gives you what you want and then some

Rating: Null/10 (4 May 2012)

Assemble! The highly anticipated Marvel Comics ensemble arrives on the big screen in style in this entertaining collaboration. Wastes no time setting things in motion as the iniquitous Loki (Hiddleston) descends to Earth to obtain the Tesseract and subjugate the human race. Out of options, S.H.I.E.L.D. director Nick Fury (Jackson) recalls the Avenger initiative, uniting a corps of Earth's most remarkable heroes including self-obsessed Iron Man (Downey), humble Captain America (Evans), mighty Thor (Hemsworth), agile Black Widow (Johansson), adept Hawkeye (Renner), and volatile Hulk (Ruffalo), to make a definitive stand. Fun, flashy, and fast-paced, this epic-scale adventure delivers just what you'd want and expect with an unforgettable cast of characters, breathtaking action scenes, striking visual effects, a disarming sense of humor, and—most importantly—a good dose of heroism and humanity. Long, with a storyline that's fairly basic, but once it gets going you definitely won't mind; a rollicking good time for fans and non-fans alike, and a model for years to come. ***½