The Russo Brothers are probably the best things to happen to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. These sibling directors did an outstanding job turning Captain America: The Winter Soldier into a gripping action film that was genuinely exciting. They worked their same magic on the sequel, CA: Civil War, turning what could have been a mish-mash of superhero cameos into another enthralling thriller. When I heard that they were directing the final two Avengers films, I felt confident that the future of the Avengers saga was in good hands.
And when I saw Avengers: Infinity War, I was not let down. After teasing us with a glimpse of Thanos at the end of the first Avengers film (as well as at the end of the second Avengers movie) we get a full blast of the legendary Marvel Comics villain, who was created by writer/artist Jim Starlin, here in Infinity War. No longer content with letting others do his bidding, Thanos goes on a personal crusade to collect the Infinity Stones, which are magical Macguffins that will give him the ultimate power he needs to wipe out half of the universe of all sentient life.
What I love about Infinity War is how the Russos depict Thanos. How many times have we’ve been told about how terrible a super-villain is in past movies and TV shows, only to be let down when he finally shows up? The problem is that they never measure up to their hype. That’s not the case with Thanos, who’s ably brought to life via motion capture by Josh Brolin, and who still manages to not only make him very intimidating and threatening, but he also imbues Thanos with a human side. Thanos and his Black Order henchmen are easily the best villains in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (my favorite of the Black Order is Ebony Maw, who gleefully informs Thanos’ victims how honored they should be that they will die by his hand).
But the Russo Brothers also give the superheroes plenty of moments to shine, by wisely teaming them up in smaller groups and cutting back and forth between their separate storylines. This works fantastically, giving the film the epic scope that it requires, because the arrival of Thanos on Earth is truly a monumental event. My favorite team up in the film is Iron Man and Doctor Strange. These two seem very different--one gains his powers through high tech, the other through high magic--but they work very well together, and maybe that’s because they’re more alike in ways that even Stark and Strange are unaware of. Also, Doctor Strange is my favorite hero in the MCU, and I like how strongly he comes on in this film.
And although The Guardians of the Galaxy are my least favorite of the MCU heroes, I like how the Russo Brothers handle them, particularly by exposing a fatal flaw in the thickheaded Starlord that leads to disaster, as well as the tender and shocking ways that Thanos deals with his “daughters” Gamora and Nebula. But one of the more moving sections of the film for me was the star-crossed romance between Scarlet Witch (Elisabeth Olsen) and Vision (Paul Bettany), the Romeo and Juliet of this film who simply wanted a life together, only for it to be shattered by the tyrant with the gauntlet of doom. The fact that the Russos not only deftly handle so many characters within their storyline, but also make you feel for them at the same time, is a remarkable achievement.
While the film is very well done, there are a few quibbles that I have with it. The first is how the Hulk has been reduced to a comic relief--this started with Thor Ragnarok, which I disliked immensely, and unfortunately it continues here. Another thing I didn’t like about Infinity War is Spider-Man, or I should say that I didn’t care for Spider-Man’s new outfit, which looked ridiculous. The Iron-Man-like armored Spider-Suit was bad enough, but the damned tentacles that sprout out from his back was just too much for me. It’s strange how some of the previous Sony-produced Spider-Man films were more truer and respectful of the Wall-Crawler than Marvel has been so far.
But these are just quibbles on my part. I thought Avengers: Infinity War was a superb film that was light years better than the previous one, Age of Ultron, which seemed to reflect the weariness of its director, Joss Whedon. Infinity War is not only more vibrant and engaging, it’s just getting started. Like The Empire Strikes Back, Infinity War is just the first half of this grand, operatic saga--and one I look forward to seeing the ending of--but it still stands head and shoulders above many of the current crop of superhero films as a fantastic entry in the MCU. Don’t miss it. --SF
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