Joss Whedon did it again. Of course, he did!
He managed to wrangle a cast full of larger than life
personalities into a great movie, allowing everyone their moment to shine. I
think I’m not alone when I say Robert Downey Jr’s Iron Man definitely ran the
show, but Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk stole it. The two scenes my kids still talk about
are the Other Guy sucker punching Thor and breaking the floor with I-am-a-god
Loki. Tom Hiddleston, by the way, was great as Loki.
Also great was Clark Gregg as Agent Coulson whose first name
is Phil despite Tony Stark assuring us it’s “Agent.” The man has deadpan down
to a science.
I had a great time watching and reacquainting myself with
the characters we came to know over the last five years. Black Widow was a bit
lost on my (probably all my fault; female characters just don’t ping my radar).
Jeremy Renner’s Hawkeye seemed almost cartoonish when he showed off his
marksmanship. My interest in him was mostly his upcoming Bourne movie, i.e. I
wanted to see him act tough to decide whether or not Bourne Legacy was going to
make my list of movies-to-watch-this-summer.
I loved the way they all came together. I loved that they
all had their time in the spotlight. I freely admit that Captain America won me
over (his movie didn’t). I thought Edward Norton was the best Hulk thus far,
but Mark Ruffalo gave him a run for his money and made me enjoy the Other Guy.
Job well done, for sure.
I think it’s safe to say this movie lived up to its hype. Go
see it!
