Avengers: Infinity War, directed by the Russo brothers, is the 19th film in the Marvel cinematic universe that started back in May 2008 with Iron Man. The premise of this tale is that the Avengers and the Guardians of the Galaxy must unite to stop Thanos (Josh Brolin) in his quest to gain all the infinity stones to add to his infinity gauntlet, giving him the power to do whatever he wants. Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Captain America (Chris Evans) and Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) are just a few of the characters that try to stop Thanos.
What is a strength for Marvel fans – seeing so many of their beloved characters in one place – is a weakness for the casual moviegoer, as it feels that the filmmakers have squeezed in as many characters as possible. If you do not already know the superheroes, you do not get a real feel for them during the 150-minute runtime, as there is not time for any real character development for most of the stars of the show.
A little while ago I criticised Ready Player One for making the baddies too one-dimensional and having nothing interesting about them except their evil streak. Thankfully, Infinity War does not fall into the same trap, by giving us some depth to Thanos. Even if we do not agree with him, we can see he truly believes what he is doing is for the right reason.
It is important you sit through the lengthy credits to catch the after-credit scene that sets up the next instalment. Another strength of the film is that there is plenty of humour. Although this week’s star of the show is the ever-watchable Chris Hemsworth, who has some decent scenes with Rocket Raccoon (Bradley Cooper), in fact it is Tom Holland as Spider-Man who consistently has the funniest lines.
If you are a Marvel fan I am sure you will absolutely love this, but if you just fancy a night at the cinema you will see an OK action film that will not provoke a great deal of thought or discussion once you have returned home. 6.5 out of 10.
