'Avengers: Infinity War' Movie Review

Released: 27th April 2017 (UK and US)

Length: 149 Minutes

Certificate: 12A

Director: Anthony and Joe Russo

Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Benedict Cumberbath, Tom Holland, Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper, Chadwick Boseman, Don Cheadle, Anthony Mackie, Paul Bettany, Elizabeth Olsen, Sebastian Stan and Josh Brolin.

2008’s Iron Man was a great film, but it was the closing moments that left the biggest impact on the superhero genre and indeed cinema as a whole. The prospect of bringing together countless characters together for the ultimate crossover is something that just about every major studio has had a crack at, but none have been able to top Marvel’s original formula. After a huge amount of anticipation, Avengers: Infinity War has arrived; it’s the culmination of ten years and eighteen movies worth of build-up. Does it work? Without a doubt…

Avengers: Infinity War brings on the ultimate test for the MCU’s heroes, that of Thanos’ (Josh Brolin) universal conquest for the Infinity Stones; with all six of them, he can wipe out half the universe and it’s up to Captain America/Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), Iron Man/Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) and their respective teams and alliances to put a stop to it. With the background and lore already laid out, Infinity War puts it all on the line, raising the stakes to the highest they’ve ever been, telling its story via groups of characters each with their own role to play. Just like its predecessors, the balance between the characters is excellently done as the film cuts back and forth across Earth and beyond. The first act has plenty of awe-inspiring entrances from the well-known characters and from here, the action is non-stop; the intensity builds to a peak in the last moments, where a shocking conclusion throws the more light-hearted tone of the MCU sideways. Everything really does come together here; if you forced me to say anything negative about it, it’s that a lot of the impact will be lost on you if you haven’t been following key parts of the franchise.

A gargantuan cast lines the narrative of Avengers 3 and because we’ve had ample time to get to know each and every one of them, they’re all perfectly positioned for the epic showdown, having been marked by the journeys they went through in previous films. Both Iron Man and Captain America feel appropriately serious, hardened by their conflict in Civil War; Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is bruised and battered, the Guardians of the Galaxy (Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista and Bradley Cooper) find themselves out of their depth, and Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) finds his morals put to the test. These are just some of the tribulations thrust upon the characters which create an immense amount of dramatic impact, yet even with the end of the world bearing down on them, the unique characteristics always come into play in all the right ways; there’s still plenty of humour to be found with some of the highlights being some banter between the Guardians, Thor and Tony Stark. Rounding off the list is Thanos himself, who receives a very effective amount of development throughout; for a character who we’ve only seen briefly in post-credit scenes, this is another high point, as we witness his reasons for bringing the universe into balance and the belief that his deeds are for the greater good. You’ll be wondering what will happen to every one of these characters throughout the film, which gives the third Avengers a sense of palpable uncertainty, something hammered home even more by the aforementioned finale.

We’ve seen plenty of action from the MCU over the years, and Infinity War ramps things up considerably; all of it is incredibly tense and well-shot, with one scene involving hundreds of characters clashing on the field of battle. The visual effects also reach a new zenith, with incredible looking locales in the far reaches of space and impactful spectacles that showcase the power of the infinity stones as they come into play one by one. The way the different effects and tones throughout the series come together are also stellar with Iron Man’s suits matched against Dr Strange’s portals; seeing all these varying effects coming together is yet another culminative effect that Infinity War makes skillful use of throughout. The score from the returning Alan Silvestri feels far weightier here than it ever did in the film’s predecessors, with a powerful array of choirs and more ominous notes that really get across the devastation of Thanos’s march. Just as the build-up led us to believe, Infinity War stakes its place as the biggest and most far-reaching entry in the franchise, with an arsenal of superb special effects to match.

Infinity War is a truly amazing achievement; every payoff lands brilliantly, not a single member of the cast is at fault and the plot is unrelenting in both its drama and action. It’s a testament to the years of painstaking effort and passion poured into the MCU’s productions and it’s an event that every single audience, comic book fan or not, simply must experience.

Rating: 5/5 Stars (Exceptional)