“Come One, Come All”
Avengers: Infinity War opens this weekend and Marvel fans couldn’t be more excited. Many of their favorite Avengers have come together to fight a force of darkness including Thanos (Josh Brolin) and the Black Order: Proxima Midnight (Carrie Coon), Ebony Maw (Tom Vaughan-Lawlor), and Corvus Glaive (Michael James Shaw).
Directors Anthony and Joe Russo, both whom produced and directed Captain America: The WinterSoldier (2014) and Captain America: Civil War (2016), take the audience on an action-packed ride of adventure, loss, sacrifice, and love. It’s cohesive story-telling at its best, considering all of the various characters and sub-plots in the film.
Opening with an intense scene between Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Loki (Tom Hiddleston), Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo), Heimdall (Idris Elba), Thanos and the Black Order, the story picks up where many of the franchise’s blockbuster predecessors left off – (Captain America: Civil War, Spider-Man: Homecoming, Thor: Ragnarok, and Black Panther, respectively.)
As an original member of the Infinity Watch, Thanos’s desire to keep the Infinity Stones apart has drastically shifted. His ultimate goal has now become to acquire all six infinity stones (space, time, soul, mind, reality, and power). Previously, they were dispersed throughout the galaxy to keep their collective strength separate. If Thanos succeeds in his mission, he and he alone will have absolute control over the galaxy.
The introduction of other core Avengers such as Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), T’Challa /Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman) Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Steve Rogers/Captain America (Chris Evans), Vision (Paul Bettany), Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) and Sam Wilson/Falcon (Anthony Mackie) in a staggered manner, keeps the anticipation of the Avengers’ fight for the greater good front and center. Traveling from planet to planet, allies including the Guardians of the Galaxy team: Peter Quill/ Star-Lord (Chris Pratt), Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Groot (Vin Diesel), Rocket (Bradley Cooper); along with Bucky Barnes/ White Wolf (Sebastian Stan), Dr. Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), James Rhodes/War Machine (Don Cheadle), and Peter Parker/Spiderman (Tom Holland) make this star-studded film a marvel, pun intended.
Cinematically, fans will be pleased with the directors’ ability to stay on course as the film is lengthy one coming in just under two and half hours. Because this movie is a continuation of many of the Avenger movies that have come before, movie-goers who are not familiar with the varied characters, sub stories, and plots, may want to watch as many of the prior movies as possible.
Ultimately, in true Marvel fashion, the film doesn’t disappoint and, as always, keeps its audience on the edge of their seats until the very end.
Photo top: The Cast of Avengers
Photos courtesy of Walt Disney Marvel Studios
