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ASSEMBLING THE AVENGERS Text // Nick Johnston
Even if you’re not a nerd, there’s something incredibly exciting about the Marvel Cinematic Universe coming to its logical conclusion on May 4th with the release of The Avengers, a giant team-up of all the world’s greatest heroes to stop an otherworldly force that threatens the Earth. It’s one of the most anticipated movies of the summer, and promises to be a delight for all ages. Now, if you are a nerd, then you’ve probably been salivating since you got your first taste of the movie at the end of Captain America, browsing set photos and reading interviews, and getting spoiled by assholes on the internet (damn you, Reddit). However, what will it take for The Avengers to truly succeed as a movie-going experience in terms of style, storytelling and content? I’ve evaluated the qualities needed to make it a fantastic time in the theater using aspects from all the Marvel movies and some of my own personal analysis. Let’s get it on! Wit- Iron Man is the miracle at the heart of all of this. The fact that a movie starring a formerly drug-addled nut of an actor and Chris Martin’s wife, directed by the man who brought us Zathura, not only revitalized all of their careers and made a public hero out of the first, it allowed Marvel Studios to begin laying the groundwork for all of this. It came very close to not making it to screen- Downey Jr. was considered a huge risk for such a high-profile part due to his past and his insurance costs (Tom Cruise was originally the pick to go with), the script went through countless changes, and Iron Man’s never been the most popular superhero with the public- but when it did, it had a special blend of herbs and spices that, like a bucket of KFC, we couldn’t resist. The key ingredient to making Iron Man work would have to be its wit, from the incredibly memorable dialogue to the careful and loving subversions of the tropes of the superhero genre. If The Avengers comes anywhere close to equaling the intelligence of its founding work, it will be a joy to watch, and by hiring Joss Whedon to write and direct, I’d say the odds are in its favor. Also, for an
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example on how not to do this whole “individual franchises leading up to a team-up movie” business right, watch Green Lantern-- I can’t believe I paid to see that piece of shit. Expediency- Out of all the Marvel movies, my least favorite is the tepid and mind-numbing Incredible Hulk, which is why I’m incredibly glad we’re getting a vaguely fresh start with the role being recast. Marvel Studios famously had a ton of trouble with Ed Norton and, like Terrence Howard in Iron Man, decided to get rid of him in favor of someone easier to work with, that person being the great Mark Ruffalo. For once, thank god for Norton’s pettiness; his stuffy, brooding Banner would be so out of place among the charismatic collection of actors brought together for the project. However, one aspect of that movie is essential to The Avengers working well. At the start of the movie, the Hulk’s origin is briefly recapped during the opening credits, and, instead of spending three hours telling us stuff that we already know, leads us directly into the new story. Even though this did cause some confusion among audience members, leading them to believe it was a sequel to Ang Lee’s version, we’re smarter than that now. Such expediency is required to tell a story with this scope (even The Iliad does this), and from the looks of it, we’ll be jumping right into the ass-kicking heroics. Also, Marvel seems like they’re finally getting the Hulk and how to make him work on film, so that’s an added bonus. Not since the days of Lou Ferrigno and Bill Bixby has anybody truly understood his character (see Film Crit Hulk’s Christmas article at Badass Digest for more insight!). Here’s to new beginnings and all the awesome smashing that will follow. World-Building- I’ve gotten into many drunken arguments about why I think Iron Man 2 is a fantastic comic book movie, even though it’s almost on par with The Incredible Hulk in terms of quality. By no means is it a “good” movie, but, if you watch it without seeing any other Marvel movies, it ac-