Review: Avengers: Endgame (2019)
'It's not about how much we lost. It's about how much we have left. We're the Avengers. We gotta finish this.'
★★★
Ever since Avengers: Infinity War, the hype skyrocketed. Everyone wanted to know what would happen next because literally half of the characters were "Thanos-snapped" out of existence. I wasn't one of the people who enjoyed Infinity War all that much. I just didn't get the hype and thought it was a bit overrated. When I saw Endgame, I thought it was an improvement, but I still couldn't fully understand the massive hype.
"Avengers: Endgame (2019)" takes place following the horrific events of "Infinity War." Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Steve Rogers/Captain America (Chris Evans), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Bruce Banner/Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), and Clint Barton/Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) band together to undo Thanos' (Josh Brolin) snap, which wiped out half of all life in the universe. They embark on a risky time-travel journey to retrieve the Infinity Stones from various points in time. Along the way, they encounter former versions of themselves, make personal sacrifices, and eventually battle Thanos' army, resulting in a heartbreaking conclusion for several favorite characters.
Like many modern movies, the full plot is revealed early on, and it doesn't take its time to unfold as the story progresses. I felt like I could predict everything that was going to happen just before it occurred. But the story isn't the main experience of this film. It's about the mindless action, the great character moments, and the exciting adventures as they try to fix every mistake made in the last film. But one small thing—why did they kill off Thanos in the beginning, only to realize that killing him wasn't going to change anything? No idea. And "Fat Thor"—I thought this was a god, not a fat American.
This film, in my opinion, is the type of superhero movie you go to if you're not a fan of the comics and are just following the trend, only to realize you secretly like it but are afraid to admit it because the hype has died down and you don't want to lose your friends or popularity over it. Trust me, we've all been there. But don't be afraid to say you love this movie.
Like I said, this kind of movie shifts away from the typical comic book setting and attempts a more "Nolan-esque" superhero film. This approach can work, but you don't want to overdo it. The formula seemed to work here, though. The movie currently has a 94% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, making it one of the highest-rated Marvel films. Kudos to Marvel and Kevin Feige for that. Not Avi Arad, though—he had no hand in this. But I digress.
In many ways, Avengers: Endgame exceeds expectations. It wraps up a lot of universe-wide events and is much more entertaining than Infinity War. However, it's more hyped than it needed to be. It falls short due to an overreliance on CGI and pandering to a mindless fanbase. I don't consider this one of the best Marvel movies ever made; in fact, I don't consider it cinema. It's just a simple blockbuster.