Avengers: Endgame - The Last Stand Goes Out with a Bang

Now that the dust has settled a bit (if you call $2.485 billion in global box office “dust”), it’s time to opine a bit more freely than I did in my initial gush, and see what’s what.

So: let’s speak plainly. If you have still not seen Avengers: Endgame, stop reading now and go no further. Spoilers abound. Beyond here there be monsters. Tread lightly…

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You still here? You’ve seen the movie, yes? Good!

There’s simply never been a coordinated release effort like the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Starting with Iron Man back in 2008, we’ve had 21 films leading up to Endgame, each building on what came before, overlapping at times, clues of what’s to come being dropped throughout – perhaps the most amazing part being their staggering success and overall critical fondness. Some outings may be more beloved than others, but there’s never really been a flop. Presided over by producer Kevin Feige, the MCU kept taking chances, insisting on quality, and showcasing spot-on casting. An entire generation of kids has had the thrill of growing up with these pictures – and appetites haven’t faded. Black Panther and Captain Marvel stand as examples of fresh new characters expanding the MCU, and being eagerly embraced by fans. While there’s occasional talk of “superhero fatigue,” it doesn’t impact the MCU box office – and Endgame’s receipts are careening into the stratosphere.

In 2018’s Avengers: Infinity War, writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, along with directors Anthony and Joe Russo, did a remarkable job of making one movie serve as a sequel to half a dozen (or more), while standing on its own as dynamic and satisfying filmmaking. They also delivered the biggest gut-punch third act audiences had felt since The Empire Strikes Back. Audiences went nuts for it – and if you haven’t watched it lately, watch it again. Does it ever hold up. The same creative team is back, and they’ve made a final chapter that knocks the cover off the ball – a rip-roaring and heartfelt conclusion to this massive saga, that knows how to satisfy an audience. It’s not just curiosity, either. You don’t get this kind of box office phenomenon unless you connect with the fans and somehow pull Excalibur out of their collective subconscious stone. This is what happens when the audience goes back more than once – and keeps going back.

Endgame opens on the tranquil farm of Clint Barton – Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) – absent from Infinity War, enjoying peaceful time with his family, teaching his daughter to shoot arrows – which she does well. This a prime example of the Russo’s deft ability to manipulate tone and emotions. Then suddenly, Barton's all alone. Just wind...and ashes - and we're right back at the nightmare that ended Infinity War: The worst thing that could happen...has. Thanos has snapped his fingers, using the Infinity Gauntlet to obliterate half of all life in the universe. It can't be undone. 

"Five Years Later."

Avengers: Endgame is overflowing with surprises. If you'd told me that Rene Russo and Tilda Swinton were going to have more scenes than Samuel L. Jackson, I'd have laughed in your face. But it's true - Frigga and The Ancient One have bigger parts to play than Nick Fury. The Russos maintained a Robert Mueller degree of secrecy, wisely only using footage from the first few minutes of the film in the trailer. So the air of the unexpected was palpable. And there are major surprises - Five Years Later being a big one. And those five years have not been kind to everyone left standing. 

The biggest (literally) surprise is Bruce Banner. Who's somehow taken mindfulness to a whole new level and incorporated his verbal, scientific personality into the enormous body of the Hulk. He's "Professor Hulk." The Snap was societal trauma writ large, and the surviving Avengers are as traumatized as anyone. Hawkeye has become a ruthless vigilante assassin - Ronin - a man alone, stalking the underworld as an executioner fueled by grief and rage. Thor - Thor's unrecognizable, having completely let himself go, an obese, beer-guzzling Lebowski. 

Then Scott Lang (Ant-Man) shows up, having been trapped in the Quantum Realm. For survivors of The Snap, it's been five years. For Lang, it's been five hours. Realizing access to the Quantum Realm could allow them to navigate through time itself, the group theorizes that time travel could allow them to go into the past and hijack the Infinity Stones and undo the actions of Thanos in the present. Now, your enjoyment of the film may to some degree depend on your comfort and tolerance of time travel as a storytelling conceit. Me, I've been drinking that Kool-Aid since Star Trek and countless other sci-fi staples, so I had no problems at all. But time travel makes some people crash their Excel spreadsheets out of frustrated fealty to consequence and continuity, and they demand that every sequence leave a trail of breadcrumbs behind. I maintain that time travel is whimsy. Because there's a lightness of touch and giddiness to the mid-section of Endgame's temporal mayhem that I found absolutely delightful. A sequence that finds Tony Stark going back to S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters in the seventies and encountering his own father, the very day before Tony's going to be born, is priceless. That's using the device of time travel to beautifully serve character and satisfy the audience all at once. There is a tremendous amount of just plain fun to be had in Endgame, which I think is a big factor in its success. Don't overthink. 

Markus, McFeely and the Russos never forget the emotional investment we've put into these characters over the years, and there's plenty of sentiment - and genuine heartache - woven throughout the film. As hilarious as the film can be at times, it's also deeply melancholy when the fates must be paid their due. Avengers: Endgame is 3 hours and 1 minute long, but it absolutely flies by, and you feel like you've been carried through the full range of emotions by the time it's over. I found the time travel and twists clever and engaging, and the thrills and surprises never seemed to let up. It's a lot to process, and I'm chomping at the bit to get back into the theater for a second viewing. 

This is a cast that realizes they've been a part of something special, and they shine powerfully. Downy does some of his best work here. When the cocky mask drops and we see the gaunt, traumatized, fearful man within. Scarlett Johansson does a superb job, getting some great scenes with Jeremy Renner. Huge props to Karen Gillan's Nebula, who pulls double duty throughout the film. She's a ferocious talent. Chris Evans continues to be the heart and soul of the Avengers films, and he shines here. Josh Brolin continues to hypnotize as Thanos, making him one of the most indelible villains in action cinema. He's a complex, flawed character, not just a foe. Everyone involved truly seems to be giving it their all, and working towards an ending that they can be lastingly proud of. From where I'm sitting they've succeeded mightily.

Endgame brings us near the very end of Phase 3 of the MCU, which officially concludes with July's Spider-Man: Far From Home. Then begins a whole new era, with the beginning of Phase 4. Some of our Avengers will continue on, and some will not. But this is far from the end of these vast, multi-chapter, long format stories, which audiences love. We'll see more sequels and be introduced to even more new characters. The Marvel Comics back catalog is vast. And now with Disney's acquisition of Fox and its group of Marvel properties, it's only a matter of time before new incarnations of the X-Men and Fantastic Four join this ever-expanding cinematic universe. Thanos: meet Galactus. Until then, True Believers, you've got one hell of a final chapter to enjoy. This is movie history.