Hulk smash puny god!
THIS POST IS GOING TO BE ME, SQUEALING LIKE THE FANGIRL I AM OVER HOW AWESOME THE AVENGERS WAS. I WILL DO MY BEST TO AVOID SPOILERS, BUT I'M SURE AT LEAST A FEW THINGS WILL SLIP THROUGH. IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE MOVIE, JUST KNOW IT'S WORTH WATCHING AND IGNORE THIS UNTIL AFTER YOU'VE WATCHED IT. IF YOU HAVE SEEN IT (OR JUST DON'T CARE ABOUT BEING SPOILED), COME AND JOIN ME IN MY FLAILY JOY!
So, a group of us went out to the midnight premiere on Thursday to see The Avengers, and holy fucking shit, it was AMAZING. I loved every minute of it, even including the new actor portraying Bruce Banner, which I was all set to hate without question. The action was brilliant, the dialogue was fantastic, and the story line was incredible. Joss Whedon knocked this one out of the ballpark, and the actors just completely fucking owned their roles. I've never been more in love with Robert Downey Jr. or Chris Evans in my life, and I've had a thing for them for as long as I can remember.
Here are a few of the things I loved the most about the movie, in no particular order:
1. Mark Ruffalo's version of Bruce Banner. It wasn't Edward Norton, who I absolutely loved, and I was all set to be underwhelmed by his turn as the giant green rage monster. But the way he played the Hulk was astounding. It wasn't just "don't piss me off because I'll get really scary." It was a Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde dynamic, and his desperation to avoid losing control was mindblowingly impressive. Also, I was totally stoked to realize that Lou Ferrigno once again voiced the Hulk. Nobody does it like Lou, and nobody ever should. Though I'm not sure if he had an on-screen cameo in this one or not. I'll have to pay closer attention the next time I see it (here in a few hours), and try and spot him.
2. The tension between Iron Man and the Cap. I've been reading so much Avengers fic lately, I'm surprised I haven't gotten sick of it. One of the...I'm not sure if "trope" is the right word for it, but I can't think of another, so it'll have to do. One of the major tropes in Avengers fic is the friction between Tony Stark and Steve Rogers, especially in the beginning. They clash and rub each other the wrong way, fighting and annoying each other to no end, because they are opposite ends of the spectrum. It makes a great launching pad for either a great friendship, or a really interesting relationship between them. With as much as I was reading about the various ways this played out, I was a little bit worried the movie wouldn't live up to what I'd built up in my head from fic and theorizing and comic books. But I forgot one major factor, for which I am deeply ashamed: In Joss we trust. It was everything I'd hoped it would be.
Tony ripped on Cap being out of touch with the times, and the super serious military man, toeing the line like a good little boy from the 40s. Cap, in turn, thought Tony was a flaky unimpressive child with poor impulse control and no convictions. They didn't like each other at all, there in the beginning, and both scored some pretty hard hits on the other, but when the shit hit the fan, they were right there, pulling their heads outta their asses and getting shit done. The way they balanced each other out was a perfectly walked line, and I can't wait to see them interacting on screen again in the future, and I'm eagerly awaiting the flood of new Steve/Tony fic that should be hitting the internet any day now.
3. Loki. I'll admit, I've always had a soft spot in my heart for a good bad guy. And by good, I don't mean morally; I mean a phenomenally personalized bad guy, with a humanity that is obvious. I don't like the robo-trope of bad guys who are nothing but "I'm going to kill everyone/end the world/enslave you because THAT'S WHAT BAD GUYS DO!" villains. They annoy the shit out of me. It's why I love Iago (from Othello) so much; his reasons for being an enormous douche are planted in human emotions, and he isn't afraid to admit it. Hell, he comes out and TELLS PEOPLE that he's a bad guy; it's not his fault nobody takes him seriously.
Loki is the same way. In Thor, he found out that his entire life was a lie, after growing up feeling like he was playing second fiddle to his brother. He was just trying to prove to their father that he was just as good as Thor; he just went about it the wrong way. In the Avengers, it's just a continuation of that. He was cast out of his home world rather violently, after getting the biggest smack down of his life, both physically and emotionally. He's a lost little boy who suddenly has no place in the universe and limited options. All that anger and sadness and loneliness comes through in Tom Hiddleston's performance, and it just broke my heart.
4. The humor. Joss has always been good with the witty one-liner, and this movie was chalk full of them. Mid action someone would toss out a line that just had the theater howling, but it was done in such a way that it didn't detract from everything else, as it sometimes can. It enhanced the anticipation, and underscored the danger they were all facing. There was also a great moment between Hulk and Thor where not a word was said, but I almost pissed my pants laughing. It was great.
5. Surprisingly enough, Hawkeye. I wasn't really a die hard Hawkeye fan growing up. He was interesting because he was an archer and had some really nifty gadgets, but I didn't go out of my way to read his origin story or anything. He was a secondary character. While I liked him in his Thor cameo, I wasn't too sure on how I'd like him in the Avengers. He wasn't my favorite by a long shot, but I was surprised by how much I enjoyed his role. I think most of it has to do with Jeremy Renner, who was just a BAMF and emphasized the dichotomy between his character in the beginning and the end of the movie beautifully.
6. The actors. Oh my God, there were so many great actors in this movie which I'd known before, but seeing them all together was a kick to the head. They did so many amazing things together, played off each other so well, it blew my mind. They were comfortable on screen, and they made it real in a way that a lot of actors have trouble doing (except Robert Downey Jr., apparently). If they'd cast anyone else for any given role (and this is including having Edward Norton playing the Hulk), I don't think the movie would have worked.
Okay. That's it for this. If I keep raving, I'm just going to work myself up, and be bitchy 'cause I can't got see the movie again RIGHT NOW. I've gotta wait until Mandy comes into town (she gets to see Chi for the first time!) and that's not going to be for quite a while. But if you've seen the movie, LETS TALK ABOUT IT, OKAY?
So, a group of us went out to the midnight premiere on Thursday to see The Avengers, and holy fucking shit, it was AMAZING. I loved every minute of it, even including the new actor portraying Bruce Banner, which I was all set to hate without question. The action was brilliant, the dialogue was fantastic, and the story line was incredible. Joss Whedon knocked this one out of the ballpark, and the actors just completely fucking owned their roles. I've never been more in love with Robert Downey Jr. or Chris Evans in my life, and I've had a thing for them for as long as I can remember.
Here are a few of the things I loved the most about the movie, in no particular order:
1. Mark Ruffalo's version of Bruce Banner. It wasn't Edward Norton, who I absolutely loved, and I was all set to be underwhelmed by his turn as the giant green rage monster. But the way he played the Hulk was astounding. It wasn't just "don't piss me off because I'll get really scary." It was a Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde dynamic, and his desperation to avoid losing control was mindblowingly impressive. Also, I was totally stoked to realize that Lou Ferrigno once again voiced the Hulk. Nobody does it like Lou, and nobody ever should. Though I'm not sure if he had an on-screen cameo in this one or not. I'll have to pay closer attention the next time I see it (here in a few hours), and try and spot him.
2. The tension between Iron Man and the Cap. I've been reading so much Avengers fic lately, I'm surprised I haven't gotten sick of it. One of the...I'm not sure if "trope" is the right word for it, but I can't think of another, so it'll have to do. One of the major tropes in Avengers fic is the friction between Tony Stark and Steve Rogers, especially in the beginning. They clash and rub each other the wrong way, fighting and annoying each other to no end, because they are opposite ends of the spectrum. It makes a great launching pad for either a great friendship, or a really interesting relationship between them. With as much as I was reading about the various ways this played out, I was a little bit worried the movie wouldn't live up to what I'd built up in my head from fic and theorizing and comic books. But I forgot one major factor, for which I am deeply ashamed: In Joss we trust. It was everything I'd hoped it would be.
Tony ripped on Cap being out of touch with the times, and the super serious military man, toeing the line like a good little boy from the 40s. Cap, in turn, thought Tony was a flaky unimpressive child with poor impulse control and no convictions. They didn't like each other at all, there in the beginning, and both scored some pretty hard hits on the other, but when the shit hit the fan, they were right there, pulling their heads outta their asses and getting shit done. The way they balanced each other out was a perfectly walked line, and I can't wait to see them interacting on screen again in the future, and I'm eagerly awaiting the flood of new Steve/Tony fic that should be hitting the internet any day now.
3. Loki. I'll admit, I've always had a soft spot in my heart for a good bad guy. And by good, I don't mean morally; I mean a phenomenally personalized bad guy, with a humanity that is obvious. I don't like the robo-trope of bad guys who are nothing but "I'm going to kill everyone/end the world/enslave you because THAT'S WHAT BAD GUYS DO!" villains. They annoy the shit out of me. It's why I love Iago (from Othello) so much; his reasons for being an enormous douche are planted in human emotions, and he isn't afraid to admit it. Hell, he comes out and TELLS PEOPLE that he's a bad guy; it's not his fault nobody takes him seriously.
Loki is the same way. In Thor, he found out that his entire life was a lie, after growing up feeling like he was playing second fiddle to his brother. He was just trying to prove to their father that he was just as good as Thor; he just went about it the wrong way. In the Avengers, it's just a continuation of that. He was cast out of his home world rather violently, after getting the biggest smack down of his life, both physically and emotionally. He's a lost little boy who suddenly has no place in the universe and limited options. All that anger and sadness and loneliness comes through in Tom Hiddleston's performance, and it just broke my heart.
4. The humor. Joss has always been good with the witty one-liner, and this movie was chalk full of them. Mid action someone would toss out a line that just had the theater howling, but it was done in such a way that it didn't detract from everything else, as it sometimes can. It enhanced the anticipation, and underscored the danger they were all facing. There was also a great moment between Hulk and Thor where not a word was said, but I almost pissed my pants laughing. It was great.
5. Surprisingly enough, Hawkeye. I wasn't really a die hard Hawkeye fan growing up. He was interesting because he was an archer and had some really nifty gadgets, but I didn't go out of my way to read his origin story or anything. He was a secondary character. While I liked him in his Thor cameo, I wasn't too sure on how I'd like him in the Avengers. He wasn't my favorite by a long shot, but I was surprised by how much I enjoyed his role. I think most of it has to do with Jeremy Renner, who was just a BAMF and emphasized the dichotomy between his character in the beginning and the end of the movie beautifully.
6. The actors. Oh my God, there were so many great actors in this movie which I'd known before, but seeing them all together was a kick to the head. They did so many amazing things together, played off each other so well, it blew my mind. They were comfortable on screen, and they made it real in a way that a lot of actors have trouble doing (except Robert Downey Jr., apparently). If they'd cast anyone else for any given role (and this is including having Edward Norton playing the Hulk), I don't think the movie would have worked.
Okay. That's it for this. If I keep raving, I'm just going to work myself up, and be bitchy 'cause I can't got see the movie again RIGHT NOW. I've gotta wait until Mandy comes into town (she gets to see Chi for the first time!) and that's not going to be for quite a while. But if you've seen the movie, LETS TALK ABOUT IT, OKAY?