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After years of obsessively waiting and watching new trailers, teasing myself into an adrenaline-fuelled frenzy – The Avengers movie has finally arrived.
I make no excuses; I’m a diehard fan of anything Marvel. And, for film-lovers not yet bitten by the bug, I promise you will be after watching this offering and I welcome you to the club.
This is the mother of all superhero movies. Directed and co-written by Joss Whedon, he not only delivers the action but also a sharp, witty and mindlessly entertaining show which provides six superheroes for the price of one ticket.
The plot centres on the Tesseract, a blue cube of infinite power. It has been activated and opens a mysterious portal, where Nordic God and arch-enemy of the free world, Loki, played by Tom Hiddleston, steps through.
He takes the Tesseract and uses his power to control the minds of special agents to feed his lust to destroy the world with the help of an alien army. As head of SHIELD, (the good guys) Nick Fury has only one option, to bring The Avengers in on the case.
Sure enough, it takes Whedon a while to actually assemble the entourage together, but when he does, the six brilliantly and absurdly muscled protagonists, must fight and defend Earth from Loki and his extraterrestrial army.
There’s Captain America, a super Second World War soldier, Tony Stark or Iron Man, an egotistical billionaire in a weaponised metal suit, Black Widow, a cat-suit wearing spy, Hulk, a genius who morphs into the not so jolly green giant, Thor, the God of Thunder and Hawkeye – the least interesting character.
The films that have led up to The Avengers may have given us the basic introduction to the movie, but Whedon forgets about the pulpy antics that are apparent in most Marvel films and offers a simple superhero movie that dips its toes into the Transformers and 007 movies mantra.
Whedon, famous for Buffy the Vampire Slayer and author of the comic The Astonishing X-Men, deserves more than just a pat on the back. Some may argue that this is not the best superhero film ever made, but I still think it is the funniest.
The Avengers were each given a chance to shine in their performances, as Whedon had a clear vision for each character.
He skilfully handled the multiple characters as the ultimate dysfunctional family. He unfolded the plot while simultaneously intertwining the big personalities onto the big-screen without the chaos you would expect.
The film unfolds as a sequence of clashes between the characters, with zero interest in each other, but it all ends when the aliens invade.
He provides moments of real tragedy, humour and surprise. He sticks to the inevitability of the genre with the flying and punching, and not to mention tight-fitting ridiculous costumes, but adds his jokiness that keeps everything barrelling along.
Moreover, the cast excels. Arguably, the most interesting and best-dressed of The Avengers is Iron Man. I may be biased, as a massive Robert Downey Jr. fan, but his wit and occasional banter gives the movie extra vigour.
On the other hand, I also found myself drifting towards the dark side. A superhero flick is only as good as its main villain. Hiddleston elevated a type of creepiness that was so evil I found myself mimicking his eerie smile whenever he got his way.
Meanwhile, Mark Ruffalo plays the new Hulk fantastically, in my opinion. His reserved and humble manner weakens his intelligence and following rage.
Ruffalo had some big shoes to fill after Edward Norton’s portrayal of the character in an earlier movie but he still manages to provide the best and funniest moments in the film. One scene in particular featuring Hulk using the ‘puny god’, Loki, as a cleaning mop was hilarious. Not only does he prove himself, but he makes the character his own.
Forget Thor’s hammer, Iron Man’s suit or even Captain America’s shield, the Hulk’s trousers seem to be the most indestructible accessory in the film.
This 142-minute frolic between aliens, superheroes and gods, crams in so much action and humour, it is almost impossible not to enjoy. If you’re a Marvel fan, simply ‘suit up!’
l WIN tickets to see this hit movie. GulfWeekly has teamed up with Cineco in Bahrain City Centre to offer six prizes. Simply answer this question: What colour is the Hulk? Email your answer to editor@gulfweekly.com or answer online by visiting www.gulfweekly.com The first six correct entries drawn on Sunday at noon will win the tickets. Normal GulfWeekly competition rules apply. The editor’s decision is final.
l Showing in Cineco, Seef II, Saar Cineplex and Al Jazeera Cineplex
