Marvel's Avengers: Age Of Ultron

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The follow up to 2012's Marvel's The Avengers has finally arrived, and in a scale so huge that even the big screen can barely contain. Director Joss Whedon had been tasked with a daunting challenge, "How do you top the Avengers, the 3rd highest-grossing film of all time?" His answer: Ultron, a villain he wanted to put on the big screen even before the first Avengers film was finished. 

Marvel's Avengers: Age Of Ultron picks up the avengers from where they were left off in their solo films. Iron Man is still haunted by the events of the first Avengers film and began working on a peace-keeping project called Ultron. However, with Ultron realising that the only way peace can be achieved is through human extinction, the avengers must team up once again to thwart his plan for world destruction. 

To start off, the film was genuinely as fun and entertaining as you would expect from any Marvel film. The action was unlike anything I have seen and it showed us creatively what more the avengers could do as a team. The film likes to show off with numerous long takes that show the avengers fighting together as a team which make it really fun to watch. We get to learn more about the dynamics of the avengers, the friction between some characters as well as the internal struggles of each individual avenger. Hawkeye also played a larger role in the film, which is a plus considering how he was downplayed previously. 

On top of that, the scale of the movie is just massive. It is expected for a sequel to strive to be bigger and better than it's predecessor but there are so many things going on in Age of Ultron, it felt exhausting at times. I felt that the film served too many purposes and was bloated with content, making it difficult to keep up with every detail. It not only picks up where each of the previous solo films left off, but sets up the universe for future films in Phase 3, introduces new heroes and villains into the universe, while building a coherent story of it's own. It's a incredible task that Whedon pulled off pretty well, but not perfectly. 

Speaking of bloated, one thing that bothered me was the film's soundtrack, which was a confusing mix of music from the previous films. The music of the film is composed by two composers, Brian Tyler and Danny Elfman, both incredible artists on their own, but together made the soundtrack feel like it was at war with itself. Alan Silvestri's original Avenger's theme was weirdly interwoven with the themes of the Iron Man, Thor and Captain America and the essence of it got lost in translation. There wasn't a hook in the music that got me like the first film did. Perhaps the law of diminishing returns has begun to appear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. 

On the other hand, the film's main antagonist, Ultron is undoubtedly the most terrifying villain this universe has put to screen. Marvel Studios have been struggling with creating compelling villains for their heroes over the years, with their only major success being Loki. However, Ultron made himself a worthy contender in this film. What I particularly enjoyed about Ultron is the irony of how an artificial intelligence which is supposed to know everything, acts like a delusional newborn that knows nothing. He thinks he knows the solution to the world's problems and his recklessness in going about achieving his goals makes him simply frightening. 

One other thing I liked about the film is the fact that the essence of a superhero movie is still intact. Superheroes are supposed to be about protecting the innocent civilians from harm and it is the core of what this film is generally about. Amidst all the battles with Ultron, the avengers' main priority is the safety of civilians in harms way, a quality that some superhero films tend to forget. 

In all, I felt that although Marvel's Avengers: Age of Ultron did not top the original Avengers, it is still an impressive and entertaining film. It may have been better if Marvel stayed more grounded on what it wants the film to be and stop trying to build the universe too quickly and put everything in. However, director Joss Whedon still managed to pull everything together and create a film many will enjoy.

Furious 7

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I have not been an avid follower of The Fast and Furious Franchise but I wish I had, because Furious 7 was one of the most fun and thrilling films I have watched this year. The film not only boast strong cast of cool and fun characters, it is also densely packed with amazing action sequences while leaving room for some really heartfelt moments.

I went into Furious 7 not knowing what to expect other than the fact that the film is going to pay tribute to the late Paul Walker, who passed away in a tragic car accident before filming could be finished. Although I am not familiar with any of main characters, or what happened over the past 6 installments, they do not stop me from immediately connecting with the characters during the film. It was then I regretted not having followed the franchise more closely.  The film helped a lot in subtly and seamlessly introducing characters to non-followers. I greatly enjoyed the dynamic of the group, or should I say “family”, and how each of them had their moment to shine.

One thing that Furious 7 was never short of was action. The film was jammed pack with scene after scene of intense car chases. I’m not going to give anything away in this spoiler-free review but the scenes left me on the edge of my seat with adrenaline pumping through my veins. The film also incorporates a lot of humor into their action sequences and adopts light tone. The down side of this is that it made me feel as if none of the characters were in actual danger and that they were going to make it out of every scenario unscathed. Perhaps the franchise has already dealt with death in the past and wanted to avoid another similar scenario, especially after Paul Walker’s passing.

The film ended with a tribute to Paul Walker and I have to say that it was genuinely heartfelt and beautifully done. It clearly captured Paul’s legacy in this film and served as a touching goodbye to the series’ main star. The studio had made the right approaches on overcoming such a tragedy and managed to finish the film in memory of Paul. In addition, the visual effects team has also done a great job in creating a CGI version of Paul for the unfinished scenes, of which I could hardly notice the difference.

In all, Furious 7 has struck the balance between creating an action packed thriller and creating an emotional tribute to their late star. Viewers, regardless of whether they followed the franchise, are definitely going to be entertained and it is definitely not a film to be missed.