A Bigger, Better & Truly Entertaining Sequel for Marvel

Rating: 9/10 (26 April 2015)

When it was confirmed that a sequel to The Avengers was in the pipeline for Marvel Studios, the question that surrounds the film was' Will it overthrow its first film?' and by golly it does with amazing results. Avengers: Age of Ultron is not only one of those anticipated films that have expectations from every Marvel fan but it does tick the boxes for what the general audience wants to see. Just weeks after the release of Fast & Furious 7, AOU will have its chance to become a hit with fans and the box-office.
AOU takes place after the events of the previous films (Iron Man 3, Thor 2, and Captain America: The Winter Soldier) with The Avengers fighting the baddies that plot to dominate the world, but without the assistance of S.H.I.E.L.D with being destroyed (see Winter Solider to further explain this). Wanting to help the battle for peace further, Tony Stark and Bruce Banner develop a program/A.I. tech that will protect and serve the world but a particular source used causes a birth of a villain in the form of a robot and artificial technology named Ultron. This places the heroes not only in a battle to stop him, but they will encounter threats not only from him but from allies and future events.
Firstly, the storyline itself goes into bigger, darker and epic depths than what the previous film had and the location settings make it redeemable that they fight not only for one country but for the world the heroes live in. In terms of 'darkness' we are shown some dark pasts and future events, a villain who is hell-bent on exterminating the human race and perhaps confrontations between the heroes themselves on who is right, true and loyal to the code. Casting here is in top shape with the likes of Downey Jr., Evans, Hemsworth, Johansson, Renner and its supporting cast all providing great back-up to the character development and on-screen chemistry.
The visual effects are much like the amazing quality of not only from the first Avengers film but the previous MCU films that made them so acclaimed. The design of Ultron in particular was great, it made me believe that character was a threat and his personality is both dark and ruthless which makes him a best Marvel villain to appear in the MCU to date. The action set pieces are all choreographed to great detail, ranging from invading a castle of HYDRA operatives, an epic street fight between Hulk and Iron Man in the streets of Johannesburg city and the climatic stand-stand between good and bad make it all entertaining for action fans and comic book enthusiasts.
Avengers: Age of Ultron is indeed bigger, better, darker and more spectacular than its first film but without losing its trademark style of humor, storytelling and characters. It indeed places a spot on my Best Films list for 2015 and even now I wish that the 3rd Phase would kick off as I want to see how further it can go if it sticks to its cinematic formula.
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