Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)

[#ED]

OS release is in 2 Days.

 

Discuss. 

[ladyevenstar22]

wednesday cannot come fast enough !!! my body is ready   

[solaris]

So, a little context to start. I am (or rather, my company is) a client of Disney, so we were very fortunate to be offered a pair of tickets to the European premiere in London. This was my first premiere experience.... we were ushered through to the screens whilst the stars did their thing outside. It was a big corporate event so the premiere was held across a number of screens. After about 20 mins of waiting, Joss Whedon gave a brief introduction and then on we rolled. (Sidenote - I was hoping for one of the Chris's at least).

 

https://instagram.com/p/1sNfSYzTZM/?taken-by=lambnich

 

I'm trying to keep this as spoiler-free as possible.

 

So... is it any good? Of course it's good - this is the golden goose of the MCU, people! Is it better than the first one? Nope, but it's still pretty damn good. If anything, this film will make you appreciate the lightning-in-a-bottle quality of the first Avengers. The closest comparison I can think of is Star Trek Into Darkness v ST09. It has a noticeably darker tone than the first Avengers, and definitely feels a bit overstuffed. The set pieces too (as impressive as they are) don't quite have the clarity that they did before. On quite a few occasions, I didn't know what was happening (and I say that as someone who is moderately versed in MCU-lore). And it lacks the same sense of zip & whizz that the first film had - it just doesn't quite move along at the same pace.

 

All that being said, the more one tries to compare back to TA, the more disappointed you'll be. Taken on its own terms, it's a damn fine piece of blockbuster film-making. Ultron is a worthy and credible foe (James Spaders voice.... ) and the film is a technical marvel, forgive the pun. The final set piece in Sokovia is spectacularly well staged and realised.

 

Other random thoughts:

- The opening/pre-credits sequence is great. Joss Whedon has probably got a great Bond film in him somewhere based on that.

- MVP - Hawkeye (whoda thunk it?). Although BW & Hulk are a close joint second.

- LVP - Aaron Taylor Johnson - Hollywood please stop now. To be honest, none of the new additions to the team made much of an impact (including Vision sadly). 

 

Overall this delivers exactly what you'd want it to - massive (and massively entertaining) action sequences, and quips galore (although the Cap / 'Language' running joke gets tiresome pretty fast). From a BO point of view, I can't see this having quite the same repeat value as the first so I'm thinking slightly higher OW, slightly lower total (from a US Domestic point of view anyway). Internationally this is going to do silly numbers.

 

Apologies for the very random & disjointed review - just wanted to let you know my thoughts as quickly as possible! FWIW, CA:TWS is my fave MCU movie. If I had to rank this at gunpoint right now, it would a close 3rd/4th after CA2 & the first Avengers (and possibly IM1, not sure yet). It's a solid summer blockbuster, and a fine entry into the MCU. Without wanting to spoil anything, it serves as a great bridge and gets everything set for the next phase. 

Edited April 21, 2015 by solaaaaaaaris

[Kalo]

So, a little context to start. I am (or rather, my company is) a client of Disney, so we were very fortunate to be offered a pair of tickets to the European premiere in London. This was my first premiere experience.... we were ushered through to the screens whilst the stars did their thing outside. It was a big corporate event so the premiere was held across a number of screens. After about 20 mins of waiting, Joss Whedon gave a brief introduction and then on we rolled. (Sidenote - I was hoping for one of the Chris's at least).

 

https://instagram.com/p/1sNfSYzTZM/?taken-by=lambnich

 

I'm trying to keep this as spoiler-free as possible.

 

So... is it any good? Of course it's good - this is the golden goose of the MCU, people! Is it better than the first one? Nope, but it's still pretty damn good. If anything, this film will make you appreciate the lightning-in-a-bottle quality of the first Avengers. The closest comparison I can think of is Star Trek Into Darkness v ST09. It has a noticeably darker tone than the first Avengers, and definitely feels a bit overstuffed. The set pieces too (as impressive as they are) don't quite have the clarity that they did before. On quite a few occasions, I didn't know what was happening (and I say that as someone who is moderately versed in MCU-lore). And it lacks the same sense of zip & whizz that the first film had - it just doesn't quite move along at the same pace.

 

All that being said, the more one tries to compare back to TA, the more disappointed you'll be. Taken on its own terms, it's a damn fine piece of blockbuster film-making. Ultron is a worthy and credible foe (James Spaders voice.... ) and the film is a technical marvel, forgive the pun. The final set piece in Sokovia is spectacularly well staged and realised.

 

Other random thoughts:

- The opening/pre-credits sequence is great. Joss Whedon has probably got a great Bond film in him somewhere based on that.

- MVP - Hawkeye (whoda thunk it?). Although BW & Hulk are a close joint second.

- LVP - Aaron Taylor Johnson - Hollywood please stop now. To be honest, none of the new additions to the team made much of an impact (including Vision sadly). 

 

Overall this delivers exactly what you'd want it to - massive (and massively entertaining) action sequences, and quips galore (although the Cap / 'Language' running joke gets tiresome pretty fast). From a BO point of view, I can't see this having quite the same repeat value as the first so I'm thinking slightly higher OW, slightly lower total (from a US Domestic point of view anyway). Internationally this is going to do silly numbers.

 

Apologies for the very random & disjointed review - just wanted to let you know my thoughts as quickly as possible! FWIW, CA:TWS is my fave MCU movie. If I had to rank this at gunpoint right now, it would a close 3rd/4th after CA2 & the first Avengers (and possibly IM1, not sure yet). It's a solid summer blockbuster, and a fine entry into the MCU. Without wanting to spoil anything, it serves as a great bridge and gets everything set for the next phase. 

 

Winter Soldier is my favorite too, and Avengers and first Iron Man are my second and third. I guess I'll have to see if I find it better than the first. thought it would be from the trailers. the final battle at least has to be better than the final battle in the first (which was probably the lowpoint of the movie of me) 

[solaris]

Winter Soldier is my favorite too, and Avengers and first Iron Man are my second and third. I guess I'll have to see if I find it better than the first. thought it would be from the trailers. the final battle at least has to be better than the final battle in the first (which was probably the lowpoint of the movie of me) 

The big finale is definitely the highlight. In fact both the opening and ending action sequences are the best. Hulkbuster sequence was great too, not as good as Helicarrier scene from first film though (in terms of mid point action sequences).

[Kalo]

The big finale is definitely the highlight. In fact both the opening and ending action sequences are the best. Hulkbuster sequence was great too, not as good as Helicarrier scene from first film though (in terms of mid point action sequences).

 

Everyting in the Helicarrier sequence was brilliant. big part of why I love the first so much. 

[The Dark Alfred]

Kalo, do they explain properly why IM is actually IM after the ending of IM3?

[Kalo]

Kalo, do they explain properly why IM is actually IM after the ending of IM3?

 

I haven't seen AoU. Solaris has I was just commenting on his post. 

Edited April 22, 2015 by Kalo

[solaris]

Kalo, do they explain properly why IM is actually IM after the ending of IM3?

Nope not really (or if they did I missed it). Stark is still IM at the very beginning of the movie. The presumed backstory is that Banner and Stark have been working on the Ultron programme as a replacement for IM but he's filling in in the meantime - nothing is ever explicitly stated as such though

[dashrendar44]

But was IM3's ending an "Iron Man" no more? Or more like he doesn't need gazillions of high tech suits to hide himself from his fears and insecurities because Stark IS Iron Man and without him in the suits, they are just droning empty shells. The man makes the suit. The hero is the man inside. The suit is the reflection of his inner self for good (genius philanthropist) and not the worst (paranoid selfish).

Edited April 22, 2015 by MADash Rendar

[tong kosong]

I forgot about IM3 ending. There is no explanation about why he is still using IM suit and Iron Legion.

[solaris]

Yeah it kind of feels like a retcon

[The Stingray]

From AoU main thread:

 

Slightly disappointed. Good, but not great. After Cap 2 and Guardians I did expect more.

 

On the plus side, there are some great character moments, the tone is a bit more serious this time around (which I like), Hawkeye and Widow are highlights, and Elizabeth Olsen is soo pretty.    

 

On to the negatives: the action is somewhat underwhelming. Ultron is a boring villain, as is his endgame, and his robot army does not make for exciting action. The twins are cool, but underdeveloped. It's more of the same (which is not necessarily a critique, but you know what you're getting at this point). It's not as humorous, witty or snappy as the original. The post-credit is arguably the worst one yet.

 

All in all it's still a fun flick, but compared to Cap 2 and Guardians I feel it's a step back in quality.

 

7/10

Edited April 23, 2015 by The Stingray

[Fullbuster]

First : it was my first movie in original version, with subtitles. Usually it's a dubbed version but I'm in a new city where we have a choice so of course I took the subbed version. In France people are generally not fans of subtitles and clearly favorises dubbed versions so I didn't expect the room to full, but it was full, crazy But that was weird first because we got a dubbed version in 2D instead of a subbed version in 3D, some people were angry and they had to change this

 

So, what could I say about The Avengers : Age of Ultron after watching it?

 

I wanted more action : I got this. The fight between Hulk and the Hulkbuster was incredibly crazy, at a moment I thought I was watching Dragon Ball Z lol

I wanted a better villain : I got it, Ultron can be funny sometimes but it is a threatening and scary presence, you don't feel he's a clown.

I was surprised by the humor : I expected this movie to be less funny but not at all, a lot of jokes and I loved it.

Elizabeth Olsen is wonderful, so charming, she was a great element.

 

IMO it's better than the first Avengers, it was epic, fast-paced, funny...How many movies can be all of that at the same time?

 

My only disappointment :

 

Ultron's final battle : I expected it to be a great fighter but in the end not really, it's just used a gigantic army and stayed in the shadows. Of course it was smart to do that but I wanted a bit more, at least he's able to dominate Thor and Captain America in a one-on-one fight so I won't complain too much. The final scene with the gauntlet and the next bad guy was a pleasure to see of course I must say I was surprised about the death of the Romanoff twin, he made a great sacrifice.

The New Avengers will be a great asset : Scarlet Witch, War Machine, Vision and Falcon

 

Avengers, Assemble

 

I put an A of course

[ladyevenstar22]

my viewing was packed !

 

i liked it , i def enjoyed it but i'm not sure how much i loved it? but that probably has more to do with the fact that the newness factor has worned off from the first one , which is something that happens inevitably after season 1 of a tv show, or first movie in a trilogy etc , or first time you read a book series (like harry potter and the half blood prince i cried like a damn baby reading it but now when i reread i'm just sad but no bucket of tears)

 

i'm just gonna address the nittty picky stuff 

 

the twins mehhh , they didnt bother me but i wasnt wowed either , didnt expect the guy to die but whatev he's not coulson!

maybe the fighting with Ultron robot army got a tad repetitive !

i was expecting more mayhem from ultron , more something along tony stark witchy induced vision !

 

now these did not take away from my overall enjoyment of the movie , i kinda rolled with it because at the end of the day the positive outweighted them

 

where were these superheroes leading ladies ,which lead to a funny convo at Stark tower party !

 

positively enjoyed 

 

tony stark , i adore him that ain't never ever changing !

stark and banner bromance , their mad scientist routine is just to die for ....

james spader as ultron OMG AMAZING , i don't know how they do it but he even looked like him (i love that actor his voice  )

ultron daddy issues and  stark

 

stark and steven (iron man and cap america) scenes , i know they're not friends friends even though their teammates in this avengers gig but they have his father in common , that's something that will always keep that link between them open and maybe help down the line in cap 3 who knows 

 

the intro scene , i was like damn straight into the action ! kinda wondered what was going on ? loki sceptor ? i clearly need to brush up on that when did he lose it again?

followed by a party at stark tower , he sure knows how to throw them, always end with a bang !

 

JARVIS  ahhhh shucks i love that guy , i loved that they used the actual actor paul bettany to give him a body , even though its not jarvis per se anymore ! he's VISION now so does that mean no more jarvis because tony started using FRIDAY who has a woman voice that sounded like pepper which is weird , was it her voice?

 

what about VICTORIA huhhh damn that was some impressive fight  right there between HULK BUSTER and THE HULK , don't know how much non tinkering tony actually has been doing since IM3 plus you add in bruce banner as his tinkering companion lollllll

 

i did like all the cameos esp agent carter that was bittersweet for the Cap !

 

 

wtf hello moment in a woah did not see that coming

2- hulk and black widow their version of kissing in a tree , huh but the more the movie went on the more i was like hmmm yeah yeah ok i dig it , i can work with this as a fan !

1 - hawkeye has a wife and kids

 

about the next phase 

 

i def like how they brought in the infinity stones plot line into this linking it up with GOTG but it also brought a question up as to how they will proceed coz at some point these two groups will assemble and won't it be a tad crowded ?

 

 

anyhoo that mid-credits scene LOL , a good 70% of the audience seems to have learn their lesson and waited for it , , so clue me in what's up with the golden glove? 

 

i'm also trying to imagine tony living on a farm with pepper which was inspired by their Avengers meets little house on the prairy interlude courtesy of hawkeye ! mayhem seems to follow him !

If i was her i would send him to live in the barn a couple miles down the stream because he seems to blow up or destroy every house they live in but maybe hawkeye is in the right there's a french expression that says "pour vivre heureux vivons caché" which roughly translates to " to have a happy relationship we must remain hidden"

 

PS: forgot to mention we got ANT-MAN trailer JURRASIC PARK and FANTASTIC FOUR , they all look pretty cool but i'm def excited for ANT-MAN  it got quite some laughs and chatter !

 

at any rate i'm always in such a state of over-excitement i'm partial to wait for a second viewing when the action/the reel seems to be slower and you can settle down into the film to see if the little niggles were really that or just me too much in a rush to take it all in 

 

i give it an A for the moment we'll see if it improves over time to an A+ i will be meticulous in my  viewing research kkkkk

[pepsa]

I just came back of the late night showing and I have to say many parts were beter than the first one.

 

The first opening secence was prety direct but were an amazing experience for me. One of the best action scene's i have ever seen, the tone was good, the jokes were on point, the visiuals were stunning. Those first 25 min were super amazing.Loved every bit of it until afther the creation of ultron.

 

The middle part was good, but a bit lame. They again need to get to gether, again problems. So for me it was a bit of let down, the hulbuster fight was good, but not great. Definetly not the best moment of the movie. Stark was perfect as always, for the begin to the end. All others were good too, but nothing outstanding, altought the banner stark moments (when not in hulk mode) were realy good. 

 

I tought ultron was good as a villan but not great, he had more depth than the other marvel herous, but was somethimes not serious enough. This is just a personal issue it could be you ll love that comic aspect on him, but i wasn't realy a fan. Other moments he was realy bad-ass and his voice was amazing. He realy deliverd some gouse bumbs.

 

The final was realy good action wise, vision wise and on point with the jokes. The only negative point was Ultron did go down a bit to easy in that last fight. But overall a great final.

 

For me AoU was a better film than TheAvengers, it first 30 Min were amazing much beter than that of Avenger the middle part was the least satifying and the final was up there if not a bit beter than the avangers. I can't stress it enought those first 30-40 min were geniously done, I realy loved it. Imight return to the cinema just for that.

In the first part I tought i might have been the best movie ever, but luckyly for LOTR they dropped the ball

 

 

9/10 or A

Edited April 23, 2015 by pepsa

[antovolk]

A very enjoyable, but still, a hot mess. First 2/3 uncannily felt like Exodus - moving from A to B without any dramatic heft at all because ridiculously squashed for runtime - but definitely some very nice character moments. It improves over time and by the time you get to act 3 I was really into it, and the ending was great. Also to contribute to the hot mess - the Iron Man 2 syndrome, wasn't sure how I felt about that aspect but anyway...

Real standouts - Renner, Bettany and OLSEN (especially at the end). Banner/Natasha chemistry I really really liked. The character moments in general were fantastic, so much potential that I felt was unused really because of runtime constraints and overstuffing.

Also Ultron was pretty good, but yeah too fast origins I have to say...

Visually looks better than the first which is a plus, digging the look. Score wise...meh? Bits from first film really took me out, Elfman's stuff sounded really great though.

May need a rewatch, in the meantime 7/10

Bring on Civil War. TWS is probably still my favourite MCU film.

P.S. Trailers: Spy (both trailers), Pitch Perfect 2 theatrical, Minions theatrical, Jurassic World theatrical (the new one), Halo 5.

[DeeCee]

I loved the stark(deliberate usage) contrast between this and MoS when it comes to civilian casualties.

The Avengers go above and beyond to clear civilians from the city.

Superman:Let them die.

Edited April 23, 2015 by DeeCee

[Fullbuster]

I loved the stark(deliberate usage) contrast between this and MoS when it comes to civilian casualties.

The Avengers go above and beyond to clear civilians from the city.

Superman:Let them die.

 

I didn't think about that, so true

[ladyevenstar22]

ha ha ha the thought did cross my mind , people did die , there was this chick who fell off a piece of broken road and they didnt show her being saved , as mighty as they are they couldnt be everywhere but they did save as many as they could !