Avengers Review – Incredible Gimmickry, Less Credible Artistry

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The young Black guy sitting to my right was so ripe with emotion that at the end of the super-heroes film Avengers he couldn’t resist turning to a complete stranger (me, me, me) and asking rhetorically, “Nice movie, eh? They did a good job on that.”

Yeah, I responded because it’s the politically correct (and smart) thing to say when everyone around you is clapping.

Ain’t No Big Deal

But if you really want to know, I think Avengers is like a good reefer that gives you a momentary high but, hey, who remembers the euphoria the next morning.

You can take my word that a few months from now no one’ll even remember this high octane action flick let alone talk about it.

Just one more in a long line of Hollywood releases pumped by a cast of A list stars (Robert Downey Jr, Scarlett Johansson, Samuel Jackson) and souped up by A++ gee wiz gimmickry.

The loudest claps and applause came when an angry Hulk, after being taunted by the villain Loki that earthlings were beneath Gods like him, grabs the evil man by the legs and repeatedly smashes his body against the floor in a violent fury.

Admittedly, the scene was a bit funny given Loki’s vainglorious boast but is seeing a bad guy being smashed to a pulp against the floor cause enough to send the entire movie hall into a collective swoon and a lengthy orgasm?

Is this what big $220 million Hollywood movies and audiences have come down to.

O tempora, o mores.

But for now the audience is enthusiastically lapping it up.

Shows are sold out, parking lots are full and the lines inside U.S. theatres long.

And the studio (Paramount, in this instance) involved will make a ton of money, ensuring similar dreary stuff coming down the pike.

Nothing, it seems, can shake the sway of the super-hero film genre on the American psyche. By the way, get ready for Spiderman releasing in July.

Earth in Peril

When Earth comes under grave threat following the theft of the bluish Tesseract crystal, a high energy source, by the evil Loki from the Asgardian realm, spy agency S.H.I.E.L.D Nick Fury assembles his Avengers team of hotshots to save the planet.

And who in the name of Christ are these so-called Avengers?

Well, think of them as Earth’s last line of defense against a mad and incredibly powerful enemy like Loki.

To moviegoers, the Avengers are a familiar crew, drawn from the Marvel Comics pantheon and comprise of Tony Stark/Iron Man, Steve Rogers/Captain America, Dr.Bruce Banner/Hulk, Thor, Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow and Clint Barton/Hawkeye.

Mind-numbing Pulp

The rest is all mind-numbing pulp with Iron Man whooshing around, Thor swinging his Hammer at enemies, the Black Widow kicking anything in sight, Loki warning there’s no going back, Dr.Banner ‘Hulking’ up and interminable fights on the ground and up in the air.

Fortunately, I was spared underwater fights this time around.

The action scenes are what’s considered de rigueur for a 21st century super-heroes film.

Anything less would turn it into a total travesty for the fan-base.

Loki played by Tom Hiddleston, while not completely disappointing as a villain, was kinda eclipsed in all the hurly burly of the flying men, speeding arrows, hammer-falls and fiery explosions.

Only occasionally did the dialogs rise above the banal.

Tiresome Exercise

Without the powerful dramatic characters that can only be built on the edifice of an engaging story, most super-hero movies have now descended into a farce fizzing with special effects gimmickry.

The first few times, I could sit through all these fizz-laden effects. But lately I find it incredibly tedious and can’t wait for the end-credits to roll.

Desis here will be pleased to learn that Mera Bharat Mahaan figures for about 2 or 3-minutes in the movie. Yes, it includes even a few Hindi dialogs.

Overall, I wasn’t in the least bit excited by Avengers and must confess that I even nodded off for a few seconds now and then.

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17 Responses to "Avengers Review – Incredible Gimmickry, Less Credible Artistry"

  1. Naveen   May 4, 2012 at 10:20 pm

    Hello SI – Is this really a SI review? Doesn’t feel like one reading it!

    Also, when did SI switch from “we” to “I”?

    Yeah, I responded…, Overall, I wasn’t…

    SearchIndia.com Responded:

    The (Old) SI is Dead. Long Live the (New) SI.

    Yes, I have terminated with extreme prejudice the effete pronoun We.

  2. Mnx542   May 4, 2012 at 10:45 pm

    Doesn’t feel like reading an SI review at all 🙁

    is this SI version 2.0 upgraded?

    R.I.P old SI..!!!

    SearchIndia.com Responds:

    New broom sweeps cleaner, so they say.

    New SI is better, so I say.

    Old SI was a namby-pamby. New SI is on Acid!

  3. deepa   May 9, 2012 at 5:32 am

    Agreed, agreed!!! Avengers was rather luke warm and overly hyped. I look forward to Batman after this.

    Adios to the old SI team, missed your wicked insensitive humour

  4. Naveen   May 10, 2012 at 11:29 pm

    When was the last time a week went by without a new post in SI?

    All izz well??

    SearchIndia.com Responds:

    Hmmm, must have been in 2007.

  5. vjcool   May 11, 2012 at 1:27 am

    http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/life/avengers-sequel-already-in-the-works/article_d1a0ed05-28bb-5448-a309-20f4bd192793.html

    SearchIndia.com Responds:

    What a pity! Now I’ll have to endure more of the same.

  6. vjcool   May 11, 2012 at 1:30 am

    a TV film by Satyajit Ray for DD.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSwVwv_xwSM

    got 5 parts in youtube, totaling around 50 mins. Om Puri and Smita Patel.

    SearchIndia.com Responds:

    I’ll watch it on the Mac one of these days.

    • gandhiji   May 12, 2012 at 11:48 am

      Wheeeeeee….. found another we

      SearchIndia.com Responds:

      Damn!

      Must be the troublesome Chinese hackers again….changing all my ‘I’s to We.

      It’s all Steve Jobs’ fault…if only he’d launched the iTV television sets the Chinese would be slaving away at Foxcomm oops Foxconn assembling televisions for foreclosed Americans at $3 a day instead of hacking our popooolar blog.

      Fixed. Thanks. 😉

  7. rajesh jagetia   May 11, 2012 at 7:39 am

    Off topic
    Have you watched latest ETT teaser which has become talk of the town in India

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqz5WTJMLEw

    SearchIndia.com Responds:

    You write: ETT teaser which has become talk of the town in India

    Just watched Ek Tha Chuha teaser…..as long as there are 900-million chutiyas in Mera Bharat Mahaan there will be chuhas (mice) strutting about like tigers.

    As for the upcoming ETT, although the past is often a good guide to the future one can never say until you sit through the film.

  8. Naveen   November 5, 2012 at 2:04 am

    Watched Avengers and Snow White & the Huntsmen. Both junk! 🙁

    SearchIndia.com Responds:

    You’d have had better luck with Flight!

    • Naveen   November 5, 2012 at 2:14 am

      Unless I am reviewing, I typically wait a week for SI’s review before watching 😉

      SearchIndia.com Responds:

      Next week should be good too – Lincoln, Skyfall etc.

      • Naveen   November 5, 2012 at 2:24 am

        I will be in NJ and I am planning to watch it with a few friends there (assuming cinemas are functioning, roads are safe and Gas is available!)

        My friends in NJ were telling about the long lines for Gas and several closed gas stations.

        SearchIndia.com Responds:

        Things should be fine in 3 or 4 days.

        Hopefully, my man Barack Obama will be back in the saddle!

    • Naveen   November 5, 2012 at 2:17 am

      I recorded the original Pink Panther movie from 1963 for a re-watch sometime this week. I still recall a few good scenes in it.

      SearchIndia.com Responds:

      11 Pink Panther films & I may not have seen a single one.

      Maybe one, but I can’t be sure.

  9. Naveen   November 5, 2012 at 2:48 am

    Have you seen Peter Seller’s “The Party”? Old but still funny. Sellers plays an Indian actor.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfWvWRqrAig

    SearchIndia.com Responds:

    This, I’m sure I’ve seen. Definitely evokes a deja vu feeling.

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