A victory lap for a loyal audience

Rating: 6/10 (5 May 2019)

An American action adventure and comic-book derived fantasy and the twenty-second film in the series of Marvel films. It is a special effects-driven story about a group of earth based superheroes who are living in the aftermath of a cataclysm which destroyed half of all living things in the universe, perpetrated by an alien supervillain called Thanos.
The film is a direct follow up to "Avengers: Infinity War" which showed some of their superhero colleagues killed in the disaster and deals with themes such as loss, revenge, and the attempt to put right past wrongs. It provides some exciting, entertaining action and, for at least those familiar with the previous films and characters, it is emotionally impactful. It has trademark witty humour and smart dialogue, but it lacks the exhilaration of "Avengers Assemble" and lacks the high point humour of "Guardians of the Galaxy".
By its second act it begins to feel predictable. It seeks gravitas but too many jokes destroy tension and suspense and a reliance on a well-worn time travel plot device makes for a messy past, present, and future time continuum.
Thanos is by far the best and most interesting character, providing subtlety as an archvillain. Thor was reduced from bombastic legend to a belaboured comic routine. Hulk failed to deliver any his trademark power. Much, as always, was left to Robert Downey Jr as Iron Man, as a focal point.
All in all, the film is entertaining, but it features too many characters which weakens the narrative.