"You can be damned sure we'll Avenge it."

From the opening credits to the (immensely satisfying) finale, The Avengers is the most fun I've had in a movie theatre in a long time. It combines memorable characters, a funny script and some of the coolest action sequences ever put to film. It is, quite simply, a triumph - and it's more than worthy of my (sort of) prestigious Golden Bacon Award.

Few films have been as ambitious or intriguing as the concept for The Avengers. The idea for the film was kicked around Hollywood for years, but it wasn't until Marvel Studios started taking control of their own brand and characters that it seemed legitimately possible to pull off. The seeds were planted in the post-credits scene of 'Iron Man', where Tony Stark meets Samuel L. Jackson's Nick Fury. Then over the course of four more films (Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 2, Thor and Captain America), water, sun and a little fertilizer was added. Basically, Marvel Studios has created this one, unified world and managed to populate it with all of these characters. The fact that these individuals keep appearing in each other's films keeps awareness high and ties it all together extremely well. And now, the payoff - when we finally get to see all of these characters together in the same film, at the same time, is immensely satisfying. Plus, the fact that Joss Whedon wrote and directed it doesn't hurt either.

In all, Avengers is one of the most satisfying movie experiences I've ever had the pleasure of attending. It positively glows in just about every aspect. The dialogue is smart when it has to be, cornball when it calls for it, and there're more than a few positively brilliant one-liners (usually - but not entirely - from the mouth of Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark). Even speaking as someone who's not particularly fond of 3D, I didn't find it to be forced or distracting. There were no blatant 'money shots' - if you could ever accuse the 3D gimmick of being 'understated', this film would be the one to do it. It's there, and you notice it, but it's not distracting. It does what it's supposed to - it adds to the film without making a 2D version of the film unwatchable (which, when you're kicking in an extra three bucks for the 'option' of seeing a film in 3D, is really all you can ask for).

The plot involves Loki (Thor's half-brother/nemesis, introduced in Thor's movie just last year - which is great because there's no need to spend half an hour setting up the villain) trying to steal the Tesseract - a cube of extraterrestrial origin that was introduced (you guessed it) in Captain America's film. For what it's worth, the film is full of little things like this that do a great job of creating a sense of unity between these disparate characters. Anyway, Loki steals the Tesseract from SHIELD and Nick Fury calls on the Avengers (Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Black Widow, Hawkeye and Bruce Banner/Hulk) to save the day. I won't delve much further into the plot because I don't want to spoil anything, but let it be said that while the plot moves forward in a relatively linear fashion, it doesn't always do what you expect it will. Joss Whedon does a great job of handling all of these characters and keeping the action moving forward, but the direction never feels muddied or bogged down. He's essentially got six lead characters, but the pacing is so even that you never really feel like one's getting shafted at the expense of the others. He keeps the film moving quickly and efficiently.

As something of a comic book nerd in addition to film geek, there were at least three occasions where I geeked out so hard that I almost left my seat and shot into orbit. Joss, being something of a comic book geek himself - he's done several turns as lead writer in Marvel books in the past - clearly knows and has a certain amount of affection for these characters and the world they inhabit. Again, I won't go into detail because I want everyone to experience these moments for the first time, but I will say that I had a big, dumb, goofy grin on my face the entire time.

For me (and most others, I would imagine), the gold standard when it comes to comic book films is The Dark Knight. That being said, however, I find The Dark Knight to be simply a great 'film' - that just happens to be based on a comic book. Avengers is now, unquestionably the best *comic book* film I've seen. Does that make sense? It revels in its source material and, above all, is simply a joy to watch. I could sit here and heap more superlatives upon it, but really, it's 2.5 hours of glowing nerdgasm in 3D (or not) and I am absolutely going to see it again.

Your move, Dark Knight.

Geek Score: 10 Bacon Strips out of 10 - Golden Bacon Award

What I'm Playing: NHL 12 (playing as the goalie is hard), Mass Effect 3 for XBox 360

What I'm Reading: Preacher, vol. 6

- EP

Thor

Thor is an ... uneven film.   It glosses over some of the subtler points of the character's origin story,  it contains a love story that seems almost forced and tacked-on, and characters are confused and underdeveloped.  Despite all this, however, it is a solid addition to Marvel film canon and should be enjoyed by both comic book nerds and people looking for something shiny that makes things go boom.


Thor has been around for a while - the Marvel version of the character dates back to the early '60s, and rumours of a film version have been kicking around for what seems like ages.  It wasn't until Marvel recently decided to take hold of their own properties that it came to fruition, though.  Chris Hemsworth is the titular character in a role that won't serve to turn him into an household name, but should ensure he sees regular work for the near future.  As Thor, God of Thunder, son of Odin, and heir to the throne of the realm of Asgard, he's brash, strong and arrogant - and, of course, dashingly handsome.  Basically, he is exactly what you'd expect him to be.  Cast out of Asgard by his brother, Loki (Tom Hiddleston in a role with just the right amount of sniveling and menace), Thor winds up on Earth - where he undergoes various 'fish-out-of-water' moments (one scene with Thor enjoying a particularly tasty cup of coffee is great) and, predictably, falls in love with the first attractive woman he meets (Natalie Portman as Dr. Jane Foster).  Frankly, one of my biggest issues with the film is this relationship itself - without spoiling anything, I'll just say that they took a few... 'liberties' with the character's origin story and because of this, the relationship between the two doesn't seem to ring true with me - in many ways, she almost seems as if she's there just to make googly eyes at him and laugh at his alien quirks.

And speaking of glossing-over, Thor has four warrior friends from Asgard who journey to Earth in a bid to convince him to return home, but these characters are so static that I couldn't even remember their names without looking them up on IMDB (The girl is named Sif... the other three, I don't know - one of them likes eating, I think).  They seem to exist to drive the plot forward and nothing else.  In a film directed by Kenneth Branagh, I was just a little bit shocked by how paper-thin they are.

Enough nitpicking, though - Thor is a comic book movie and the main thing I should be asking is, "Is it fun?".  Thankfully, I can answer that emphatically in the affirmative.  The scenes in Asgard, though all CGI, are quite pretty to look at.  Seriously, how much Windex do you think they go through in a year up there?  *Everything* has this glossy sheen to it which lends very well to the otherworldly aesthetic they're trying to achieve.  The action sequences are well-shot and the special FX are more than adequate (the scene where the Destroyer rampages through a SHIELD roadblock is particularly memorable).  The direction by the aforementioned Branagh is tight and good pacing keeps the film moving (it clocks in at a brisk 2 hours).  Additionally, the acting is almost uniformly solid, if not excellent.  Plus, there are more than a few nods and winks to comic fans (Watch for Hawkeye in the scene where Thor assaults the SHIELD base) that make it worth a view if you're a huge nerd like me.

That being said, will NON-comic book fans enjoy it?  I would wager so - it's May now, so the summer movie season is starting up.  It's the time of year when people come to the multiplex and feel perfectly all right with turning off the logic centre of their brain and watching things go 'splodey on-screen, and Thor does it with enough bombast and good humour to make it worth your dollar.  It's far from a perfect adaptation, but it's a decent franchise starter and a worthwhile addition to Marvel film canon.



Geek Score:  7 out of 10 bacon strips.


What I'm Playing: Alan Wake (a fun game, but this is just a placeholder until next week when L.A. Noire comes out)

What I'm Reading: Batman: Arkham City