Movie Review- Avengers : Infinity War
Nobody was around when the big bang happened and the Universe came into being. With the arguable exception of those who have been living under a rock for the last decade, virtually everybody knows when the big bang in cinematic space happened that brought Marvel Cinematic Universe into being.
It was in 2008 with the release of Iron Man. That movie launched the ever expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe and not only introduced us to arguably its most iconic eponymous super hero but also gave redemption to the career of the inimitable Robert Downey, Jr.
In the course of a decade, the big bang that launched the MCU expanded rapidly with 18 movies that laid down the expansive canvass of cinema’s most ambitious overarching project ever.
Avengers: Infinity War is the 19th release from MCU and with it; we are heading towards the decade-long denouement of MCU’s hydra-headed (pun intended) storyline arch.
Having had a decade and 18 movies to lay out its storyline background with sufficient bricks and mortar, Infinity War pretty much skipped foundational niceties and launched straight into the throes of the titular war. It opened with Thanos’ decimation of the Asgardian Fleet conveying the surviving Asgardians following the events of Ragnarok.
For the first time, we are introduced to the purple behemoth that is Thanos in full shot and he wastes no time in confirming the intergalactic apprehension that has attended news of his quest for the six infinity stones preparatory to decimating half of the universe.
The opening scene’s shock and awe literally sucks you into the Bifrost and teleports you along with its green SOS cargo to Earth to warn the Avengers that Thanos was on his way.
Fast paced and instantly engaging, Infinity War deftly weaves its intricate storyline web teleporting you to galactic worlds, introducing you to MCU’s expansive repertoire of heroes and villains as well as introducing said heroes and villains to each other with blink-and-you-will- miss-it repartees and dimension bending duels ensuing.
With a decade head-start in super hero film making, Marvel Studios has got the formula so finely honed, it is almost as effortless as Thor stretching his hand out to catch Mjolnir .
The obligatory Stan Lee cameo happened pretty much in the beginning leaving you with a wistful feeling of how future MCU releases will lack that certain je ne sais quoi when he eventually passes on. Those Stan Lee cameos have become as pop culture iconic as easter eggs in MCU movies.
With multiple franchises in the MCU, cross appearances and end credit cameos have allowed only limited interactions between characters. But in Infinity War, we are afforded the near-orgasmic pleasure of long-anticipated interactions between iconic characters.
Both noted for their egotistical self-centeredness, the long-awaited one-on-one interaction between Tony Stark/Iron Man and Dr. Strange delivered way more than the equally long-awaited one-on-one interaction between Al Pacino and Robert De Niro did in Michael Mann’s seminal cops v. robbers heist movie, Heat.
Tony Stark and Dr. Strange both had the gravitas to imbue their encounter with the aura of the immovable object meeting the irresistible force. Stark had transformed from Playboy Billionaire to soon-to-be-married jaded super hero. Dr. Strange had transformed from Rock star surgeon to dedicated sanctum protector wizard.
Seeing them face-to-face for the first time ever in Infinity War, one could not help but geek out. Their tight-lipped ego-driven exchanges were very much as engaging as I had imagined it would be and provided some of Infinity War’s finest and geek out moments.
Away from serious and ego-driven alpha male encounters, Thor’s and Peter Quill/Star Lord’s encounter provided the expected comic relief. The Thor and Guardians of the Galaxy franchises have always represented the softer and comical side of MCU.
However, unlike the Stark/Dr. Strange encounter where neither side had an upper hand over the other, Thor had a decidedly upper hand over Star Lord in their encounter as Thor was more domineering.
The battle/fight scenes also provided some of Infinity War’s finest moments. From the opening scene where Thanos beat Hulk black and blue until his green turned yellow to the ensemble final battle scene in Wakanda. From the fight scene outside the New York Sanctum where Iron Man debuted his new nano-technology armour to the fight scene in Scotland when a bearded Steve Rogers/ Captain America emerged from the shadows to a woot woot jubilation in the cinema hall.
Marvel Studios turned up the ante in Infinity War with well-spaced out action sequences spliced with brain-tingling smart quips and dialogue propped up against a galaxy-wide spectacular visual cinematography all deftly choreographed to the pulsating symphony of Alan Silvestri’s energized score.
It is to the credit of Directors, Anthony and Joe Russo, that having helmed 2 of the best releases in MCU (Winter Soldier and Civil War), with Infinity War, they have literally made lighting strike a 3rd time with the resounding game changer impact of Thor landing in Wakanda during the final battle wielding the Storm Breaker like a God!
The release of Black Panther was foreshadowed by unarguably the most elaborate and sustained publicity blitzkrieg in cinema history. Even when Black Panther ended with euphoric jubilation from the audience, there was no denying the fact that it never quite lived up to its hype.
The release of Infinity War, on the other hand, was barely attended by the kind of publicity Black Panther enjoyed other than a ten-year build up. But in exiting the cinema hall after the end credits finished rolling with the audience stunned to a stupefied silence, you not only recognize the brilliance of the movie you have just seen but you also understand why prestige car brands like Rolls Royce, Bentley and Ferrari do not advertise their products like other car brands. When you know, you know! 8.5/10
