Fell a Bit Short of My Expectations, but It's a Decent Sequel

Rating: 7/10 (27 March 2016)

I am an unabashed fan of THE AVENGERS. I understand it has its flaws, particularly in the pacing, but I paid my money for a geek spectacle and that's exactly what was delivered. I count it as one of the best comic book movies, up there with THE DARK KNIGHT. Now that we've gotten a sequel, I expected more. I held AGE OF ULTRON to a higher standard. We've already had the big action bonanza but watching Iron Man, Captain America, and the rest of the crew together on the big screen has been done and it's not enough to carry my interest this time around. The promotional materials made it out to be the darker, edgier sequel with repercussions to the heroes' actions and, though it might be clichéd, an EMPIRE STRIKES BACK vibe. Well, it came close but fell short. I still enjoyed AGE OF ULTRON but I walked out of the theater with a resigned shrug, muttering "It was all right." As the film opens, the Avengers are well established and in the midst of an assault on a Hydra base in the country of Slokovia. We're introduced to "the twins", Hydra's genetically-enhanced ace up its sleeve: Pietro (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen) Maximoff. Or, as comic fans know them, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch. Following their success in Slokovia and the reacquisition of Loki's scepter, Tony Stark gets the wild idea to incorporate the scepter's alien "programming" into his proposed artificial intelligence program, Ultron, in hopes of creating an automated Earth defense. It works too well, and Ultron becomes sentient with plans of protecting the Earth in the most efficient means possible: eradicating its pesky human infestation.
Once again, the Avengers biggest opponent is pacing. At nearly 2.5 hours, this is a big movie, packed to the brim with action and plot. The main issue I see is that since half of the characters aren't getting standalone movies (Black Widow, Hawkeye, and the Hulk) we're trying to cram their personal story elements into a movie that should be focused on the whole "sentient robot intent on destroy human life" bit. Whereas the first movie ground to a halt following the assault on the Hellicarrier so the characters could mourn their loss and regroup for the final climactic battle, AGE OF ULTRON does the same with a stint at a "safe house" where we show the human side to being part of a hero team. Interesting concept to be explored in a superhero film, but probably not the best time right now. You want to give a romantic subplot to Bruce Banner and Natasha Romanoff? Fine. Do it in a Hulk and/or Black Widow movie. Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor each have their own film series to get the minutiae out of the way so that, when we get the band back together for a big show, we can incorporate elements of their individual struggles without stopping the main story thread to build on them further. When you've got this amount of bigger than life characters (and cast) sharing the screen, we need to be economical in how we spend that 2.5 hours. I mean, AGE OF ULTRON feels like it's equally part Hawkeye/Jeremy Renner apology for turning him into a mind-controlled zombie in the first film. We're treated to extra backstory for the character and he gets some extra time in the spotlight for action and zingers.
I'm also a little tired of the big action spectacle finale. It was awesome in THE AVENGERS because it was our first time seeing all these major characters fighting side-by-side on the big screen. So sure, whatever, give me a half hour final battle with the Avengers wiping out an invasion of faceless alien enemies. In the sequel, I expect a little more creativity. And what did we get? A half hour final battle with the Avengers wiping out an invasion of faceless robot enemies. Look, I love watching the Avengers crush the villain and their faceless CG army as much as the next fan but I wouldn't mind changing things up a bit. These guys are more than fists. Let's get a problem for the Avengers that isn't easily resolved by smashing wave after wave of baddies. I absolutely loved the first half of this movie, where the Avengers are faced with an enemy they aren't prepared to encounter. Not Ultron (as much as I loved the character) but the Scarlet Witch. She gets into their heads and uses their fears and concerns against them, attacking them on an emotional level and sending them to whimper in the corner. Or, if you're the Hulk, rampaging through an unsuspecting downtown metropolis. Wanda/Scarlet Witch was an awesome addition to the character roster for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Olsen does a phenomenal job giving her a physicality to her "spell-casting" and an innocence to counter her brother's angry freedom-fighter persona. I'm not 100% sold on her eastern European accent yet, but it's not distracting. Johnson's Quicksilver doesn't steal the spotlight as Evan Peters did in Fox's DAYS OF FUTURE PAST but he does a fine job with minimal material. Really, I think Quicksilver is only here because they wanted to bring in Scarlet Witch and figured it was a package deal. Another excellent addition is the Vision, who's involvement in the film is pretty important to the plot so I won't go into the how's and why's but I will say I was most excited to see him brought to the franchise. Very, very cool to bring in the Vision.
AGE OF ULTRON isn't a bad movie but it doesn't rise above and beyond THE AVENGERS as I hoped it would. It's got some excellent material in there and some obvious fan service to get us cheering. It loses steam once we hit the safe house but you can tell they were trying to go bigger this time around. They still just working out the kinks.