Avengers: Age of Ultron Review

We are truly in the information age. We have so much information at our fingertips it’s hard to stay away from finding out every individual detail about anything and everything. You learn everything you can about a certain thing, whether it be a band, a book or, in this case, a movie. That can cause quite a few problems, however. I’ve known there was going to be a sequel to the Avengers movie since, well, the Avengers movie. I’ve known about the cast for a long time and I’ve known, for the most part, what the plot was going to be. So, yes, going into Avengers: Age of Ultron, I may have hyped it up more than I should have. Did I ruin it for myself? No way, not even close. Go see it again? Okay!

Before I get delve further into this review, I just want to warn the reader that, while this isn’t going to be classified as a spoiler review, there will be some discussion and some small spoilers given away. I would like to note that in all of my reviews I never go into much detail other than setting up some scenes but I always leave the final act untouched. Hopefully, in doing this, I get you excited about seeing it if you haven’t already, or, at the very least, help you become more informed on whether or not this is something you’d like to see.

With that all being said.. holy moly! What a ride Avengers: Age of Ultron was! We start off in Sokovia where a H.Y.D.R.A. base is being raided by our familiar heroes. The whole gang, Tony Stark, a.k.a. Iron Man (Robert Downey, Jr.), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Steve Rogers, a.k.a. Captain America (Chris Evans), Bruce Banner, a.k.a. Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Clint Barton, a.k.a. Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and Natasha Romanoff, a.k.a. Black Widow (Scarlet Johannson), are in iconic form as they fight their way through the compound to retrieve the scepter, once held by Loki, that was lost after the battle in New York. While giving very little resistance, Baron Wolfgang von Strucker (Thomas Kretschmann) decides to surrender. Just before he does, however, his two prized, “enhanced” humans, Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) and Quicksilver (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), that were subjected to his experiments with the scepter, decide to show a glimpse of what they’re capable of. Ultimately, the Avengers gain control of the scepter and head back to New York.

Even though S.H.I.E.L.D. has been disbanded, Stark pulls a very S.H.I.E.L.D. like move and starts to dive right into the scepter and all it holds. Once Banner and he realizes that this is a living thing inside the scepter, seemingly part computer, part life form, Stark decides that the only logical thing to do is to create an A.I. program called Ultron. Banner is initially opposed but persuaded by Stark fairly easily. The Avengers, along with Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders), are enjoying a small after-party and they all make their attempt at lifting Thor’s hammer. Everyone exclaims it’s a trick and everyone gives it their best shot at lifting the incredible Mjolnir. With the exception of Rogers nudging it and Romanoff not bothering because she “doesn’t need that question answered,” no one even comes remotely close to lifting it. Unbeknownst to them, Ultron (James Spader) has quietly come awake, and after a brief altercation with Jarivs, full connects to the internet and hijacks a beat up robot in the Avengers tower. He emerges into the room and, needless to say, everyone is not only startled but quite afraid. After a terrifying speech, a fight breaks out between the Avengers and Ultron who has the help of the Iron Legion, which is a group of robots that help protect civilians while the Avengers are on the job. The Avengers come out victorious here, but at what cost? From here on out, Avengers: Age of Ultron, takes you on a crazy journey across the world. They run into some new and familiar faces and take refuge in a place only a couple even knew about. The final half of the movie will leave you on the edge of your seat, rooting for some you would not expect, as the world may literally come crashing to an end.

I’m going to dive right into what I loved about this movie because there’s not really anything I disliked. Essentially, I loved every minute of this film. The fighting sequences were awesome. The tension that gets built up throughout is so thin, one puncture hole and everything would’ve come crashing to a halt. James Spader is flat out amazing as Ultron and the Maximoff twins were a great addition. I wasn’t a huge fan of their accents, but their “enhancements” were so great, it more than made up for it. The familiar voice of Jarvis gets an upgrade in the body department with an actual body as he evolves into something much greater, Vision. The dialogue in this film was spot on throughout the majority of the film. With the exception of some scenes I didn’t care much for involving Clint Barton, there wasn’t much downtime. The effects were brilliant as always and the locations felt as if it was really being affected as the Avengers and Ultron come raging through.

The handful of concerns about the film are very small and I’m not sure there was anything that could have been done to prevent them, with the exception of what happens to a certain Avenger. I didn’t like what happened with this Avenger at all. I would go into more detail but it’s quite a spoiler and I don’t want to spoil this movie for anyone! Another sequence that I felt the movie could have done without is when it came to seeking refuge at Barton’s ranch home. I don’t care much for Hawkeye and delving more into his personal life was not something I was really interested in. The ending also seeemed a little rushed. I’m not sure if there was a time restriction or they just weren’t sure on how to finish it off, but it definitely felt just slightly out of place.

Simply put, Avengers: Age of Ultron was spectacular. I loved it so much that I saw it two days in a row, once in IMAX 3D, which I highly recommend, and once in regular 3D. I’ve come on and spoken very strongly about IMAX and it is, without a doubt, my favorite way to watch a film. If you have never been to one please, do yourself a favor, and go immediately. The departures from the comics are strange but very much welcomed in the new Marvel Cinematic Universe. I cannot wait for phase three to start and see what happens with our beloved superhero squad. If you liked the first one, you’re definitely going to enjoy the second. While it doesn’t have that initial “wow” factor like the first one did, because, let’s be honest, most sequels don’t compare well when put up against the original, it still stands its own as a fantastic Marvel film and quite possibly, in my opinion, the best one to date.

All images courtesy of: www.IMDB.com

Jordan Hanson

I’m 28 and currently living in upstate New York. I’m an amateur review writer, mostly for movies, and I’m looking to take it to the next level.