The Avengers- Best movie of the year so far. Fans salivate, non fans- prepare to get converted!

Rating: 10/10 (27 April 2012)

The elders say that two is company, anything more is just a crowd. Avengers shows a big fat middle finger to those learned folks of yore, and in the process easily sets the new benchmark for all epic action extravaganzas! With an ensemble star cast, a fast, witty script, thrilling action sequences, and masterful direction, it is the perfect superhero movie, one which will charm not only the nerdy fans, but also the uninitiated.
The Avengers project began over 6 years back, when Marvel first thought of bringing their superhero team on screen, but to give each hero a rightful back story they had to bring out the individual movies first. Each of them were characterized by action, humor and a certain degree of insaneness. The movies generated big bucks at the box office, but i always felt Marvel was holding back something- whether the grandness of plot, or the scale of action. This is what it was saving for, no holding back for the $220 million mother of all actioners, Avengers- 6 superheroes, one mental Norse God, a full scale alien invasion- this one has got it all.
The story picks up plot strands from the previous movies- Loki steals the Tesserect, a cube like artifact which is a source of great power, which he plans to use to open a portal through which his alien friends in skullcaps invade Earth. Post credit scenes in the older Marvel movies show that Nick Fury has been preparing for just one such rainy day- where the Earth will be "hilariously out gunned" and there will be the need for the individual superheroes to come together to fight as a team. To form an unbeatable squad, each superhero gets something to the table- Hulk brings the muscle, Captain America brings strategy, Ironman brings style and technology, Thor brings emotion along with Godlike fury, Hawkeye brings steely sincerity and Black Widow brings smoking-hot sexiness. But before they can take on Loki and his minions, they will have to get over their superhero sized egos and other intra heroic tensions so as to work together in a team. Much of the film's uproarious moments come due to the witty banter of the superheroes. The climactic showdown between the good guys and evil aliens might seem overdrawn and similar to the one in last year's Transformers- dark of the Moon, but is infinitely more enjoyable, each scene a joyous ode to the capabilities of this awesome fighting team, each sequence bettering the previous one.
The movie's biggest strength is its star cast- Robert Downey as Ironman, continues from where he left off in Ironman 2- "billionaire, playboy, genius, philanthropist"- he calls himself, as he lends sarcastic humor to an "oh so serious" group. Chris Evans as Captain America might wear a ridiculous stars and stripes costume but does what is required with utmost sincerity. Chris Hemsworth as Thor does a decent job in showing angst and turmoil, while Jeremy Renner and Scarlett Johansson as Hawkeye and Black Widow are serviceable as second rate heroes to the A-team.
However the scene stealers were Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner/Hulk and Hiddleston's Loki. Ruffalo is probably the best Hulk to grace the silver screen, and while Edward Norton and Eric Bana played the role with intensity, Ruffalo plays him with a lot of self deprecating humor. Trust me, with or without pants, the Hulk will keep you in splits, but reserve your wolf whistles for the scene where the Hulk delivers the coup de grace to Loki. Loki's expression immediately after- priceless :) Speaking of whom, the star of the movie IS Loki- a superhero movie is as good or as bad as its villain (think Joker in the dark Knight or Doc Ock in Spiderman 2)- and in Avengers, Hiddleston plays Loki in a manner that man to man, he stands head and shoulders above the heroes. This Loki, like most super villains has a sinister, single point agenda- to rule the world, and in its quest he even manages to make a crowd of people kneel down to him, in of all places, Germany- not-so-long-ago home to one of the biggest megalomaniac in the history of the world. When Loki is captured and held in a glass cell, he gives a little bit of the Hannibal Lecter treatment to Scarlett.
You do a far better job if you love what you do, and director Joss Whedon is a certified geek, having written comics in addition to having directed two cult series. The biggest input that Joss Whedon brings, is to create an environment of impending doom without letting the audience get overworked with it- "hold on", he seems to say, "the solution is just round the corner"- it helps the movie not to take itself too seriously, unlike the DC Comic adaptations. Avengers is a celebrity jamboree of sorts, and yet Whedon manages to give each star his place, each character, his due Avengers weighs in at 146 minutes, but to his credit, Whedon keeps the pace snappy throughout, whenever things begin to sag, jokes, punchlines, and slam bam action sequences pop up to keep the party going strong.
To sum up, Avengers is a superlative effort. Mixing fantasy, science fiction, imagination, colorfully dressed he-men, this is the film Marvel fans have been waiting for ages- they took their time, but they delivered on all counts. This is a no holds barred, effects driven, mass appeal blockbuster par excellence, absurdly entertaining- these 146 minutes felt like an entire summer vacation in Asgard for geeks such as me, and will sure extend its magic to the non fans. There are so many characters, yet it never felt too many, production values are solid, the script engaging, with loads and loads of nonstop action. There are minor flaws, but this is THE SUMMER BLOCKBUSTER OF THE YEAR. Geeking out has never been so much fun.