It Is The Age of Ultron

Rating: 9/10 (24 August 2015)

As Avengers: Age of Ultron has just crossed the billion dollar mark in worldwide box office, I thought that it would be appropriate for me to finally put a few thoughts into the value of this movie. I have viewed the movie twice and have read numerous reviews and visited comment boards trying to get a rounded perspective before I began this review.
For me, reviewing a movie that is part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is a challenging task. Professional reviewers tend to look at movies as singular pieces of work and seem to be stymied by the concept of an organic storytelling method. This film has seen negative reviews as it spends a portion of itself moving pieces and characters to a "place" where the next film will pick up. As such, the film includes a small number of scenes that have little to do with the characters' journey and struggle against the antagonist which is present in traditional storytelling.
Kevin Feige from Marvel Studios has discussed how the villain Ultron is relevant to our society currently. That we rely on technology as much as we do is a common theme in current fears and how much of our humanity is lost through our everyday practices. The idea behind concepts like Ultron is that through our actions with little regard for consequences we may bring about technology that will affect our lives so dramatically that there is no going back.
Age of Ultron is the culmination and crescendo of the second phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe so far as Ant-Man will not be released until July. Most of the events of Iron Man 3, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Thor: The Dark World and Guardians of the Galaxy have led to this film. As such while Age of Ultron may not be able to exist without these films; what is coming after this film will rely on Age of Ultron for it's exposition. While this is a storytelling method that is revolutionized by Marvel Studios it is not without it's pitfalls. There are moments where the pace of the story is slowed down in order to accommodate this "always looking ahead" philosophy.
There are a lot of moving parts to Age of Ultron. Four main characters are introduced: Ultron, Wanda Maximoff, Pietro Maximoff and The Vision. In addition to having nine other major characters their screen time isn't as much as it could be though for their roles it is appropriate. In fact the film does a better than average job at balancing all of the characters and keeping the pace up and exciting. While in the first Avengers film, Robert Downey Jr had most of the attention on him; in this film while he is present through the film it is Chris Evans' Captain America who begins the movie with a moral dilemma and is the character who changes the most on his journey through story.
When Director Joss Whedon began his tour of duty on The Avengers he wanted a story to where just because someone is a hero it doesn't mean that they get a free pass. This is very prominent in Age of Ultron. Due to the events of Avengers and Iron Man 3, Tony Stark reacts by creating a source of technology that brings even greater destruction to his world. It is because of this kind of reaction that The Avengers must fight their own fears made real and their own dark sides. The world in which they inhabit is not one of good versus evil. It is one steeped in realism in which "one creates that which they fear the most". The protagonists have to struggle against a threat brought upon simply by their own presence.
The film is just as beautiful as the first one. Circular camera movement features heavily into the expanded action scenes. It is used to great effect to enhance the team atmosphere. We are also exposed to long takes that show all The Avengers in action at the same time. These are methods that we have seen before but Mr. Whedon expands upon them to use them to better effect.
The actors who are reprising their roles are spot on as has been the case throughout the Marvel movies. In fact as time goes on some of these characters keep getting better and better. The new actors were expertly picked as well. Aaron Taylor Johnson displays Pietro's arrogance perfectly as well as concern for his sister, Elizabeth Olsen brings the insecurity of Wanda, James Spader brings an eloquence and through voice work a sense of menace to Ultron and Paul Bettany who had previously voiced Tony Stark's A.I. Jarvis debuts as The Vision. Through Mr. Bettany's career he has played roles which have required a logical viewpoint mixed with genuine compassion. The Vision is portrayed expertly through this viewpoint.
In the end this film is about family. Not family in the traditional sense but the kind of a world we create and how we expect the next generation to cope with it. This is seen primarily through Ultron, The Vision, Wanda and Pietro. It is also about finding our place in the world that we inherit and help to create organically.