![]() Such are the conundrums that Marvel now poses. So: Almost 700 words in, and I have so far mentioned only one-Bruce Banner, for those who might have lost track-of the multivarious superheroes inhabiting this largest of superhero movies. Deranged though it may be, his population-control rationale for mass murder is actually an upgrade from the comics, in which he mostly wanted to kill trillions in order to earn a date with the female embodiment of Death. But Brolin’s Thanos is an unexpectedly resonant monster, filled with sadness and even a perverse sense of honor. ![]() Gollum of Lord of the Rings, Caesar of the last two Planet of the Apes films: For a time, it seemed that only Andy Serkis, the early maestro of motion capture, had any real idea how to bring the medium to life. Though still in its infancy, and frequently misused, motion-capture is gradually, if intermittently, living up to its cinematic potential. He’s no Erik “Killmonger” Stevens, with his problematic but hard-earned racial politics, or Loki, with his wicked yet adorable mischief, but he’s only a notch below them. I should note here that if the central flaw of many Marvel movies to date has been the relative lameness of their villains- Ronan the Accuser? Malekith the Dark Elf?-Thanos is very much in the studio’s top tier. (It is, in its way, a classic supply/demand dispute.) Thanos, as an all-powerful giant purple space-maniac, arrives at an alternative argument for more intergalactic genocide. Malthus, as a cleric, offered this thesis as an argument for less “vice,” later marriages, and greater celibacy. Why would he want to do this? Well, consider Thanos the most enthusiastic-and unfortunately, also the most super-powered-disciple of Thomas Robert Malthus, who argued that appetites would always outstrip resources, leaving humankind perpetually poor and famished. Try, along with Bruce, to keep up.)īy far the Biggest of the Big Bads we have yet encountered, Thanos-a motion-capture performance from Josh Brolin-believes that if he can get all six stones and affix them to his “infinity gauntlet,” he will be able to destroy half of all life in the universe with a literal snap of his fingers. The story, which Marvel seems to have been building toward since our collective childhoods, revolves around the existence of six “infinity stones” created during the Big Bang and sent “whizzing across the universe.” (This information comes courtesy of Wong-played by, no, not a typo, Benedict Wong-the mystical sidekick of Dr. Now I’ll just feel doubly bad for leaving out someone whom the movie already left out. My guess is that most of the random bystanders from the various Avengers dustups in New York, Sokovia, and Lagos don’t make appearances either. So let’s save that for later, and start with the reverse, which is far easier: There’s no Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), no Ant-Man (Paul Rudd), no Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson), no Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o), and no Everett Ross (the CIA agent played by Martin Freeman). I could try to name all the MCU characters who make appearances in the film, but I’d just wind up leaving a few out, and then we’d all feel bad. There are a few unforced errors-a late defeat-snatched-from-the-jaws-of-victory moment, the ongoing Iron Man–ification of Spidey’s “suit”-but the film’s number of actual missteps is a tiny fraction of the potential missteps inherent in an undertaking this vast. It is far from a perfect movie, but it is probably close to the best movie it could have been. Infinity War-the title is almost too apt-is a narrative juggling act the likes of which I’m not sure I’ve ever seen before. ![]() ![]() Never has the “Marvel Cinematic Universe” seemed like more of a universe, in ways both good and bad. Why Earth’s History Appears So Miraculous Peter Brannen (Marvel fans will recall he spent the interim years perfecting the extraterrestrial ultimate-fighting skills that he showed off in last year’s Thor: Ragnarok.) At one point, having sat out the whole Captain America: Civil War storyline, Banner asks, “The Avengers broke up? Like a band? Like the Beatles?” Later, he’s more incredulous still at the launch of not one, but two new arthropod-based Marvel franchises: “There’s an Ant-Man and a Spider-Man?” Oh, Bruce. the actor Mark Ruffalo-shows up early in Avengers: Infinity War, he has a bit of catching up to do. But actually-trust me, and take a deep breath-that was eight Marvel movies ago. It seems like only a couple of Marvel movies ago that the original Avengers-Cap, Iron Man, Thor, Black Widow, Hulk, Hawkeye-were duking it out with Tony Stark’s high-end, ill-advised kitchenware Ultron and his shiny utensil-minions. Those who wish to avoid any such knowledge should see the movie first.Īh, how times passes. Note: Although this review avoids spoilers, it inevitably contains hints of what transpires in the film.
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