Don’t marvel at the fact it’s over
BY ZACHARY WHITLEY
STAFF WRITER. S
“ A v e n g e r s : E n d g a m e ” is 'th e
culm ination o f a storyline that has
spanned 22 film s and 11 years* You
may not need to see them all to piece
together the plot, but insure does help.
At its best, “ Avengers: Endgame*’
delivers a satisfying, emotional ending
to a 22-m ovie arc across m ultiple
directors and writers, tying up loose
ends and leaving room for our favorite
heroes to grow.
So m uch happens in “ Endgam e,”
a large portion of it falls in spoiler
territory. Here’ s what I can say though:
Endgam e is a conclusive ending to
everything that’ s been foreshadowed,
hinted at or mentioned through the
past 21 m ovies. I already know that
most fans will go and see these movies
regardless, but for the people who
have only seen one or two of them ,
I’d still /recommend it. If you’ve seen
any o f these m ovies and enjoyed
them rem otely, or even have just
seen “ Infinity W ar,” go out and see
Endgame; it ’ s exhilarating, emotional,
Marvel Studios
action packed, and worth three hours
of sitting.
For those who saw the previous
installment, “ Infinity W ar,” last year,
our favorite heroes were turned to dust
and an ominous post credit scene that
hinted at what was to come.
A year later, “ Endgame” continues
the tone w ith a harrowing opening
scene to remind the audience of where
our heroes were left off. We get to see
bur heroes and the rest of their world
deal with theaftermath of the snap that
wiped out half of all life in the universe,
with some self-deprecating humor to
eatse the pain of the audience.
We see who was lost and how the
rest of the universe reacts. “ Endgame”
continues this tone for the first hotir
o f the film , before the pace picks up
and we get to see the beginning of the
rising action.
This doesn’ t mean the first hour
and a h alf are bad, it just,trades the
traditional o v e r-th e -to p action for
m u ch -n e e d ed ch aracter b u ild in g
for some of the more overshadowed
Avengers, the last hour and a half, (yes,
that makes this a three-hour movie)
are probably the best ih any Marvel
Cinem atic Universe movie as this is
where most of the action takes place
and where the ends start to be tied up.
The film doesn’t spare any surprises
down to the last minute..
M arvel uses “ E n d gam e” as an
opportunity to revisit some of the most
important parts of the MCU, building
upon pasit^relationships, Easter eggs
and comic book fever dreams, ensuripg
that things we never thought would
happen, happen.
“ Endgame” easily begets the most
emotion out of any film so far. In terms
of scale, if you thought “ Infinity War”
was shocking emotionally,' Endgame
takes that to a w hole other level.
Endgame takes the same token that
“ Infinity W ar” left that gives these
heroes some tragic, dark, sad emotions
and hum anizes them . These heroes
struggle w ith loss ju s t as m uch as
everyone else in their universe. In this
regard, Endgame doesn’t follow the
MCU formula.
M arvel continues to bdild on the
heroes and storylines that th ey’ve
created for the past 21 movies, a feat
never done before. '“ Endgame” isn ’t
meant to be a movie, that'works as a
standalone, so don’t expect it to. The
Russo brothers, who directed the film,
know that they don’t need to spend time
introducing new characters because
they expect you to have watched the
previous film s in the franchise and
to know who everybody is, and this
is where Marvel shines. They don’ t
need to spend time building on specific
herpes, but when they do, it’ s always
to the benefit of the audience.
We see Iron Man, who has continually
struggled with his fear of the future
(and Thanos), Captain America, who
feels but of plqce having been ripped
from his time and Thor, who has lost
nearly everyone he loves struggle to
find a reason to keep going. A ll of
these elements have been continually
ham m ered in during the past 21
movies, and they make sure to touch on
each one of them during “ Endgaihe?’
Viewers are left with only ohe question:
“ What happens next?”
Worldwide Opening Grosses
Movies
Avengers: Endgame
$ in Millions
$ 1 ,2 2 3 .Î
Avengers: In fin ity War
$ 6 4 0 .5
The Fate of the Furious
$544.9
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
$ 5 2 9 .0
Jurassic World
$ 5 2 5 .5
Stats from boxofficemojo.com
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Nay 1, 2019