary to the story. Not only that, but there was a major change to the character of Tony Stark that comes totally out of left field.

Director Shane Black seems more interested in putting together a series of scenes for varying reasons, rather than a coherent story. Aldrich Killian hates Tony for being an asshole to him way back in the day, but how do you go from business rival to complete psychopath? The movie never stops to explain. However, since he felt compelled to create a piecemeal story that never really coheres into an actual movie, I'm just going to rip his efforts apart, piece by shitty piece.

Throughout the first two acts of the movie, Tony struggles with PTSD following the Battle of New York. All we ever get for explanation is that he is struggling to understand those events. It's never even hinted that he's dealing with his own mortality. Not only that, but once the third act arrives, Tony's PTSD seems to have vanished without any sort of resolution.

Man, fuck this bullshit.

The kid. Oh god, the kid. The kid makes me think of that line in 'Barton Fink' (if you haven't seen it, good lord, rent it or stream it. It's one of the Coen Brothers' best) where Judy Davis is talking about the famous screenwriter and how he developed a formula for "wrestling pictures" that usually involved the protagonist becoming invested in the life of a small child. Harley, the kid, brings literally nothing to the table. He exists to elicit laughs and to be a foil for Stark's quips, once Tony is removed from the company of Pepper, Rhodey, and Jarvis. The kid is just there for Stark to antagonize. If you disagree, ask yourself if the kid was removed from the film, would it be fundamentally different?

And remember how in 'The Avengers' Iron Man got hit with Mjolnir and took the hit rather well? No dents or explosions or anything? Well, apparently Tony Stark was done building suits with that sort of durability, because MK42 suit is routinely broken apart by things like getting hit by a truck, getting hit with its own faceplate, and getting tugged on by a small child. Killian's Extremis thugs, too, have very little trouble in dispatching Tony's many autonomous suits with their hot hands. Nevermind that Tony's armor has, in the past, absorbed lightning (which, if you google it, burns more than five times hotter than the surface of the sun), Extremis people are indestructible, regenerating monsters! Except when they're not.

I MADE IT ALL UP FOR...REASONS!!!

Let's examine the Extremis issues. The main conceit of this particular Macguffin is that it will heal your broken body, regnerating severed or damaged tissue and also, if you can control it, allow you to burn things with your hands. And spout fire (an idea so ludicrous, even the movie stops to be like "wtf?"). The Extremis explosions, passed off as bombings carried out by the Mandarin, are caused by Killian's test subjects not being able to regulate their body temperatures (although what exactly that entails and why it's so difficult is never really explained. I can't regulate my body temperature either, but somehow it manages to regulate itself pretty ok). So if Killian's goons can go off at any moment, why the hell does he let them out of his sight? This leads to the idea that Maya Hansen (Rebecca Hall) will manipulate Tony into fixing the flaws in Extremis. However, why she doesn't just come to him straight up is never explained either.

The regeneration thing is also inconsistent. Killian's two top goons, Savin (James Badge Dale) and Brandt (Stephanie Szostak) are both seen regenerating from severe injury repeatedly until the moment when they just don't. Tony tosses Brandt into a transformer, and he blows a hole* through Savin's chest. But instead of regenerating, they just die. Why? Did they run out of Extremis juice? And how was it Savin and Brandt managed to master the whole 'regulating' thing? Why are they so special? With so much Extremis nonsense, it's really annoying that the only purpose it really serves is to provide a reason for the Mandarin to exist.

*while everyone gets all up in arms that Superman and Batman kill in the DCEU, nobody seems to give a shit that Stark kills...a whole lot of people, too. Also, Captain America is a total killing machine. Just sayin'.

From the outset, the Mandarin is presented as a grave threat, responsible for numerous deadly bombings (that turn out to be bogus) around the country, but right from the start, we see that Killian is the one that is somehow tied to the explosions and that is clearly has something to do with Extremis. But before the big reveal, the Mandarin is so shortchanged in screen time that, even though we know he and Killian are somehow tied together, he still doesn't seem like the primary threat.

We were promised this.

Which brings us to the twist. The Mandarin is not a real villain, but an actor portraying a terrorist. This is a plot twist that makes absolutely no goddamn sense at all, except to generate laughs because Ben Kingsley plays actor Trevor Slattery as a debauched lout who is barely aware what is going on around him, let alone capable of being a dangerous terrorist. Nevermind that he's claiming responsibility for actual deaths and acts of terrorism; nevermind that he shoots a dude in the head; Trevor claims that none of it is real. Shane Black did this because he thought it'd be funny. Not because it served the story. How am I so sure? Because it doesn't serve the story**.

We got this. THIS is bullshit.

Killian claims he created the Mandarin so that the the U.S. government would be too distracted looking for him to really investigate the Extremis explosions. But there is literally nothing to indicate the government doesn't trust Killian or AIM (his company), or even suspect that there is anything out of the ordinary about the bombings. The Mandarin was created by Killian to throw off a hunting party that doesn't exist. Therefore, he doesn't serve the goddamn story one bit.

**a good plot twist makes you want to go back and watch the movie again. The Sixth Sense, The Usual Suspects - you go back and watch the film again and look for clues that should have tipped you off to the twist ending. It's enjoyable to see what you missed. But aside from the twist itself, it usually helps if said twist is in service to a good story in a good movie.

This is physically impossible. 

'Iron Man' was good. 'Iron Man 2' was flawed, but still had its moments. Tony's turn in 'The Avengers' was at least fun, and provided him with a nice little soliloquy about the shrapnel in his chest and the role it plays in motivating him to do the most with his life as he possibly can, as well as leading Bruce Banner to accept his Hulk powers and channel them into heroics. Shane Black literally undoes everything that was good about those three outings as he decides to end Tony Stark's solo tales with Tony just up and deciding to have heart surgery to remove the shrapnel, despite the fact that we've been repeatedly told it's too dangerous. It proves that Shane Black was only interested in telling a Shane Black story, not an Iron Man story. He was the wrong writer, the wrong director, and the entirely wrong way to go for this complete and utter failure of a movie.

I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.

FINAL SCORE 1/10

Iron Man will next be seen apparently making a lot less jokes in 'Captain America; Civil War' out Friday in most of the world, and next Friday in America. Which is totally unfair. America created Cap and Iron Man and we gotta wait an extra week to see them? F that S, Feige, you rat bastard!! 

ONE MORE WEEK??? GAHHHH!!!