Avengers: Age of Ultron {2015}

It is back. Once again Joss Whedon has taken the reigns on one of the biggest franchises in cinematic history with the sequel to the 2012 collaboration film. I doubt that this movie really needs a synopsis so let us get straight into the review. 

Yesterday (22nd April) my friends and I had the opportunity to go and see a preview showing of the latest Marvel film at our local cinema. It was a pretty exciting night since we were all fans of the franchise and one of my friends believes that Whedon is God.

The new characters introduced in this movie are something highly publicised and fantastically brought into the franchise. Most notably it is Scarlett Witch and Quicksilver aka the tortured twins Wanda and Pietro Maximoff. There were hesitations about Quicksilver being used due to the X-Men Days of Future Past incarnation of him but trust me when I say they are unrecognisable as we know them in the comics. They have the raw edge of some comic versions and they will not be a disappointment outside of their home verse.

Another great actor and character was Ultron himself played by James Spader. His comic yet chilling spin on the robotic villain was haunting. The desperation of the character and decent into madness of this supposed artificial life form proved to be incredibly memorable. The special effects used for Spader's motion capture were flawless with an intricate detailing of his facial features making the line between human and robot become slightly blurred. There was obviously no expense spared by Whedon in creating the most realistic effects he could get and it paid off with creatures that will give you nightmares.

Something I find with Whedon's work is that his smooth camera single shots are sometimes a real strain on the eyes. Whether it is just how fast it sometimes moves or how much motion blur they use it can be difficult to focus. Especially during the obviously partially CGI-ed fight sequence at the beginning of the film featuring all the heroes.

The film also introduces more emotional back stories for specific characters and attempts to develop on some. I will not mention who it pertains to but truthfully it was not needed and made me feel a little uncomfortable when it did come up. It seemed to be 30 minutes of an already exceptionally long movie that was added just to confuse people.

The film overall proved to be everything I hoped it would be. Explosions and action scenes galore with emotive moments added to the mix.  By the end we are left with an array of new heroes and villains you cannot help but want to get behind for the next adventure. Though it stands at around two and a half hours Whedon has done what he does best and made a Sci-fi adventure that has its audience begging for more.


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