So. My full review.
This is a film that many said wouldn't work. And on paper, maybe it shouldn't. This film juggles over 20 characters, with a bunch of sub-plots, while also giving (the majority!) of screentime to Thanos. Yet somehow, while the film certainly does feel stuffed, it never feels incoherent (though maybe it's different for someone who hasn't seen all the MCU films) and various characters even have their character arcs furthered.
Character wise, almost nothing but positive things to say. Part of why this film works is because we already know and like the characters from previous films. Heck, even characters I weren't crazy about before (Scarlet Witch) are improved. The heroes are all easy to root for, and no one feels too one-note.
Vision and Scarlet Witch's romance is a lot better than the Bruce/Natasha one (which thankfully barely appears here). Elizabeth Olsen really gets more of a chance here to show off her dramatic chops. Iron Man is still my favorite Avenger, and a scene near the end is heartbreaking for him, especially since he spent years trying to prevent this. The Guardians still have very believable chemistry; Gamora almost deserves her own paragraph because she has a surprisingly large role. In fact, it's vital to the movie. This may be her best appearance so far.
Some people may be shocked that Cap, Black Widow, and Black Panther actually have surprisingly small roles, but they're still pretty epic whenever they are on screen. Bruce Banner basically has Surfer's role. But the most interesting part of his character is that for the first time, the Hulk seems...scared.
Villain wise,most of the Black Order are basically fodder, but they're cool fodder. Thanos, however, is a revelation. He's one of my favorite Marvel villains, but frankly, he's been written badly more times than he's been written well, so I was naturally concerned if he would live up to years of hype.
Boy, does he. Not only is he the best MCU villain, he's also one of the best CBM villains. I went there. See, there's been this stereotype regarding cosmic villains that, for lack of a better word, they're one-note. With Thanos, they made the wise decision to humanize him just enough that he doesn't come across like a generic final boss or a personality-less CGI creation. He has actual emotions and depth to him, and his dialogue is amazingly delivered by Josh Brolin. Some people still don't respect mo-cap (sorry, Serkis) but Brolin possibly gives the best mo-cap acting I've seen.
The effects are amazing, and helps deliver the best MCU action scenes to date. The script is strong, with fun character interplay (my theater laughed a lot) but this script is multi-purpose. It has funny moments, sad scenes, epic, cheer in your seat action, and quiet, introspective moments.
I also appreciate some of the risks this film takes, even if it possibly means alienating some of the general audience. Like giving Thanos the most screentime, and more notably, the ending. Whoo. My theater was so quiet at the end.
I've already heard some people say the ending isn't effective, and even laughable, because comic fans know that many of the characters will return, but I respectfully disagree. It all depends how it;s handled, and I trust the Russos at this point.
Just how many TV series have featured two-parters where the first part ends with the deaths of various characters - only for the second part to reveal that they didn't die? It happens a lot, but normally works out fine. And heck, in the original Gauntlet comic, literally everyone came back, and it's still considered one of the strongest comic arcs ever written.
So yeah, part 2 could botch it up - but I don't think so. Do I think many of the heroes will return? Yes, but I think it'll happen in such a way that doesn't cheapen this ending.
What else can I say? One of the stronger soundtracks in the MCU, the after credit scene was fun, and I appreciated the detail of having "Thanos will return" at the end, instead of the heroes like usual.
