Enjoyable Spectacle But Messy, Step Down

Rating: 6/10 (7 May 2015)

My opinion is certainly no more valid than anyone else's but I think that most reviewers, especially the professional critics, have been far too generous towards this film. Like almost any blockbuster it is a lot of fun as pure spectacle, and like any Marvel Studios film it is full of details to delight fans. But as a film, it is a step down from the first Avengers and one of the weaker films in the series so far.
The overall feeling is one of a rough draft. The visual effects in the opening sequence displayed some of the worst CGI integration that I have seen in a long time in a Marvel film, at least in 2D. Did they need more time to render the graphics? The dialogue could also have used a few more rounds of revision, as the jokes that landed in the previous film often failed to do so in this one. In a couple of instances, they were even in poor taste, very uncharacteristic. Prima Nocta? Really?
It is easy to complain about too many characters, but really the issue here is too many stories. One can see all of the different angles, but a tighter focus and better editing could have improved the flow of the film as a whole. It sounds as though there was a lot of arguing between the director and the studio over what to include in the theatrical cut, and it shows in the end result.
The single big letdown, however, is the villain Ultron. Long story short, the intense, chilling character in the advance trailers is not really present in the film. Instead, we get a poorly-realized villain throwing around witty one-liners like everyone else. This tonal approach undermines the effectiveness of the character. Age of Ultron needed to focus tightly on its titular antagonist, to make him an iconic foil. Ultimately, this film becomes another battle against a generic and faceless army. And there goes the chance to improve upon the first Avengers film. Very disappointing.
All of that being said, this film is certainly worth the money to spend a couple of hours escaping into the world of these superheroes. The cast is once again excellent (aside from Jeremy Renner, who I have never connected with as Hawkeye) and the new characters are a lot of fun and bring a freshness that this franchise desperately needed. There is plenty of eye candy in terms of costumes and technology, and the Hulkbuster fight is truly fantastic.
It will be interesting to see the rumored extended cut of this film. It may be quite a bit better than the theatrical version of this film, but I think that the latter could have been much better without any additional running time. This film, fun as it is, bears the hallmarks of a troubled production with a divided creative vision. It seems that the Marvel machine still has some kinks to work out. Recommended, but not as glowingly as one would hope to be able to.