Careful, spoilers ahead.
Starring:
Robert Downey Jr.
Chris Hemsworth
Tom Holland
Benedict Cumberbatch
Josh Brolin
Directors:
Anthony & Joe Russo
Likes:
- Going into this movie, I felt the expectations were too high for Marvel to succeed. The plot wasn’t going to be interesting, there were too many characters to keep track of, and many fans are too shrewd to let anything deviate far from comic book canon. Yet, they managed to execute Infinity War with a riveting, emotional rollercoaster of a story, killed off many heroes, and let the bad guy actually win. It’s equal parts satisfying and depressing.
- This marks the end of an era. Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hulk, all the old Avengers’ fates are up in the air because it’s time to usher in the newer, younger Phase 4 heroes. We’ve invested so many years and dollars into this franchise, and the knowledge that not everyone will make it out grabs our attention more.
- The complex relationships between some of the characters are fascinating: Gamora willing to kill Thanos, yet anguished over it. Quill and Scarlet Witch also willing to kill their lovers for the sake of the universe. Perhaps a little repetitive by the time we get to Scarlet Witch, but heart wrenching all the same (I didn’t catch the repeated line, “I just feel you,” until the second time around, and it made that scene even more powerful).
- Thor chucking Stormbreaker into Thanos nearly made me jump out of my seat in the theater with a Ragnarok-level “YES!” on my lips. So epic.
Dislikes:
- WHAT IS WITH ALL THIS SPARE-ONE-PERSON-TO-DOOM-THE-UNIVERSE SHIT?! For every character willing to kill another to save the universe, there’s someone who fucks it all up because, oh, my poor cyborg sister is being tortured, etc. :'(
- Our first introduction to Thanos back in The Avengers hinted that Mistress Death would play a part in his genocidal motivations…alas, we fans were hoodwinked. I think she could still show up in Endgame, but it’s looking about as likely as having Squirrel Girl swoop in and save the day in the eleventh hour (as much as I would love to see that).
- Time may eventually render all of Infinity War’s faults out in the open, but so far my issues with the film are minimal. Like how everyone is magically on comms again (like, are they just mics Tony implanted in everyone’s ears…? How do they manage to coordinate so well?), Thor being able to breathe in the vacuum of space (then again he is a god…), and spaceships being on fire or having their hulls shot through and still being structurally okay. Still, not exactly deal breakers for me.
