Marvel Studios Retrospective Reviews

[DarthSkywalker]

I am going to watch all the movies again over the next 3 days. Well everything but TIH. Would be fun to give my opinion.

And Snow Queen how can you listen to the piece of music that plays when Groot lights up the ship and say forgettable score?

 

[Keyser Soze]

Very well written reviews Keyser. The only one where my opinion differs in a signifigant fashion is GotG. Interesting to note you didn't mention Gamora at all. Or Ronan.

Yeah, I didn't touch on them too much in this review. Though I have written 4 other reivews for this film at various points in the past, and in at least one of them I focused more heavily on characters and talked more about both Gamora and Ronan.

Gamora isn't necessarily the flashiest part in the cast, but she's the figure who actually carries the bulk of the narrative in terms of establishing the wider universe. There's also some interesting stuff, only really touched on in their discussions at Knowhere, where you see Gamora is in a lot of ways a reflection of Quill: both were taken from their homeworld as children by "bad" alien beings (though in Gamora's case much badder than what Quill grew up with) and raised into adulthood by loveless parent surrogates who attempted to mould them into their image. Gamora is interesting in that, while it's common in superhero films (and indeed many action/adventure films) for the female lead to evolve into a love interest, with Gamora it's reversed, in that Quill immediately has an attraction to Gamora, but the romantic chemistry steadily recedes over the course of the movie until by the end Quill has found Gamora's true value as a friend, an adopted family member, and more subtly, a template upon which Quill bases his own moral awakening and rebellion against what he has been told is his nature.

Ronan doesn't have the most depth for a villain. He's fairly one-note, "BWAHAHA!" evil. I've seen some compare him to Malekith, but what makes him better than Malekith is that, though he may lack nuance, he's still portrayed as an effective, formidable antagonist, whereas Malekith was presented as a pretty weak, non-substantial entity. Ronan gets his share of cool moments - killing off The Other, beating the snot out of Ronan, "Thanos, I'm coming for you!" - which ensure he remains an enjoyable presence in the movie. But for me, it's Ronan's deficencies as a character that make him most interesting in the context of the film as a whole. Because Ronan, to me, is presented as the villain of a straight-faced, earnest sci-fi epic who has stumbled into this kooky, oddball corner of the Marvel Universe. If Ronan was the villain in a Star Wars or Star Trek film, he would have won. But he is unable to comprehend the weird rhythms of the weirdo ensemble placed against him in this film, as he's operating by the rules of po-faced, serious sci-fi, and that is ultimately his undoing.

 

[Keyser Soze]

Nice reviews. Can't say I always agree with them, but you do a good job explaining your point of view.

Personally, not as thorough as your reviews though:

Spoiler

Iron Man

Positives:
-RDJ's performance, needless to say
-great supporting cast
-the first two thirds of the film have a sense of grit to them that really works well
-in my opinion, one of the best openings to any CBM
-Stane pre-Iron Monger armour is a great villain
-the stuff in Afghanistan is flawless
-the score is one of the best superhero scores and head and shoulders above any other score in the MCU
-solid character arc

Negatives:
-The film, despite some solid scenes after it, feels less interesting somehow after the scene where Tony goes back to Afghanistan as Iron Man
-Stane as Iron Monger doesn't work for me
-the third act loses the grit of the first two acts

8/10

The Incredible Hulk
Positives:
-Edward Norton gives a performance that I feel is quite underrated
-Unlike the Hulk in other films, I feel this one really captures the struggle he has
-The first act is perfect and does a good job giving us a look into Banner's life
-Leterrier does a solid job directing
-As with Iron Man, there's a certain grit to it that makes it feel real and makes it not feel too polished, unfortunately I believe this is the last Marvel film to feel that way
-The action scenes are well done, the standout being the one in the bottling plant

Negatives:
-Liv Tyler feels on auto pilot and I can't blame her, the character is pretty dull
-Not a fan of what they do with Blonsky towards the end
-Though still good, the film's latter two acts definitely don't match the first
-Tim Roth feels wasted
-Villain teasing that will go nowhere

7/10

Iron Man 2
Positives:
+The acting's pretty solid across the board
+Sam Rockwell deserves a spot of his own, he's so much fun to watch
+The plot is solid in it's more broad strokes
+There's some potentially interesting paralleling between Stark's position in the first film to Vanko in this, particularly when he and Hammer have their chat in the hanger. Unfortunately it doesn't do much with this.
+The race track fight is good

Negatives:
-It misses the energy of the original and manages to feel pretty bland
-The score, while decent, is a major step down from the score in the first
-Despite the plot working in broad strokes as I said, the execution doesn't quite work. It ends up feeling dull.
-Some of the dialogue feels like what it is: the actors improvising to try and recapture the spontaneity of the original. It unfortunately fails at it's goal.
-Not too fond of this being Widow's introduction considering how she's handled
-Can't stand the Tony/Rhodey fight
-A lot of Vanko's stuff that made him a better villain was cut

6.5/10

Thor
Positives:
+Loki is great
+The climax between Thor and Loki is one of the best of the MCU. It doesn't feel the need to go into explosions and tons of action, it's almost entirely just on the acting and it really pays off.
+The score
+Hemsworth is good
+The scene where Thor breaks into the SHIELD facility is well done
+The scene between Thor and Loki in that facility is great
+Overall a good story

Negatives:
-Natalie Portman is on autopilot
-Asgard seems too clean and polished. It's very clearly CGI and doesn't look like people actually live there.
-I don't buy Thor and Jane's romance at all
-A lot of the comedy misses
-I find the Destroyer battle dull
7/10

Captain America: The First Avenger
Positives:
+Steve's good
+Peggy's great
+The USO segment is great
+Great supporting cast
+Costuming is outstanding
+The first 2 acts are fantastic

Negatives:
-The third act is much less interesting and I really fail to see why the plane had to be crashed instead of just landed
-Red Skull is wasted
-I don't feel anything for the relationship between Steve and Bucky. Unfortunately this has negative repercussions on Winter Soldier as well
-The backgrounds can look a little too fake at times

7.5/10

The Avengers
Positives:
+Black Widow has a lot more personality here
+The interrogation scene is well handled
+The casting is all perfect, regardless of how I feel on performances
+Hiddleston is fun as Loki, despite my issues with how he's written
+The shot of the team working together in the climax is great, like a cinematic splash page
+I like the new Iron Man armour

Negatives:
-The film looks ugly. It looks like a TV movie at best.
-The resolution is a cop out that seems like Whedon wrote himself into a corner and had Phantom Menace on in the background so he used that
-Character arcs are poorly handled
-Loki's no longer the interesting villain he was in Thor, he's a Saturday morning cartoon bad guy
-The plot is nothing special
-The score is very bland
-Thor is completely wrecked in this film. Starting right off with him arriving on Earth seemingly forgetting everything he learned in his solo movie and just attacking everyone and continuing when he throws his whole relationship with Loki under the bus for a joke
-The forest fight
-The climax is long and uninteresting
-A lot of the jokes just don't work
-Hawkeye wasted

4.5/10

Iron Man 3
Positives:
+The most clever villain plot of the MCU
+Ben Kingsley is so good in this
+The comedy consistently works. While some may feel it goes overboard, I think it ends up working to it's advantage. Remember that this is all from Stark's perspective, recounting the story to Banner. He likely injected it with more comedy and exaggerated things (looking at you, over the top unattractive Killian in the opening and crazy Tony Stark fan).
+Everyone is giving a great performance, RDJ giving his best performance yet
+Tony's arc in this is really well done
+The action is engaging and creative, especially the mansion assault
+The twist works fantastically, playing on expectations and updating the racism of the character's creation to the modern day in a clever and intentional way
+The tone is fun and quirky
+The beginning of the credits is just so much fun XD

Negatives:
-The score, apart from one bit during the mansion attack, is forgettable

8.3/10

Loki: The Dark World a.k.a. Thor: Killing Time Until Avengers 2 a.k.a. Thor: How Not To Make a Sequel Thor: The Dark World
Positives:
+the funeral is gorgeous
+Asgard feels like a real, lived in place this time around
+Loki is perfect
+The casting is all good, despite my numerous performance issues

Negatives:
-Poor plot
-Jane is still a bland character, turned bland plot device
-Malekith is an awful villain and a waste of an actor
-Excess comedy that often doesn't work

6/10

Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Positives:
+Captivating plot
+Great performances all around
+Widow actually has character and is really interesting
+Does great stuff on a thematic level
+Fantastic action scenes
+Good villains
+Decent score

Negatives:
-The climax is much less interesting than the rest of the film
-Due to First Avenger not doing enough to make me care about Bucky and his relationship with Steve, I don't feel their relationship here hits as hard as it should

9/10

Guardians of the Galaxy
Positives:
+Groot and Rocket
+The casting is all perfect, regardless of how they're used
+Pratt makes a character that could have been unlikeable with another actor actually likeable.
+The tone is fun
+Soundtrack. Not the score, the soundtrack.
+The title card intro is great
+Nebula is cool, though underused
+The opening is well done
+A good amount of the humour works

Negatives:
-Gamora. I could write an essay on everything wrong with her. But I'll summarize with: EVERYTHING. There is nothing right with her.
-Ronan makes Malekith look like the most interesting villain ever. He's completely non-threatening, too over the top, uninteresting and incompetent.
-The film is all exposition. We never get to see anything about these people, they just tell it to us.
-The plot is pretty dull.
-The humour has a lot of misses.
-There's a distinct lack of polish with the script, it needed another rewrite.
-The cinematography, while okay, has a too digital look to it.
-The climax is extremely dull.
-The score is forgettable.

6/10

Thanks for sharing! We agree on a lot of stuff, though with Guardians of the Galaxy and especially The Avengers it seems like we were watching different films!

 

[AVEITWITHJAMON]

Watched Iron Man 3 last night, it really doesn't stand up to repeat viewings and I would now put it as the worst IM movie, I enjoyed IM2 much more when I re-watched that. I have TDW to watch tonight, another MCU movie that seems to get worse each time you watch it. 2013 really was a poor year for the MCU IMO and I think both of the movies are the worst Marvel has to offer.

 

[Keyser Soze]

Watched Iron Man 3 last night, it really doesn't stand up to repeat viewings and I would now put it as the worst IM movie, I enjoyed IM2 much more when I re-watched that. I have TDW to watch tonight, another MCU movie that seems to get worse each time you watch it. 2013 really was a poor year for the MCU IMO and I think both of the movies are the worst Marvel has to offer.

I really love IRON MAN 3, and I've found it gets better every time I rewatch it. But yeah, THE DARK WORLD gets poorer on each repeat viewing for me. I still overall like it, but from thinking it was great first time round, I now view it as one of Marvel's weakest entries.

 

[Spider-Fan]

For me, Iron Man 3 and Thor: The Dark World are of similar quality. While Iron Man 3 is more consistently better, every scene with Loki in Thor: The Dark World outshines anything in Iron Man 3, so they sort of equal each other out to me.

 

[AVEITWITHJAMON]

I really love IRON MAN 3, and I've found it gets better every time I rewatch it. But yeah, THE DARK WORLD gets poorer on each repeat viewing for me. I still overall like it, but from thinking it was great first time round, I now view it as one of Marvel's weakest entries.

I thought both were great when I first watched them, but both have dropped so much on re-watch it has been quite a shock. On the other hand all of the phase 1 movies really stood up when I watched them last week.

 

[Keyser Soze]

AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON

Sadly, I enjoyed AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON a little less on repeat viewing. The film seems to have got a bit of a negative backlash amongst critics and even quite a few viewers in the months since its release, and I was quite keen to write a review about how misunderstood and underrated the film was. But what was striking to me this time round was this glib, vaguely disinterested vibe that seems to hang over everything. The elements of a great story are certainly here, but hen it feels like they are glossed over or given lip service rather than really getting into it and selling these beats or ideas.

That said, when the film does work, it works very well. The whole Hulk VS Iron Man battle is still spectacular, one of the best action sequences to feature in a Marvel movie. And our ensemble cast of Avengers all remain likeable, engaging screen presences, with even previous weak link Hawkeye getting more development. But when you consider how perfectly structured with seemingly effortless finesse the first film was, the pacing and plotting in AGE OF ULTRON is all over the place. Maybe it's a case of trying to do too much, and yet for all it is having to follow up on or set up, the final product is brisk and enjoyable, but ultimately feels a bit inconsequential.


7/10

 

[First Avenger]

Aw too bad KS,I had the opposite reaction to yours and came to appreciate it more with time.

 

[fixxxer]

AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON

Sadly, I enjoyed AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON a little less on repeat viewing. The film seems to have got a bit of a negative backlash amongst critics and even quite a few viewers in the months since its release, and I was quite keen to write a review about how misunderstood and underrated the film was. But what was striking to me this time round was this glib, vaguely disinterested vibe that seems to hang over everything. The elements of a great story are certainly here, but hen it feels like they are glossed over or given lip service rather than really getting into it and selling these beats or ideas.

That said, when the film does work, it works very well. The whole Hulk VS Iron Man battle is still spectacular, one of the best action sequences to feature in a Marvel movie. And our ensemble cast of Avengers all remain likeable, engaging screen presences, with even previous weak link Hawkeye getting more development. But when you consider how perfectly structured with seemingly effortless finesse the first film was, the pacing and plotting in AGE OF ULTRON is all over the place. Maybe it's a case of trying to do too much, and yet for all it is having to follow up on or set up, the final product is brisk and enjoyable, but ultimately feels a bit inconsequential.


7/10

My thoughts, almost exactly. What they got right, they got right... I mean, RIGHT. They just got too many things wrong for me to consider it a great or even REALLY good MCU entry.

 

[BoredGuy]

KS, can't wait to see your Ant-Man retro

I just watched it again for the first time at home, and I loved it so much more than the first time. Once all the way-too-high MCU expectations are out of the way, the movie shines much more. The action is original and really cool-looking, the relationships are great, casting and acting all top-notch, even the jokes all seemed much funnier this time through
The story is simple, yes, and the villain is a little "been there done that" but I really think it improves with repeat viewings

 

[Keyser Soze]

ANT-MAN

The first time I watched ANT-MAN, I struggled to reconcile the film that was with the pic Edgar Wright superhero action-comedy that might have been. A little under a year later, on second viewing, I'm better able to appreciate the film on its own merits.

The setup of the film is particularly strong. The opening stages of the film feel quite distinct from the standard Marvel formula, setting up its own vibe which feels quite warm and naturalistic. Much of that comes down to the immense charm and likeability of Paul Rudd in the lead role as ex-con Scott Lang. Even more on second viewing, and enhanced by his showing in CIVIL WAR, Ant-Man is confirmed as one of the MCU's most charistmatic protagonists.

I do, however, feel like the film is let down a little by a flabby midsection. Through the whole training sequence, and the drama of Hope Van Dyne's conflicted feelings about her dad, Scott and the mission, the film occasionally drags, hampered by some wild swings in tone and some lurching advances in the plotting and characterisation. It's also the area where the Marvel Studios mechanics start to become more visible, particularly in the sequences with Corey Stroll's quite underwhelming villain Darren Cross. I liked Cross a lot more on first viewing, and Stroll does well with what he has, but the part just feels a bit over-egged and pointlessly wicked this time round.

Thankfully, ANT-MAN recovers with a climactic sequence that is a blast all-round, meaning we are left with an overall good impression. And I should also take a moment to point out that Michael Pena is just great in this. Every time he showed up on screen with that vacant-eyed grin I couldn't help but smile.


7/10

 

[Kane52630]

‘Binge Mode: Marvel’: Iron Man

‘Binge Mode: Marvel’: ‘The Incredible Hulk’