The waiting was worth it!

Rating: 10/10 (3 May 2019)

The great late Roger Ebert once said "It's not what a movie is about, it's how it is about it."
Applying this very sensible yardstick to Endgame makes it inevitable to call it a movie as near cinematic perfection as a blockbuster can possibly be. This film has delivered on every count. It has emotion, action, humour, you name it.
The Russo brothers have achieved s.th. I would not have expected in a movie which includes time travel in order to restore half the Universe, of all the preposterous notions! And what they have achieved is finding those moments in the story which have allowed the invested fan to feel emotional and moved, as well as entertained. These moments have also allowed the main cast to showcase their acting chops and, by doing so, have given the actors their due respect. They are not only meant to kick, smash things and stand in front of a green screen. And it's this particular facet of Endgame which I appreciated most. Not every movie in the MCU has been able to strike that note. That said, I love every one of the 22 movies that have brought us to this magnificent Endgame.
Many quibble over some aspects of the story, most mystifyingly about the death of Black Widow, which was as unexpected as it was emotional. Saying she was killed off to drive the plot by motivating her male team-mates to achieve success in their fight against Thanos is absurd. The character of Natasha Romanoff is as tough and courageous as all the other Avengers and she sacrifices herself willingly for the greater good; it could just as well have been Clint Barton. This sacrifice should be taken at face value, because trying to apply political correctness to superhero blockbusters simply spoils the fun. There is a time and a place to harp on about political correctness, feminism, etc. - but movies like this one are not it.