Although I never was into comics, I have been watching the Marvel movies ever since the first one came out. They are always something I look forward to as they offer great entertainment with their usual mix of action and humour. Through the years the Marvel movies introduced audiences to both characters which everyone knew (The Hulk, Iron Man), but also some which only hardcore comic book fans knew (Guardians of the Galaxy). The fact that almost every movie has been successful has meant that the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has grown immensely and that fans (including myself) can’t afford to miss any of them. Although most of the movies are stories on their own, they do have a greater arc in them, which has slowly been building towards something big. A movie which has (almost) each and every character from the MCU in it, but also in which the stakes are extremely high: Avengers: Infinity War.
Thanos has been a character who showed (shortly) in various movies, but who basically didn’t do anything but sit in his chair, smile and look menacing. This is the movie though in which he takes action. He’s looking for the Infinity stones, elements which will grant him great power, allowing him to execute his plan to make the universe better: By killing half of the beings in existence just by the snap of his finger. Infinity War succeeds though in making you understand why he does it (just like Killmonger in Black Panther) and feel sympathy for him. In order to do so though he basically has to face all the superheroes: The Avengers, Spiderman, Black Panther, the Guardians of the Galaxy, Dr. Strange etc. With so many well-known characters in play this movie could have turned into a big mess, but the Russo brothers succeed in juggling it all, splitting them up in groups with their own stories and switching between them. It works and each of these story threads is interesting and filled with both drama, humor and action.
If you head out to this movie and expect a Marvel movie like the ones before it, you will be surprised. The stakes are higher and the movie immediately makes clear that no one in this movie is safe, hero or not, they can be killed, which is a constant feeling throughout the film. Because of that it has more emotional impact than any MCU film which came before and I haven’t previously experienced a moment in the cinema where the audience was completely silent as the credits rolled, so big was the impact on them. A movie which will move you and also makes you realise you really don’t want to wait to find out what happens next. A must see.
[score9]
For me, it didn’t have an emotional impact at all. I honestly cried more when Yondu died in Vol 2. Here, I felt like everything was so fast paced that even the deaths felt like quick pitstops before the finale. I would have wanted to actually get used to the idea..
But it’s still a must see movie, just because it does, like you said, manage to balance the characters. it didn’t feel crowded at all and the pairings worked well. Only the “Earth team” was a little boring until the final battle.