Movie Man Darian Watching All Night Long

Avengers : Endgame 

A Cinematic masterpiece for the ages! The culmination of 22 movies and 11 years to get to this moment and damn it was well worth the wait. Their are few films I can say confidently that are the greatest of all time such as the Godfather one and two, The Wizard Of Oz, Back To The Future and Ghostbusters (1984) and I would put this film in that list of all time great films of cinema history. The film left me truly stunned and speechless only a handful of films have been able to achieve that and this dose it in spades. Endgame exceeds every single expectation I had and leaves satisfied to the point that I had to think a whole day on how I was going to piece this review together due to the fact I don’t revel spoilers and that I wanted to make sure I had what I wanted to say in my head before writing anything as this deserves the best written review as it gave us the audience a expeirence at the theatre that we will never forget. Their are so many incredible moments in this film as their are moments of great humour and also great emotion too and all of it is balanced so greatly the tone set for this film is outstanding as it never felt to sombere or bleak as it was able to still inject light hearted moments throughout and the ability the Russo brothers had at really giving incredibly layered tones throughout the film was masterfully shown and done onscreen. You can prepare and make all the predictions you want this film will surprise you as you cannot prepare for what you witness in this film and I love that as the moment you think you know what is going to play out onscreen it goes a total different direction then what you thought. Endgame is the best marvel film I have seen and you guys know that Iron Man was my favourite Marvel film next to Logan but I have to say this film takes the top spot for my favourite MCU film as it dose so many things that no other Marvel film or superhero film has done and been able to pull off. As Endgame  I would as far as saying it is Return Of The King level of excellence and I stand by that as this film gives a hell of a concussion to this saga with these characters and they do it in such a well done way that feels earned and just perfect giving the greatest farewell to this team. Endgame will beat the hell out of you emotionally and will have you feeling everything in between as I realized sitting in the theatre that this film is single handily one of the greatest films of cinema and Marvel pulled it off with a 11 year story arc coming to a perfect close with this film. 

First off, The cast in the film are incredible, I know I always say that but I mean it every actor no matter how large or small their onscreen part is they make the most of it and give it their all. The big standouts being Scarlett Johanson who gives her greatest onscreen portrayal of Black Widow and really captivated me with her amazing onscreen performance that was so layered with so much emotion. Then their was Chris Evans who gives a emotionally restrained performance that is perfectly expressed onscreen by Evans who is on the top of his game truly shining onscreen in every moment as he strips himself down emotionally and gives not only his greatest portrayal of the star spangled man but also one of his best performances period. Then lastly their is Robert Downey Jr. who to my opinion gives the greatest performance of the film and one of best performances of his career. He gave a performance unlike anything we have seen him bring to Tony in the past films and he does not hold back Downey delivers on every level giving a outstanding performance that was a emotional punch to the chest as Downey steps onto another level and gives a performance that is on the level of Oscar caliber he truly is astonishing and left me speechless with his onscreen performance. A strong Suit this film has is the acting is terrific across the board and the Russo’s were again able to do something that I applauded them for when they did Infinity War which was they were able to juggle a massive cast and never made one feel underused or simply shoved in the background they made time for each individual character to shine and have their moment onscreen and they deliver it amazingly well here as it wasn’t easy as the cast only expands in this film. 

Secondly, The Russo Brothers achieved genius status in my books here and I will explain why. They were first introduced to us back in 2014 with Captain America the Winter Solider which is one of my all time favourite MCU films and they delved into such serious topics and tones that had never been touched upon or done prior to that and injected such life into the franchise with their amazing style of filmmaking. As Winter Solider showed them as a force to be reckoned with as that film no matter how you split it is about Government Corruption and that is quite a heavy tone to set in a Marvel film yet they made it work With sharp writing and jaw dropping action sequences spread out. Then in 2016 came Captain America : Civil War which is basically an Avengers film just without Thor and Hulk and that film did amazing things for the franchise as it also serviced the fans as it was a storyline from the comics but they also didn’t make it to fan driven that it felt exclusive  to only fans but they also made it mainstream to the general public and they balanced that so well while giving a film that drove the narrative forward without it feeling repetitive or formulaic from past films that came before it. They delved into the aspect of Divide and what is considered right and wrong showing both points and making well rounded arguments on both sides it was having a heavy hand of a political undertone through the film while also giving great surprises and building upon the character arcs of the characters we had come to love while also introducing characters in a way that felt well done and fleshed out instead of feeling overcrowded which they avoided which is tricky to do. They put the characters into situations that carried into future films and were addressed. Then in 2018 we got Avengers Infinity War which was an event unlike anything we had seen bigger then the first Avengers which we thought was massive and it was but Infinity War brought it to a whole new scale and the Russo’s were able to bring the story and characters into a territory and situations that when some of these characters died it stuck which I thought was smartly done as it impacts you and reminds you that at the end of the day they are superheroes yes but they are still human. And having that message woven into Infinity War and Endgame was incredibly impactful as Infinity War really captures the story we had been following for so long and The Russo’s give so many shocking turns that I had not seen so well done since Empire Strikes Back as the ending for Infinity War and I stand by this was and is one of the greatest cliffhanger films to any film. The tones of Infinity War was the sense of loss and that anything is on the table and just because their superheroes doesn’t excuse the fact  or say that they can’t  bleed or die and that harsh message but very realistic one is voiced very strongly through the film and in many regards that same message carries into Endgame as well and now in 2019 The Russo’s have brought it full circle and I would say gives their best directed film out of all the Marvel films they have been involved in. They unpack so much in this film with great fan service moments that left my jaw on the floor and also bring this film into a conclusion that feels very poetic in it’s exacution as they have brought such a layer of grounded realism to the full front of these characters and stories that they have told and here it is well done as they pull off their greatest achievement yet the give so many surprises and so many emotional moments as well that feel well placed and not just their for the sake of being emotional no it feels incredibly appropriate to the story and it’s characters. The final act of this film is one of the best final acts I have ever seen shown on film as I was stunned and amazed by what they pull off in this film and especially within the last hour as it does things I have waited to see for years. It is everything you want and more myself being a massive Marvel fan it will blow your mind The Russo brothers do not leave anything on the table they give the greatest conclusion to a 22 story arc saga that perfectly wraps up in a beautiful way I couldn’t of imaged it anymore perfectly then what they capture onscreen. The Russo’s thank you for giving us amazing films as you put your heart and soul into these films and it shows in the work and here you brought things to a whole new level and delivered a finale that will go down in cinema history of one of the finest films ever to be put onscreen. 

Lastly, Back in 2008 I sat in a theatre hearing Tony say he is Iron Man then in 2012 I saw the Avengers come together in a team up film that had never been done before and I was 11 when these films first started I am now into my early twenties and this franchise has been and still is a massive part of my life and always will have a special place in my heart as Marvel has done the unprecedented task on giving a 11 year story arc that is all connected and they do so much character, story and universe building within this massive franchise and nothing before or after will ever be done like what Marvel has pulled off. As they approached these characters in such a faithful way to the source material but also have kept it mainstream for general audiences  which is no easy task to do and they made it work. From Iron Man to Guardians Of The Galaxy Marvel has and continues to amaze me as this little kid who sat under his bed sheets with a flashlight reading Spider-Man and so many more comics early into the morning just to be immersed into the world Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko created means the world to me and forever will and these films captured the magic of Stan’s work and the magic of those comics and they splashed them on the screen with great astonishing execution that always left me grinning as Marvel’s work within the comics were deeply impactful within the stories and with their characters and that is what they captured so well was that lightening in the bottle magic they were able to bring to the screen and for that I am thankful for the 11 years of Marvel films and for helping this kid feel less alone as I will forever be a Marvel fan as it holds a special place in my heart and it has been an honour to have seen all these 22 films on the big screen and come full circle with Endgame so thank you Marvel my eleven year old self came out in Endgame geeking out and also making me emotional as you have satisfied me and given the greatest ending to  the best franchise in film history you have done Stan proud and he would of loved Endgame. I give Avengers Endgame the highest praise it is a film that will make you laugh, cry, surprised this is Endgame and it is a cinematic masterpiece that is the greatest Superhero film ever made. 

This film picks up 5 years after the events of Infinity War and the Avengers must come together one last time  to take down Thanos and bring balance back to the universe or die trying. 

Rated PG - 13 : for sequences of sci-fi violence and action, and some language

Robert Downey Jr : Downey delivers a crowning achievement in his portrayal of Tony Stark. We all know Robert is a incredible actor of amazing range and he’s given us such great performances of this character time and time again for the last 11 years and he’s always been bringing something new to the table each time. Here he gives not only his greatest portrayal of the character but also one of his best onscreen performances period. He shows Tony in such ways we’ve never seen and he goes places emotionally that he hasn’t explored before and it’s incredible. He really is the lead in many ways of this film as it comes full circle with his character arc and as what happened in the last film we see it took a massive hit to him mentally and emotionally. As this character has been through hell and back since we were first introduced to him back in 2008. To me Roberts arc with the character is my favourite as he’s been though like I mentioned so much and we’ve seen him evolve and adapt through so many situations that really test him and put him through the ringer and he’s always made it to the other side and come out of it emotionally and mentally scratched by It and here we see all of his hurt and all of his pain at the full front of his performance and Robert does it in such a genuine and emotionally impactful way that just left me speechless. Sure he brings that charm that Robert is known for and so is the character but it’s so much more then that what he showcases here is so layered with depth and meaning he has moments of sheer sadness and some witty moments but surprisingly for the first time Robert doesn’t really showcase a lot of light heartedness within the character he for the first time explores his more emotional and vulnerable side for majority of the film which is something he showed a bit of in Iron Man 3 and has been slowly showing more and more of but not this to this extent. It was incredibly well shown onscreen due to Downeys incredible range as an actor and his amazing commitment to the character by being able to really just immerse himself head on with hard hitting dialogue and raw emotion throughout the film. When he speaks you feel it like it hits you like a wave and it works because Robert has played this character for 11 years and he knows the character inside and out and really makes the character feel lived in so when he speaks very emotionally hard hitting words it hits like a brick because you can see it in his eyes and from his voice he means what he says and his sheer passion he brings to this character is what makes Iron Man so great to watch onscreen. His performance is Endgame is unlike anything Robert has done with the character in previous outings which is what makes it so different and really stand out as he explored so many aspects of the character we hadn’t seen and Robert made me laugh he made me cry and he truly is astonishing in this film and to the point I would campaign him for a Oscar for his work in this as it’s truly something to behold as it’s one of the greatest superhero performances ever committed to film and Downey does it phenomenally and I’ll say this I respect Downey as an actor but also as a person we all know that Downey had quite a hard time in the 90’s and early 2000’s due to personal problems and with the first Iron Man watching it now it feels autobiographical to how he was in many aspects and if that film hadn’t done well the first Iron Man we wouldn’t of gotten any of these films so to a massive credit that film is what also got Downey back into tinsel town and I’ll forever respect Downey as he had a tough time in his career and also in his personal life I don’t need to say what it was as many know what I am speaking of and he’s a great example of showing that you can turn your life around and make it better as he went to the lowest of lows and came back with hard work and commitment to his career and his personal life and he’s earned all the success in the world because he’s worked his ass off to be where he is and he is Iron Man. 

Chris Evans : Evans delivers a emotionally restrained performance of the first avenger and seeing him deliver a powerful punch of a performance. Evans has always brought a very special quality to what makes this character shine since we first saw him back in 2011. He’s been getting more and more hardened by what he’s seen and experienced ever since Winter Solider and onward the star spangled man has gone through a very interesting character arc that challenged his morals and what he defies of what is right and what wrong and here he really shows every inch of what Captain America stands for and for what he is and Evans brings that to screen with sheer raw emotion shined amazingly well through every frame of this film showing great emotion but incredibly restrained and reserved Chris shows the hardship and leadership of Captain America in the fight for their lives through genuine and realistic delivery and depth. In this outing Evans pulls the punches by being worn down for what he’s been through and to a certain degree has hazed what he once stood so strong for he still is the leader we know and love but he can’t help but be quite cynical to his situation due to the outcome of what has happened. Evans takes a very different approach to the character this time around but he also is very funny to in ways I didn’t anticipate him to be as their are real belly laughs he gets from me as his timing for comedic one liners was perfect but he also knew when to simmer down and get emotional and take a scene seriously so his range and emotional layers were perfectly done by Evans great ability to understand this character he’s played for many many years. He brings such impactful meaning in his eyes he’s so emotive in his eyes he can tell so much and say so little with just his eyes and he dose that here and a talented actor can be so emotive but doing it in your eyes and your face without a word of dialogue is tricky and he does that so well. Here he brings Captain America to places he had never done before with great humour and powerful emotion that will impact you and bring you to tears. Chris Evans has constantly evolved Captain America through every entry and here he brings it to a whole new level with Steve Rogers and damn is it amazing to watch. I cannot express enough that Chris gives his heart and soul to this performance and he’s given his career best work with this film he has given us great performance time and time again with the star spangled man but here he truly gives his finest outing of the character truly giving a poetic approach to the role and really amazed and dazzles me through every frame he brings his A game and will forever be the captain. 

Scarlett Johansson : Scarlett gives a gripping turn as the master assassin in this film! Scarlett has been part of the MCU since 2010 and has been contributing greatly to the franchise with her charismatic performance as the sleek assassin and here she gives her best and most vulnerable outing as the character that I’ve seen. What’s interesting about her character is she doesn’t tell a lot about her past or herself as a whole and so to me that’s fascinating as all the other Avengers we know quite a lot about and her specifically is very much in the dark in terms of backstory and she only tells us what she wants us to know and here she shows the most of her character and damn it was impactful. As Johansson packs all this emotional weight on her back and at times breaks because of the sheer pressure and amount of stress and will burst into tears which is something we haven’t seen Scarlett explore with the character is the ability to be emotionally vulnerable and she constantly surprised me throughout the film with her choices and just the approach she brought to the character this time around. She was able to evoke the character with great strength due to the massive credit of Scarlett’s performance at hand as she gives an amazing arc and depth to her that the audience hasn’t seen ever before and it’s brilliant. Every step of the way she just gives her all to this performance in the film and she puts her sweet heart and tears into the film and it shows in the film as Johnson gives one of the strongest performances of the entire film as she really is one of the key emotional drives in the film and I love the switch she brought to her character and the choice to be open more and show so many layers of this character this time around she did an amazing job bringing a incredibly strong and driven performance that she hasn’t done prior to this film with this character she was able to be a badass one minute then witty the next and then totally emotionally raw she’s outstanding she is Black Widow. 

Mark Ruffalo : Ruffalo gives a very entertaining and meaningful performance to the big free lovable Hulk. Here he brings a whole lot of layers to him that was strongly shown in the last Thor instalment. He showed a lot more of his comedic elements and played that up quite a bit but he also showed a lot more of the baggage that fame with being two personalities essentially. Here he shows from both personalities the struggles they have how he balances both. You can tell that Ruffalo is having great fun as for a great majority of it he plays it up as the comic relief which is a new territory the character took in Thor’s last film and has been something that has stuck in a great way. But he also knows in the film when to simmer down and have the heart to heart emotional moments too which he plays incredibly effectively with great heart and range of emotions. As Ruffalo shows that he’s more then just muscle but as we know is incredibly intelligent and has been useful on that front for many of the Marvel films and here he’s used to the top capacity to explain what the hell is going on. Mark has this childlike quality to him that helps convey the lighter moments greatly but he also has great emotional depth that helps anchor the character with tear jerking moments in the film as well that if not are more effective then the comedic moments he plays up. Ruffalo gives tremendous work as you can see he worked his hardest to give the most entertaining performance possible and he does it greatly not playing it one note with one specific emotion but using everything he can muster into the scenes he has with great sincerity. Ruffalo has given great work over the years as Bruce Banner and here he does another stellar job Mark Ruffalo will always be the Hulk. 

Jeramy Renner : Renner gives his most emotionally dark and broken turn as Hawkeye! Renner has played the eagle eyed archer since his first appearance in Thor and has gone on to be one of the key characters of the marvel franchise. He’s not as involved as the other Avengers but that doesn’t take away from how important he is to the team. As in the last few films he’s grown to become more and more important not just to the team but also to storyline as well. Here he is one of the most important elements of the film and we spend a great deal of the film with his character arc. Renner gives a very dark and emotionally battered performance that shows a massive shift in his character through this film. Their are things that happen to Hawkeye for the good and the bad and how Jeramy tackles those elements within in the narrative through his character is impressive to watch. He is a supporting character here but when he’s onscreen he chews up the scenery with his emotionally pulled back performance as he goes through a massive amount of heartache and Renner provides the raw emotion required so incredibly well onscreen. Giving great range and layers while also showing a entirely new side to the character that hasn’t been shown before and it’s badass what he does and Renner commits to every frame with great charisma and emotion. Renner gives an emotionally charged performance that crackles he is Hawkeye. 

Chris Hemsworth : Hemsworth gives a comedically layered performance. Chris’s arc with the god of thunder has been an interesting one as back in 2011 the character was a lot different in his portrayal of Thor then it is now. What I mean is that he was very serious for a large amount of the films and with the 2017 entry of Thor 3 he started to show more of his comedic colours and inject a new quality to the character. Which I love as I found it refreshing that Chris chose to bring new qualities to the role as he is very funny and I don’t think enough people see that and since he went that route with the character he is comedic for a good portion of the film but not to the point that Thor becomes jokey. And I love that he was able to balance that out which was tricky as he uses a good part of comedy and other dramatic but he walks that line so well and pulls it off. You also can tell he’s having such fun as when Chris comes onscreen he is the life of the party and due to his great range as an actor it works every time as he had me burst into laughing until I cried from how funny he was but he timed it so well that he knew when to say a joke. His comedic timing was perfect as he knew when the appropriate time was to do it and then switch it over to a more emotional and serious tone which is equally as effective in his delivery. Chris gives a great full circle to the arc that has been ever evolving for his character since the first Thor and it’s due to Chris’s great charisma, energy and commitment that makes it work so well this is another brilliant entry as his performance as Thor that truly is special as it’s unlike anything we’ve seen Chris go with the character. Chris Hemsworth is the god of thunder. 

Josh Brolin : Brolin gives a fierce performance as the mad titan. In many ways Infinity War was Thanos’s movie. He was the main character we learned about his backstory with his daughters and his main goal so they fleshed out the groundwork for who Thanos is in Infinity War.  And so here they showcase him from a very different approach compared to what we saw in the previous film as here he is a supporting character as he isn’t the main heart of this story. When Brolin is onscreen he is chilling, haunting, and menacing giving amazing delivery with his dialogue once again he just breaths such life into the words and character that you get chills from watching him onscreen. Josh is able to bring great lengths of emotion by being incredibly restrained as when he speaks it seems so genuine and authentic and it feels like he means it creating a great layer of believability to the performance at hand. Josh just captivates you with his amazing work as Thanos it’s nothing short of brilliant he brings such great things to this film and is one of cinemas greatest villains ever. He injects great energy to the film with his terrifying performance and Brolin packs a punch and delivers on every level with his great range Josh Brolin is Thanos. 

Karen Gillian : Gillian gives a amazing performance as the daughter of Thanos in this film! Karen has stunned me time and time again. As she was one of the best parts of Guardians of the galaxy and here she gives her greatest outing of the character. She brings so much depth and energy to the role that captivates you to the last second. She really strips herself down emotionally and shows her more vulnerable side. Which is amazing as Nebula has evolved massively since we first met her back in 2014. She’s still hardened but here she brings that same quality but really adds to it with more layer of emotion as she really is heartbroken here and voices that strongly. It is effective because of Karen’s amazing range as an actor and great commitment to the character you believe every word she says as she’s so genuinely real and throws herself in the deep end emotionally and pulls off a scene stealing performance that will make you cry and feel for her Karen Gillian is Nebula. 

Joe & Anthony Russo : Joe and Anthony are legends. They have done the unprecedented they pulled off two of the largest cinematic stories in the MCU and here they knock it out of the park. Endgame is very different compared to Infinity War as Endgame is more tense and more heartbreaking. They were able to make the tone more darker but not to bleak they still had great moments of lighthearted humour and had great balance of tone through the film. While serving the fans giving  great fan service moments but not to the point that mainstream audiences were left out they appealed it to them as well and I love that. Adding a very compelling and tense narrative that kept you on the edge of your seat until the end. I also admire their ability to surpass expectations as when you think you know what happens they surprise you as the Russo’s give an experience unlike anything with great moments between the characters and also at the same time give a poetic and respectful conclusion to the saga that feels well done. They did a phenomenal job with directing this film as it was a massive undertaking and they pulled it off with blood sweat and tears and you can see the passion and heart put into the film as it shows in the work. Overall Joe & Anthony Russo give masterful direction that deserves to be applauded.