A Heroically Different Kind of Team

Ever since Robert Downey, Jr. suited-up as Iron Man for the first time back in 2008, audiences were given a glimpse after each  Marvel Comics movie of a larger story that would eventually lead to several superheroes pooling their ultra-rare abilities to fight malevolent forces.  Think of their first mission as an exercise in team-building.  And what an exercise it is, one that's as physical as it is emotional for it's gifted characters.

In director Joss Whedon's superhero mash-up, The Avengers, he takes titans of the Marvel universe and elegantly places them together for the purpose of combating an power-obsessed, otherworldly villain.  Without forfeiting well-developed characters and a vivid story for overblown messes of explosions, Whedon constructs a film that succeeds in being both greater than and equal to the sum of its parts that came before.

At the story's beginning, the Avengers are involved in each of their own tasks: Tony Stark is busy with juggling Stark Industries and being Iron Man; Dr. Bruce Banner, a.k.a. the Incredible Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), has exiled himself to India so he can learn how to control his anger; Captain America is trying to adjust to the new millennium; Norse god of thunder, Thor (Chris Hemsworth), has returned to his realm of Asgard; Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) is fighting the Russians; and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) works for S.H.I.E.L.D., a peacekeeping organization  When Thor's half-brother, Loki (Tom Hiddleston), steals a powerful and mysterious object called the Tesseract from S.H.I.E.L.D., Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), puts the Avengers Initiative into action and recruits these heroes so they can defeat Loki before he enslaves humanity.

The wonder of this cast it that it manages to give depth to each character, despite the number involved and the action that's happening around them.  Each superhero has their own important scene, or scenes, that build their character in ways that are unfortunately uncommon in most action movies these days.  Downey, Jr. is as quick-witted as ever as the smart-alecky Tony Stark.  Being intelligent and sharply funny, each of his interactions with certain characters are terrifically unique from each other.  With Captain America now in a different time period than he's used to, there is a comical mix of him using references from his life in the 1940s and not understanding references from the 21st century.  Hemsworth and Hiddleston bring back the sibling rivalry that was put to great detail in Thor.  The dynamics in their relationship still has that trace of Shakespearean tragedy that Kenneth Branagh, who has done extensive work with the Bard's creations, brought to his film last year.

Compared to Eric Bana and Edward Norton, Mark Ruffalo has done the best job with the Hulk character yet.  Ruffalo's usual shy-guy attitude is a perfect opposite to his mean and green alter ego in the film.  He doesn't turn into the Hulk until about halfway through the film, so that allows the viewer to see him as a complex human character trying to deal with his burden.  Out of all the superheroes in the story, Bruce Banner seems like he's the only one whose power poses as a problem for him, rather than a gift.  His time as his regular self presents him as an isolated individual, and he feels as though he doesn't fit in the group.  His character has more to him other than, "Hulk smash!"

There is a better sense of Black Widow's history in The Avengers than when she first appeared in Iron Man 2.  Her guilt-ridden past makes up for what we didn't learn about her before, and makes her one of the most interesting characters in the film.  Hawkeye, unfortunately, is under the control of Loki throughout most of the movie, so we aren't able to go deep into his character, compared to the others.  Hopefully, the sequel will provide this Avenger with the chance to grow his story.  Samuel L. Jackson, as in other Marvel productions, is terrific as the one-eyed man with a plan.

The screenplay, by the director, not only uses the superheroes from the previous Marvel films to link their stories, but uses other elements from those films as well to form the plot, such as Loki from Thor, the Tesseract from Captain America and the significance of Stark Industries from the Iron Man movies.  By doing so, Whedon makes the story seem more unified for a greater purpose, other than just for the sake of bringing the superheroes together, and has these stories tied more tightly together.  Since Whedon takes pieces out of the handful of Marvel adventures that came before this, it would be to the viewer's benefit to watch those previous films before seeing The Avengers, just so they can have an easier time following the plot.

The film is a lively fusion of action and drama, with the uncommon feat of the two being well-balanced.  Before the climactic battle, there are a couple of superb action sequences, but they don't stand in the way of the importance of the characters' team-building and learning about each other.  There are some wonderful character-driven scenes, such as one-on-one discussions, including some between Loki and Black Widow, Loki and Thor, and Black Widow and Bruce Banner, as well as a part where the Avengers become divided on how to approach the problem with Loki and a revelation concerning S.H.I.E.L.D.  All of this culminates in an epic showdown where the Avengers fight Loki and his army, a clash that leaves New York City nothing short of ravaged.  The final fight does become a bit lengthy, but given that adequate time was set aside for the characters' relationships to develop, and the fact that audiences have been waiting several years for this team to form, an ambitious, city-destroying battle is a thrillingly entertaining payoff for moviegoers sticking alongside these heroes as they came closer and closer together with each movie.

With this film, Joss Whedon presents himself as the next great director of action films that are both fun and refreshingly smart, such as Brad Bird and J.J. Abrams.  His handling of the characters shows that he isn't just out to make a standard Summer blockbuster, but a film that treats its subjects and audience intelligently and with care.  With how long comic-book and movie fans were waiting for this adventure to happen, Whedon can easily win them over with his dynamic contribution to the superhero genre.  As is the grand tradition of many Marvel films, there is a scene during the credits that eagerly stages a sequel.  Hopefully, if Whedon chooses to direct a second installment, he finds a way to go further into his characters and also craft some dominating action scenes, as he successfully did both in this film.  For The Avengers, it's outstanding how Whedon put these characters together so well.  As the old cliche goes, "the more the merrier."

Final grade: A-