Pure Hollywood masala

Rating: 9/10 (2 May 2015)

A movie is only as good as its villain, which makes sense because that is what our heroes have to unite against. Loki as the villain in "The Avengers" was fantastic, but in this film, Ultron is underdeveloped.
It's a great idea, but more time seemed to be devoted to other things than to really focus on what makes this thing tick. More over, the addition of more characters – specifically Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch, but also a general slate of thugs who come and go – seems a bit too crowded. There's already so many good guys in this film that the trap of superhero sequels to increase the villain number just sends the story all over the place here.
Then there's the action. These sequences are, as expected, top notch. You have fantastic special effects and some really innovative stuff happening from the visual side of things. However, there's a generic feel to these moments. Where the action set-pieces of the first film seem distinct and different from one another, you could practically edit together these moments throughout "Avengers: Age of Ultron" even when they happen on entirely different continents, and nothing would look any different.
Add the fact the movie has a washed-out palate, which I suppose does distinguish it from the first film's bright and colorful look. Unfortunately, this contributes to the heroes getting lost in a cloud of punching and falling rubble that could be from any point in the film.
Of course, all of these complaints does not mean "Avengers: Age of Ultron" is a dud of a film. It's still a really fun Marvel superhero movie. It's good, but it's just not crap-your-pants awesome like the first film was. And that's a shame because the string of films between these "Avengers" installment have been significantly better than Phase 1 in my eyes.
But yeah, you get to see all your favorite heroes again. You get to see the Avengers try to pick up Thor's hammer. You get to see one of the best Stan Lee cameos out there. You get to see the "Infinity War" teased throughout the film. You get to see Hulk smash.
I can't say that I didn't like "Avengers: Age of Ultron." I'm sure I will see it again, and watching it in IMAX 3D is still an experience (though I'll reiterate that I wish the color had popped more, but maybe we'll just have to wait until VideoLab gives it the color- correcting treatment they recently gave "Man of Steel").
I'm just a bit disappointed in what I got from "Avengers: Age of Ultron," similar how "Godzilla" was a come-down from "Pacific Rim" or "Star Trek Into Darkness" didn't quite have the punch that "Star Trek" did. I'm sure when I see "Avengers: Age of Ultron" again, whether it be during its theatrical release or on Blu-ray, I'll feel better about the whole experience. However, until then, I'll have to cross my fingers for when "Ant Man" comes out in a couple months for my Marvel fix.