Barkley — So Glad You (Didn’t) Ask: A Column of Unsolicited Opinions #40

The Avengers: Endgame, A (SPOILER FREE) Review.  

By Chris M. Barkley:

The Avengers: Endgame (2019, ****, 181 minutes) with 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 and Josh Brolin. Screenplay by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely based on The Avengers by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee, Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo.


When we last left The Avengers, catastrophe had struck; the mad titan Thanos had managed to collect all of the Infinity Stones for his Gauntlet and obliterated half of ALL lifeforms in in the galaxy.

That included a significant number of Earth protectors, leaving only the original members, Iron Man (Robert Downey, Jr.), Captain America (Chris Evans), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Thor (Chris Helmsworth), the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), the Iron Patriot (Don Cheadle) and Rocket Raccoon (Bradley Cooper) of the Guardians left to pick up the pieces.

Life on a decimated Earth is hard and most of society is traumatized and mournful. Even the rescue of Tony Stark and Nebula (Karen Gillian) from deep space and the arrival of Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) who was summoned by Nick Fury in the final moments of Infinity War, brings them any hope or a promise of moving on. They CAN’T move on; they’re The Avengers.

And just as things look as bleak as possible, Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) (who was last seen trapped in the Quantum Realm in The Ant-Man and The Wasp), shows up at the Avenger’s front doorstep with a fantastic story and an even more incredible theory about to try to restore the Universe from Thanos’ deadly snap…

When you have a movie this that is so widely anticipated, with such a large cast and a running time of just over three hours, even a seasoned film reviewer such as myself had to wonder in the furthest reaches of my mind, can they pull this off?

Well…

Not only did screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely and directors Anthony and Joe Russo pull it off, they did it in a monumental, jaw dropping and dare I say, EPIC manner.

In the space of 181 minutes, you experience more callouts, call backs, call ups, fabulous cameos, easter eggs, and some of the most satisfying character arcs and revelations than you can possibly stand.

At the the sold out, first showing audience I attended with I head audible gasps, raucous laughter, and in the most unexpected places, sobs and a lot of tears. Some of them were happy and some were sad. Because sometimes, heroism is great to witness but it comes with steep price to pay.

But it was as satisfying a movie experience, in an actual theater, that I have had in quite a while.

The Avengers: Endgame is a bittersweet and beautiful film to behold, a bold and impressive end to this long and monumental story which began eleven years ago with the first Iron Man film. I don’t know what Marvel Studios has in mind next (besides Spider-Man: Far From Home in July), but my only piece of advice I have to offer them is NOT to try and top this emotional and fulfilling movie.

Because it CAN’T be done!

EXCELSIOR!!!!!

One thought on “Barkley — So Glad You (Didn’t) Ask: A Column of Unsolicited Opinions #40

  1. Eric and I just came back from watching the matinee, and we agree wholeheartedly. This is a great film, provided you watched most of the earlier ones.

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