The Culmination of Everything Results in an Amazing and Thrilling, Emotional Blockbuster of Epic Proportion!

Rating: 9/10 (7 March 2019)

I have followed the MCU and its characters all the way through ten years, and was never so pumped when I sat down in my red pluche chair in front of an IMAX screen. My expectations were met, and sometimes even blown apart; this is one of the most emotional and thrilling movies I have ever seen, and one of Marvel's best works.
Acting:
The core players in the form of Robert Downey Jr. , Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth and Scarlett Johansson are all in excellent shape, each providing a strong performance with the traces of ten years of film on all of them. Not every one of them has a compelling arc (it is hard to say if you can even call arcs in this, since it is essentially part one) but they all have their own glorious moments.
The newer players like Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Holland, Paul Bettany, Elizabeth Olsen, Chadwick Boseman and Anthony Mackie are just as good, and just like the core Avengers, some are more compelling than others, each one having their bright moments.
The Guardians are an interesting bunch; because the teams are so vastly different in style and personality, it is fun to watch these weird guys play off against "normal people" from earth. They all do a great job, particulary Zoe Saldana in one of her best performances yet.
The one who truly stands out above everyone else however, is Josh Brolin himself as Thanos: the motion capture, while not flawless, is ridiculously impressive and brings an essential humanity and vulnerability to what is essentially a genocidal maniac. He is aside from Killmonger perhaps the best villain yet to come out of the MCU.
Direction:
The Russo Brothers once again deliver a visceral and tense experience that carried over from Winter Soldier and Civil War, while equally providing intimate and soft emotional moments, balanced out by hilarious quips. Where they fail however, is handling the Guardians just as good as James Gunn. Their scenes often feel vastly different from the rest of the movie, and sometimes like a sore thumb, not nearly as funny as under the original director.
Cinematography:
Trent Opaloch, who worked with the Russo's on Civil War and Winter Soldier, has brought his A-game to this movie, not just filming action in a visceral and intense way, but also composing beautiful(digital) imagery filled with characters in their most challenging moments.
Plot:
While this movie is essentially a giant third act, it delivers greatly on entertainment and thrills, with each group of characters having an interesting plotline, culminating in fantastic battle scenes and an ending that will leave you in shock for hours to come. The pacing is quite breakneck, but never bothering.
Music:
Alan Silvestri returns as the composer from the first Avenger movie, and while the score is not quite as rousing and fantastic as in 2012, there are great themes present, with the emotional scenes drawing nearly all their strength from these beautifully composed pieces.
Editing:
Considering that the construction of this movie took ten years, it is quite a miracle that it flows all so cohesively and smooth within two and a half hours. The "big scene" transitions are especially effective.
Sound:
Not particulary noteworthy, but by no means bad. Many sounds don't stand out.
VFX:
This movie has a LOT of CGI, some executed brilliantly, some looking quite unfinished. The CGI for Thanos embodies this duality to the fullest. In the end, the nomination for an Academy Award is understandable, but not deserved.
Production Design:
While a lot of it is blue screen, the atmosphere and scale of every location is carried over well, and you can't help but be impressed with every setpiece.
Costume/Make-up
All the heroes come together in their signature outfits, with some nice new additions like the Iron Spider and the Wakandan tribes. Not much different from what we've already seen though.
Action:
The action in this movie, while mostly digital, is spectacular in pretty much every sequence, and there are a lot of moments were your jaw will just drop in awe because of the massive scale and sheer awesomeness.
Tone:
From the first five minutes, it becomes clear that this is the darkest and most serious MCU movie yet, and that the stakes have never been higher. The feeling of dread and danger never leaves, and when the blood starts flowing, you feel every death carving a mark on your soul. The humor, while genuinely funny, feels half the time out of place, and particulary the scenes with the guardians feel like they belong in a different movie.
General Concensus:
A massive blockbuster that Marvel can be most proud of, and while it can't represent each character in the smoothest way, it's scale and gargantuan action completely blows that flaw away, aided by great chemistry from the cast, a compelling villain and an absolutely shocking ending. 8.6/10