5 word review: Relentlessly Enjoyable, Action-packed Summer Fun

Rating: 7/10 (10 May 2015)

Firefely's Joss Whedon, writer/director of The Avengers (2012,) returns to the helm of Avengers: Age of Ultron and makes the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise the highest-grossing of all time, surpassing Potter and Bond with over 8 billion US dollars worldwide. And with a cast list that is, in the words of Tony Stark, "multiplying quicker than a Catholic rabbit," the franchise is going nowhere but up. Featuring a cast whose superpower is making a billion dollars and the third most viewed trailer of 2014 on YouTube, it would have to do something significant to disappoint.
Luckily, it doesn't disappoint. Whedon employs his ever-popular writing skills again to great success, and with more characters comes more exciting action, whilst the villain rises above most MCU fare. (Many will be hard- pressed to remember Tim Roth, Sam Rockwell or Christopher Eccleston as great Marvel villains.) The Whedon Banter Effect is in play in this sequel more notably, with (*breathe*) Robert Downey Jr, Chris (Evans and Hemsworth) Scarlett Johansson, Mark Ruffalo, Jeremy Renner, Don Cheadle, Cobie Smulders, Samuel L. Jackson, Paul Bettany, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Elizabeth Olsen and James Spader all playing off each other brilliantly. Each have great lines and great moments, and despite an inevitable feeling of over-stuffing, Whedon does manage to create individual moments for everyone. He is most successful with Renner's Clint Barton. Overlooked and mocked as 'that guy with a bow and arrow who hangs with the Avengers' after his previous appearance in 2012, he is utilised to much greater effect in this film, with more about him being revealed and more time devoted to him to do things. The action carries the film, making it relentlessly and consistently enjoyable as the Avengers carry out their globe-trotting mission to track down and destroy Tony Stark's project gone wrong, Ultron.
Having watched and loved the wonderfully eerie Pinocchio-inspired trailer, we were all keen to see (or hear) the fantastic James Spader, he of the velvet voice, in action. And although it may have surprised some to see the way Ultron was actually portrayed in the film, it is not, looking back, at all a bad depiction of him. Being a creation of Tony Stark, he is meant to be a twisted reflection of him, including his out-of-place humour. Having only seen the terrifying, monologuing side of him from the trailers, he may come across as a little 'goofy' in the actual film. And there are some of these such moments, making it a tad irritating not to see him monologue threateningly more. But the same rings true for all the characters, leading into the biggest criticism of 'Age of Ultron.' In the midst of awesome action sequences filled with stupendous visual effects, not one of the characters ever feels in danger, making it seem like Whedon doesn't know how to write without every character being a witty bad-ass with a one-liner constantly at hand. Around 40% of the lines are probably one-liners in this film. I love one-liners, but even I have to admit there are too many in this. Whilst we're on criticisms, the main problem with the MCU format means that every film's climax now feels unfinished and too much a setup for the next. We may see that the endings to all 600 Marvel films from now to 2018 will be left setting up for the two-part "Infinity War" showdown in 2018/19. Also, Andy Serkis is just not in it enough, but this may make it sound more of a criticism than it actually is - Age of Ultron is über-entertaining, and is basically the perfect summer movie (though not quite to the extent of Guardians of the Galaxy.) The best villain since Loki and countless wonderful characters (including a surprisingly great turn from 'The Vision,' a new character), plus a heartfelt conclusion, make Avengers: Age of Ultron a mindless yet enjoyable 8.0/10.