Avengers: Endgame (2019) – Film Review
Avengers: Endgame certainly has an epic running time, just over 3 hours, which is used to wrap up an 11 year 22 film series and fans will certainly lap up the story conclusion.
Starting weeks after Infinity War, Endgame is a fully fledged standalone movie which deals with the fallout of the events of Infinity War in which Thanos captured all the powerful Infinity Stones and made half of all life in the universe die.
The casualties include many of the dozens of Avengers characters we have been introduced to over the epic run which started with Iron Man (2008).
When a possible way to reverse the defeat emerges, there’s an inevitable plot that involves time travel and the call goes out to team-up for the remaining Avengers, some of whom have ‘given up’ in their own ways.
There are moments of conflict, pathos, and plenty of humour as the Avengers assemble for what can only be described as a revisiting of the ‘greatest hits’ of their previous films.
Time travel is a well worn device for genre films but this and the sheer number of cameos packed into the film make it an ambitious affair which just about works within the huge running time.
The Russo Brothers have done a standout job in making the whole package work with the sheer amount of character appearances and plot to deal with.
I never noticed the 3 hour running time but felt that the film would work best for people who have seen the key moments of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) already.
The hype has already seen many early screenings of this film sold out locally to me, something I have rarely seen in recent years – anecdotally not since the original Harry Potter film.
A huge cast for a huge film that holds it together for a big conclusion
There’s enough storytelling in those films to delight many committed superhero fans but the sheer number of characters to deal with means some are short changed.
While there are emotional moments within the Avengers films they don’t reach the intensity created in Christopher Nolan’s Batman films (2006-2012) or the much celebrated Logan (2017).
With fewer characters there’s more pathos in the latter films which don’t have to move as many chess pieces to achieve the result.
But Endgame remains a satisfying end to what Marvel calls Phase 3 – the latest chapter of the MCU – and a must-see for Marvel completists.
There’s isn’t an appreciable post credits sequence this time, but there is perhaps a comic book tribute for fans who wish to stay until the very end of the credits and fans of the series will already know that the MCU will continue.
Stan Lee’s final cameo in the MCU is a fitting send-off, and the last few minutes of Endgame lays some of the groundwork for Phase 4.
MCU Phase 4 kicks off very soon with Spider-man: Far From Home in July.
Avengers: Endgame (12A; moderate violence; 181 minutes)
Director(s): Joe Russo, Anthony Russo
Cast Includes: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Don Cheadle, Paul Rudd, Brie Larson, Karen Gillan, Danai Gurira, Bradley Cooper, Josh Brolin
Summary: AVENGERS: ENDGAME is a US fantasy film about a team of superheroes.
Rating: **** (Epic chapter climax of an 11 year storyline which is going to continue)