Avengers - Endgame

Hulk...amazing motion capture performance by Ruffalo who turns the Hulk into the very heart and soul of the picture for me. This is Banner at his best dealing with his 'curse' the best way he can. And you know what, they took the Hulk to a whole new level. No longer is he a dangerous, untrustworthy force of nature. Now he is the very model of what being a hero is all about. Sure he can still smash things but he can now do some motivational team building at the same time. And Ruffalo delivers maybe his best performance ever.

Thor is a trainwreck and a literal gift from the acting gods to Chris Hemsworth. Why is there not a cast Oscar? That award is a no brainer. This cast is so good it scared me sometimes. At one minute Hemsworth is making me laugh and in the next he is breaking my heart. Rocket is amazing too. I never once thought Bradly Cooper is doing that voice. Everyone tries to build up a broken Thor and I believe it all. I laughed but Thor's pain is real. He's got a lot of issues to work out before he can be THIS God of Thunder again. But 'Labowski' Thor is maybe Hemsworth's greatest performance ever. His role is played for comedy but his redemption is real and heartfelt and Hemsworth walks a delicate line making all his character changes seem real and triumphant.

Don Chedle is the sense of humor where you would expect it to be solely the perview of Ant Man. Instead we get a great comedy duo who compete openly to be the funniest guy when the Hulk ask another one of his 'smart Hulk' questions. It's a gift. A treat. The conversation about time travel that references every time travel movie we have ever seen made me laugh out loud. It also makes my point that NO ONE knows how Time Travel works because it's all theoretical anyways and since no one has actually moved in time, none of those theories are right. So shut up about any problems that come up in your head after watching time travel used as a plot device in Endgame.

And it fills my soul to know that this one will stay with me forever. Good lord I have to admit that I teared up at many a point. And that is exactly how I dreamed I could feel. All the decades I spent being a Marvel comic maniac has come to it's ultimate climax. I was not let down. I feel blessed that Stan Lee created this and this team of actors made those characters come alive. One day someone will produce a great documentary about how this all came about and it too will be an amazing visual document. Someone motivated everyone to give their best and they did just that. I would have been proud to have been a part of this project. Each actor got their moment and each moment was sweet.

The TIME HEIST is an amazing piece of storytelling business. The ability to travel in time is such an amazing strategical advantage to battle Thanos. But that plan comes with a whole new set of problems. Thanos is not a fool and to treat him as such is a fool's errand. There are so many shifts in emotion that I never know if everything is going to work out. That is how unbeatable a force of nature that Thanos is as our villain. Only teamwork and sacrifice will bring him down and even that ending is never certain. Thanos has a reputation for sheer brutality that is earned.

 

Jeremy Renner makes up for being missing for all of Infinity War by taking Hawkeye right through the emotional wringer and the movie it better for it. Clint needed the win the most because he had the most to gain and going through his journey was a fantastic experience. This is why we need a cast Oscar because how do I choose between Renner and Hemsworth and Ruffalo and Evans? Downy Jr is a lock but it's really a team effort and that chemistry deserves recognition.

OMG - Natasha. You broke my heart. I never find Scarlett Johanson to be a very strong actress most times but as Natasha Romanov she is always stellar. The heart and sould of the Avengers despite what anyone will tell you. Since the first movie she was the one thing that held them together, even when they were apart. She saved all the guys in small and large ways but in the end she did the only thing she could do for the team and that was 'no matter what it takes'.

 

 

I should just use an emoji for every time I teared up in this movie. In fact I experienced the whole range of emotions that came right from the deepest memories of my childhood. I can't remember a time when these characters were not a part of my life. To see them alive and breathing and saving the world right in front of me seems unbelievable. But even I could not imagine this story and how thrilling it is. My own mind does not do it justice. I admit to believing that telling this story was impossible after reading the original comic book saga. I have never been happier to be so wrong in all my life. They built their own story around a strong foundation and it changed the world. That is what Marvel was always about at it's core and I live in a Golden Age where I can see that message played out before me. You will never truly understand how much it all means to me.

 

Let's not forget James Brolin who needs to be recognized for his motion capture performance as Thanos for all he gave us in the first part of the 2 part story. He was solid in End Game but he dazzled in Infinity War. I think the Oscars will award both films as one with Best Picture this year. I know it's a year away but few will forget their own experience seeing both movies for the first time. I hope around Christmas that they re-release them together for one showing of both films together. Maybe with some added footage from the studio? I don't know. Maybe a cartoon. Use your imagination people.