Marvel's The Avengers

....And what fun it is.*Spoilers Ahead*Marvel's "The Avengers" is an expertly-crafted movie that makes 2 1/2 hours fly by like....well....I don't really know...SOMETHING FAST. My thoughts on seeing this movie--the first time (yes, you WILL go to see this more than once)--were: "This was just as good as 'The Dark Knight'....how is THAT even possible?" Well...consider first that Marvel has always had the best storylines, and the know-how to mix all of their characters' comic books together into one, all-encompassing storyline. Then, consider they decided to apply said formula to their movies. Third, they went out and expertly casted the parts.How could this NOT be good?Who else but Robert Downey, Jr could be a multi-billionaire, techno-wizard, armor-wearing snark-artist? Acts like he doesn't care, but is willing to sacrifice his life to save New York.Chris Evans is Captain America. A 1940s guy living in the present day....brings "a little old-fashioned" to the role and shows old-fashionedness isn't cheesy, it just depends on how it is presented. It is presented very well, with Evans being the heart and soul (not to mention team leader) of The Avengers--by the way: love the shot, at the movie's end, of him on his motorcycle riding off into the sunset.Mark Ruffalo, (great casting here; now I feel the Hulk movie franchise finally has hope) channels Bill Bixby in his performance (good idea!) but adds a "Hulk-sized" portion of world-weariness to his character...his over-the-shoulder "I'm always angry" is one of my favorite moments in an entire movie of favorite moments. And....The Hulk gets two more "Hulk-sized" moments that totally bring the house down.Oh, nice touch having Lou Ferrigno voice the Hulk.Chris Hemsworth as Thor is the only character in the movie whom I feel was under-utilized. No fault of the actor's; he does a great job with what he is given....and DOES have his moments ("He's adopted")....I just felt they didn't give him as much as they did the other three leads.Rounding out The Avengers are Scarlett Johansson and Jeremy Renner as the assassin/couple: Black Widow (Natasha Romanoff) and Hawkeye. Ms. Johansson is a master interrogator (albeit by making use of quite unorthodox means). Hawkeye is the steely-cool expert marksman--I had my doubts as to how an archer could work in such a high-energy movie. It works.The Avengers are put together by SHIELD: Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury (need I say more?); Clark Gregg (Agent Phil Coulson, and very funny in the role); Colbie Smulders (Agent Maria Hill--doesn't get nearly enough screen time) and Stellan Starsgard.Loki is portrayed by Tom Hiddleston; whom, for a character thinking of himself as a god, brings some amusing vunerability to the character: His embarrassment at being unable to kill/brainwash Tony Stark: "This usually works."; or, "If it's all the same to you, I'll have that drink now."I was initially skeptical about this movie. I didn't think Loki was the best choice for a screen villain. Er, was I wrong....this tale of an immortal/meglomaniac/demigod/god-wannabe who enlists an alien race to help him conquer Earth (Question: if Loki *really* was a god, why would he need alien help?) made for some great popcorn, big-tent, summer viewing.....My other initial fear was that this wasn't going to be "The Avengers" as much as it would be "Iron Man and Friends".Thankfully, I was wrong again.To sum up: The Avengers is cinematic excellence. Many have complained about it being too long--and, the first 20 minutes or so setting up the story *do* take a moment....but once "Marvel's The Avengers" splashes across the screen: The movie takes off and never looks back. It is packed with great moments and memorable lines/one-liners. The action sequences are the best I've ever seen and it all looks real. Seems I read somewhere online the battle in New York would have done (in reality) 39 billion dollars' worth of damage. You WILL believe it.Oh, one last thing: sit through ALL of the credits.Thank you, Joss Whedon and co.Please go all-out on the blu-ray release. Please.QuotesNatasha: "I'd sit this one out, Cap."Captain America: "I don't see how I can."Natasha: "These guys (Thor and Loki) come from legend. They're basically gods."Cap: "There's only one God, ma'am. And I'm pretty sure he isn't dressed like that."Cap: "Dr. Banner, now might be a good time for you to get angry."Dr. Banner: "That's my secret, Captain." (looks back over his shoulder at Cap) "I'm always angry."Loki: (embarrassed) "This usually works."Tony Stark: "Well, you know, performance issues...""The Avengers"PG-13 for language (non-harsh) and violence; no gore or sex to be found, parents.Marvel Studios in association with Paramount PicturesDirected by Joss Whedon**********UPDATE: Oct. 2, 2012**********Ok, the Blu-Ray/DVD has finally arrived, here is what you get:DISC 1*Blu-Ray Feature Film in 3D (3D viewing requires Blu-Ray 3D player, 3D capable display and 3D glassesDISC 2*Blu-Ray Feature Film*An original SHORT: "Item 47". I won't give the story away, but it could have been called, "Fun at the gas pump".*FEATURETTE: "A Visual Journey". Documentary about the film's look, ranging from the set-building and visual effects all the way through to the film's cinematography, too.*Marvel's First Ever Gag Reel: The outtakes are presented are entertaining enough, but the whole featurette is barely five minutes long. I wish it were a half-hour in length--at the least.*Deleted Scenes: and, a LOT of them. One very interesting one concerning a present-day Captain America *and* his love interest from "Captain America-The First Avenger". I had heard a rumor these deleted scenes WOULD BE INSERTED SEAMLESSLY into the original movie, giving us a new, special edition version....said rumor was wrong.*Soundgarden Music Video: :Live To Rise".*The Avengers Initiative: A Marvel Second Screen Experience. This works on your iphone, ipad or laptop. Once enabled, it "breaks you into" S.H.I.E.L.D.'s data base and allows you to explore:1) Marvel's cinematic history2) The comic book history of The Avengers3) Avenger personnel files and originsDISC 3*DVD Feature Film*Audio Commentary (full-length) with director Joss Whedon. I've listened to it--very well done.*Featurette--Assembling The Ultimate Team: the movie casting process, what the actor's bring to their roles, character interactions, etc, etc.DISC 4*Digital Copy (for Mac and PC)*Digital Album1) Soundgarden-Live To Rise2) Shinedown-I'm Alive3) Rise Against-Dirt And Roses4) Papa Roach-Even If I Could5) Black Veil Brides-Unbroken6) Scott Weiland-Breathe7) Redlight King-Comeback8) Bush-Into The Blue9) Evanescence-A New Way To Bleed (Photek Remix)10) Pusher Jones-Count Me Out11) Buckcherry-Wherever I Go12) Five Finger Death Punch-From Out Of Nowhere13) Cherri Bomb-Shake The GroundFINALLY*Technical Specifications:Blu-Ray: 1080p High Definition Widescreen (1.78:1) * Audio: English 7.1 DTS-HD MA, English DVS 2.0 Dolby Digital, 7.1 DTS-HDHR French, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital Language Tracks * Subtitles: English SDH, French and SpanishDVD: Widescreen (1.78:1) Aspect Ratio * Audio: English, French, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, English DVS 2.0 Dolby Digital Language Tracks * Subtitles: English SDH, French and Spanish (Applies To Film Content Only)Film's RUN TIME is 143 Minutes (Approx.)Avengers.Marvel.com****ALL SPECS AND RELATED INFO ARE TAKEN FROM THE BLU-RAY/DVD PACKAGING--WHICH FEATURES A NICE (DARE I SAY, "COLLECTIBLE?") HOLOGRAM OF ONE OF THE MOVIE'S (FULL TEAM ASSEMBLED) POSTERS ON THE FRONT.Thank you again for reading.

I'm not really into Marvel so I was really surprised that I really did enjoy this movie. Though, I was a tinsy bit confused about what was going on, then I watched Thor, maybe this was just me, but after watching Thor the Avengers made a lot more sense to me. The story really didn't get intresting till Thor came, and no it's not because Chris plays him, but after watching Thor he grew on me. Anyways, this movie really is a great movie and I'm a girl so.., if you don't like this movie then something is wrong with you and you don't know what a great, action packed movie is.SpoilersS.H.I.E.L.D. Director Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) arrives at one of his agency's facilities during an evacuation. The Tesseract, an energy source of unknown potential, has activated. It opens a portal through space and the exiled Norse god Loki (Tom Hiddleston) steps through. Loki takes the Tesseract and also takes control of the minds of several SHIELD personnel, including Dr. Erik Selvig (Stellan Skarsgård) and Agent Clint "Hawkeye" Barton (Jeremy Renner), to aid him in his getaway. As SHIELD personnel pull out of their base, some pursuing Loki and others merely fleeing, the ground beneath the base collapses and it's destroyed. In response to the attack, Fury re-activates the Avengers Initiative. First he pulls Agent Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson), a.k.a. the Black Widow, out of an interrogation (tied to a chair, she seems to be the victim rather than the interrogator, but appearances are deceiving). Fury sends her to India to find and recruit Dr. Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo), a.k.a. the Hulk. At the same time Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) approaches "Iron Man" Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) and requests that he review Dr. Selvig's research. Fury himself approaches Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), a.k.a. Captain America, with an assignment to retrieve the Tesseract from Loki. During his exile, Loki encountered the Chitauri, an alien race seeking to conquer the galaxy. In exchange for the Tesseract, the Chitauri agree to help Loki subjugate Earth. Suiting up, Captain America and Iron Man travel to Germany to apprehend Loki, who is recovering iridium needed to stabilize the Tesseract's power, and demanding that the civilians kneel before him. Loki quickly surrenders when the two heroes arrive, and he is escorted to a SHIELD helicarrier, a high-tech, flying aircraft carrier. However, Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Loki's half-brother and the Norse God of thunder, arrives and attempts to free Loki so he can reason with him on his own, but he gets into a fight with Iron Man and Captain America. The fight ends in a stalemate. Eventually, Loki is taken to the helicarrier and placed in a glass cell designed to hold the Hulk. Fury explains that if Loki attempts to escape, even by merely cracking the glass, a shaft will open below him and he'll plummet to Earth and possibly be killed. The Avengers, now brought together, argue and deliberate over how to approach Loki and the revelation that SHIELD plans to harness the Tesseract's power to develop weapons, a discovery made by Rogers. Fury admits that the events in New Mexico a year before (recounted in "Thor") made SHIELD aware of other races on other worlds, some of whom may see Earth as an easy target. The decision was made to produce weapons with the Tesseract as a means of deterrence. As the group argues, Clint Barton and Loki's possessed agents attack the helicarrier, disabling one of its engines in flight. While Stark and Rogers attempt to restart the damaged engine, Romanoff tries to prevent Dr. Banner from turning into the Hulk and destroying the ship from inside. Her attempt fails and she's chased through the ship until Thor takes up the battle to pacify the beast and manages to fell him briefly with a hit from his hammer, Mjolnir. While fighting Barton, Romanoff slams him into a guard rail, and the blow to the head breaks Loki's mind control. After the Hulk falls from the ship, Thor is tricked into Loki's holding cell by Loki himself, who has recovered his scepter and releases the cell and allows Thor to plummet. Loki is held at bay briefly by Agent Coulson who is also tricked by one of Loki's holographic projections - Coulson is stabbed in the back by the real Loki. Coulson later shoots Loki with a blast from an unidentified weapon, one that harnesses the power of the Destroyer. Coulson dies while Fury tries to save his life. Thor escapes from the cell a split second before it hits the ground. Banner wakes up in his human form after crashing into an abandoned factory. Fury uses Coulson's death to motivate the Avengers to work as a team. Stark and Rogers realize that simply defeating them will not be enough for Loki. He needs to overpower them in a very public way so as to validate himself as ruler of Earth. Using a device built by Dr. Selvig, Loki opens a portal to the Chitauri home world over Manhattan, summoning a Chitauri invasion. The Avengers rally in defense of New York, but quickly come to the conclusion that they will be overwhelmed as wave after wave of Chitauri descend upon Earth. With help from the reformed Barton, Captain America and Thor evacuate civilians while Dr. Banner transforms into the Hulk and goes after Loki, beating him into submission in Tony Stark's penthouse. Romanoff makes her way, with a little help from the Chitauri, to the device that holds the portal open (conveniently located on the roof of the Stark Building) and hits Dr. Selvig over the head, freeing him of Loki's control. Dr. Selvig reveals that Loki's staff can be used to close the portal. Meanwhile, the council overrides Fury and scrambles a jet that fires a nuclear missile at Manhattan to end the invasion. Iron Man intercepts the missile and directs it at the portal and the Chitauri base before running out of oxygen and plummeting back to Earth, but the Hulk catches him as he falls. A dazed Stark, awakened by the Hulk's roar, offers to take the team out for shawarma, but they decide to apprehend Loki first. Thor escorts Loki and the Tesseract back to Asgard, while Fury notes that the Avengers will go their separate ways until a new world-threatening menace emerges. In a mid-credits scene, the Chitauri leader the Other tells his master that it is futile to attack Earth, as fighting the Avengers is like courting death. His master turns, revealing himself to be Thanos. After further credits, the Avengers are shown eating together in a shawarma joint; the team looks worn out and no one speaks.

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