Avengers: Infinity War

Avengers: Infinity War is the cinematic event of a generation, an unparalleled and previously un-attempted 10-year gamble that paid off. The film is the first part of the culmination of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, masterfully and efficiently tying every previously established story thread into one movie.

I’m sure you’re already familiar with the story, but I’ll hit some of the story’s high points just in case you’ve been living under a cultural rock for the last decade. Thanos, one of the universe’s most powerful beings, sets out to attain ultimate power by collecting all six Infinity Stones, each of which grants him a specific type of power. All that stands in his way are the Avengers.

Infinity War was always destined to feel more like an event than a film, and those are expectations it easily lives up (or down) to. However, perhaps that’s more of a testament to the MCU’s excellent storytelling than to Infinity War’s preoccupation with its own narrative’s importance.

Infinity War’s plot kicks off relatively quickly, beginning with Thanos’ lieutenants’ arrival on Earth. The movie wisely splits up its heroes, sending each of them to various locations to stop Thanos from obtaining the Infinity Stones.

One of the film’s greatest strengths is its well-written villain. From the opening scene, Thanos is presented as a serious threat, the likes of which the MCU has never produced before. He is immediately a three-dimensional character, easily making the audience forget the wave of lackluster villains which preceded him.

In addition to his apparent capability of conquering the universe, Thanos is a deeply complex villain. Not content to settle for a villain who is simply pure, unadulterated malevolence, writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely instead presented a villain who believes his goals are just and will do whatever he must to reach them. Complicating Thanos’ character further are hints that somewhere deep within him, a conscience remains.

Infinity War is, for the most part, very well paced. Characters’ story threads are mostly left to other films, and the script focuses solely on the Avengers’ attempts to defeat Thanos. Once Thanos begins his quest, the script’s pace is relentless, establishing a tense finale long before it actually reaches the screen.

Directors Anthony and Joe Russo return to the MCU, having previously directed two of the series’ best films, Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Captain America: Civil War. Their direction here is confident and inspired, forging a cohesive identity for the film from the very start.

The acting in the film is perhaps the best we’ve seen from the MCU. Tom Holland steals the show here, providing the finale with far more emotion than it would have otherwise possessed. Each actor gets their chance to shine, however, and all of them deliver.

Infinity War saw Alan Silvestri return to the MCU for the first time since 2012. His work here is better than his previous attempt at scoring an Avengers film, creating a well-established tone and atmosphere from the beginning. Silvestri elected to disregard all thematic material but his original Avengers theme, and for the most part it’s not missed. His score, while not as memorable as it could have been, contains several brilliant moments and emotionally evocative portions.

And now we come to the less positive aspects of Infinity War. Despite the mostly solid pacing of the film, it’s at least 30 minutes too long. Each scene may be crucial to the plot, but many of them (especially the finale’s fight scenes) simply drag on for far too long and any sense of suspense is lost. When we watch Thanos take uppercut after uppercut without being affected, we begin to wonder what the point of the next 15 minutes of him being punched really is.

Additionally, while the film feels relatively self-contained, the film can’t help but feel like the “part 1” that it is, especially as it progresses. Toward the end, the audience begins to truly understand just how much of the story will be told in the sequel: most of it.

Lastly, the film’s ending is one of the most memorable in recent memory, for better and worse. On the one hand, the stakes it raises are nearly non-existent, but on the other hand it packs an emotional wallop that greatly enhances the quality of the ending. Like the rest of the film, it’s imperfectly good. Avengers: Infinity War may be groundbreaking in many ways, but it’s not Oscar-worthy. The film is brought down by its bloated length, but ultimately manages to overcome its flaws to deliver a film experience unlike any other. In the end, I’m going to give Avengers: Infinity War 3.5/5 stars.