DHKR: Age of Ultron- "The Age of...Hawkeye?"

Rating: 7/10 (20 May 2015)

Age of Ultron isn't a worthy successor to The Avengers. It's not worthy of succeeding Guardians of The Galaxy. It doesn't even come close to succeeding The Winter Soldier, the best of the Marvel movies in my opinion. It doesn't live to the hype, and it certainly disappoints many die-hard fans.
But, that doesn't mean the film is bad. It's not bad in the slightest, if anything, it's bloody terrific. It's just not all that it's hyped up to be, and if I could just leave my review as that then by God I'll just end it as is. However, there's simply too much to talk about. So short version, it's good, go see it and you'll enjoy it.
The rest of this will just be writing out the nitpicks and flaws while praising where praise given, but I assure you Age of Ultron is well worth your time. OK? OK.
The bulk of the film's action takes place at the very beginning in a vaguely Eastern European country holding the current Baron Von Strucker and a small paramilitary force of Neo-Hydra troopers. While the clash is going on, drones in the form of Iron Man hold back the angry population of countrymen, taking heavy abuse and unintentionally crafting the form of our Ultron puppet we see later in the film. Also, the Maximoffs come out to fight in support of Hydra, doing a great deal of damage.
Strucker is captured, and Tony Stark takes the scepter of Loki which the Baron had stolen prior. Wanda Maximoff, aka The Scarlet Witch, soon kick starts the "Age of Ultron" by using her powers of fear to show Stark what will happen if said initiative doesn't go as planned.
Later, Ultron is created, and he soon takes the form of a puppet-like android made up of scrap metal from disfigured robots. The "Suit of Armor" has grown sentience and now will eradicate the earth of human life, where only machines rule the world.
Ultron's supposed "evolution" requires a human-like form, which is, of course, thwarted in the third act with the birth of "Vision", who now has JARVIS' AI. The final part is upon a floating city, destined to destroy the Earth like the meteor that destroys the dinosaurs. The Avengers fight off a horde of Ultron drones, the city is destroyed, and the day is saved. And Quicksilver dies in a hail of bullets. Sad.
What really made the film less fun then the original was mostly falling upon the villain himself. Ultron's voice may be menacing, but everything else about him is mediocre at best, and degrading at worst, especially considering his origins and reputation. He lacks the kind of malevolent power and presence that make you want to hate him, like how Loki from the first film had. Never once did I look at Ultron and say "I want you to be stopped". If anything, I wasn't feeling any kind of emotion. Ultron was just a villain, meant to be stopped to save the world. Unlike Loki, who you've built up to hate so much that you feel great when you do see him get his just deserts, Ultron is just an evil robot with a slick tongue spewing out Bible verses because...the Bible is evil? I guess? It's just a missed opportunity.
In contrast, most of the other villains are far more interesting but given far less screen time than Ultron himself, understandably. Strucker from before is like Colonel Klink from Hogan's Heroes if he was put as a present day Authorotorian military CO, but unfortunately gets axed off by Ultron. Another entertaining villain, Ulysses Klaw(The obligatory pseudo-racist para militarist corporate WASP, and the enemy of Black Panther, naturally), is given a few scenes deemed entertaining, mostly involving Quicksilver and a couple bullets. The joke is cut short when our main Antagonist slices the hand off Klaw, leading into a shootout between the mercenaries and the Avengers
Most of the development is given more to the heroes this time around, many working to an advantage versus how it worked to them versus the villains. Thor has grown more of a sense of humor, Stark and Banner's scientific sides shine brightly while trying to craft Ultron and Vision, we even get a little insight into the past of Black Widow when she was starting to become a weapon for the Soviet Union.
However, the largest development of character given is undeniably to Hawkeye. Who was once considered a running joke in the MCU and outside to the fan base, Hawkeye is given time to show off his life when he isn't forced to shoot robots and Nazis with a bow. He's a family man, a conservative, a blue collar outdoorsman and a patriarch. In a movie series that's known for breaking boundaries, this recall to what a hero from the 50s was like is a breath of fresh air, and it still manages to work as a great comic book movie. In fact, I'd honestly would like to see a movie based solely on him or his origins
Whatever I say or not will change your minds on Age of Ultron. You probably have already seen it, MCU fan or not. What I have to say is that while a flawed film, Age of Ultron is a great movie to see. You'll enjoy this one, so check it out if you haven't.
4-Stars- A-Ranking