Avengers Age Of Ultron review (SPOILER FREE)

Genre: Action, Adventure, Science Fiction, Superhero, Comic Book.
Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, James Spader, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Don Cheadle, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Bettany, Cobie Smulders, Anthony Mackie, Samuel L Jackson.
Year Of Release: 2015
Certificate: 12A (UK)
Runtime: 141 Minutes
Director: Joss Whedon

Synopsis: "When Tony Stark tries to jumpstart a dormant peacekeeping program, things go awry and it is up to the Avengers to stop the villainous Ultron from enacting his terrible plans." IMDB

 

 

 

 

 

 

As you guys and girls may know I'm a HUGE comic fanboy not one publisher, I'm a fan of the medium of comics. So every time there is one released you know I am going to be posting about it more than most genres. This time around is no different, I went to the midnight showing of Avengers Age Of Ultron on April 22nd and it is safe to say it was the best cinematic experience of my life. If you are here and would like to read a review that is spoiler including CLICK HERE it has ALL spoilers in it.

 

The visual effects in the film were phenomenal, there was a minute or so at the beginning that felt a little off, but I think that was just me. After that the battle scenes were amazing, in my opinion second to none in comic films, it was as beautiful to watch as the action in say "Edge Of Tomorrow". There was some scenes that seem so flawlessly made that they could easily pull off being real life events. Stand out effects for me was the Hulkbuster and Ultron, both were amazing to see, especially Ultron the range of emotions shown by a completely robotic humanoid made the character that extra bit disturbing.  

As for the characters and cast, which at this point due to longevity have become one in the same really, by that I mean when I think about the characters I envision them as their live action selves and no longer their comic looks. All the returning cast are as good as they have been in previous instalments, except for Jeremy Renner, he was outstanding in his role as Clint he was really given the freedom to actually show emotion and his range as an actor. Was great to see him able to flex his acting chops, which I will be honest I was not sure he had. The biggest additions to the cast are Paul Bettany as Vision who was brilliant in what he done, but didn't have to do much due to being an emotionless android, Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Pietro Maximoff/Quicksilver his acting is as expected personally I find him to be a good actor who is really honing his skills in recent years, while his accent falters at times, it is a hard accent to pull off I find. Then we have Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda Maximoff/Scarlett Witch, another extremely talented actress in my opinion, she was brilliant in this too, especially in the more emotionally driven scenes then we have James Spader as Ultron the most ominous audible villain I have heard in a  LONG time, his voice just oozed evil and dominance I can say I finally understand the hype around his ability.

The action starts at an 11 in this film and only gets better, that's not to say that the story or characters miss out. The film has a solid story to it, but even more so, has some wonderful character development, you get to see sides of some characters we have not yet seen in the MCU. Really shapes up some big moments for the future of the franchise, some great moments, some gut wrenching, all together mashed into a brilliant story and progression to characters we all know and love.

The runtime does seem long beforehand, however, there is enough going on at every turn that you kind of forget how long you have been watching and that is a good thing. It's a 141 minute ride that doesn't feel as long as others that run this time.

Overall, I'd go as far as to say this is the best film in the MCU to date in my opinion, which I never thought I'd say due to my dying love for Avengers and Captain America The Winter Soldier. The film was an emotional ride from start to finish, filled with action, ass kicking, hilarious lines and character development second to none in the current MCU crop. If you are not currently into the whole superhero explosion we have had in recent years, I highly recommend starting with this or Captain America The Winter Soldier (REVIEW HERE) they perfectly personify the superhero world but also serve as "everyday" films if you will. Very happy to say Mr Joss Whedon goes out with a bang and certainly not a whimper, I'm already longing for the day he returns to the MCU in the future. I had extremely high expectations going into the film, came out with them shattered and then some, roll on Ant-Man!

10/10

 

NEW!!! Avengers: Age Of Ultron clip!

Last night in the US after the airing of the latest "Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D." Marvel blessed us with MORE footage from their upcoming Avengers sequel.

James Spader talks Ultron

If you haven't seen the teaser trailer for "Avengers: Age Of Ultron" where the hell have you been hiding? It is possibly the greatest trailer EVER!!! (Potentially a bit dramatic ha). There is a very ominous overtone throughout the trailer, Spader has spoken about how crazy Ultron truly is;

"There's a humorous aspect to him, which is something that drew me in from the very first conversation I had with Joss [Whedon]," Spader revealed. "In many ways he's a child, this character, because he's a brand new being who's just come to be. And yet, through artificial intelligence, he has an incredible capacity for knowledge. So he's a very powerful, smart child." 

"Ultron takes abrupt turns in scenes," Spader explained. "Red isn't pyschopathic but Ultron is. Yes, he is psychopathic. He's really batsh*t crazy!"

 

"The Avengers 3" rumours

For the past couple of years Marvel executives and film makers alike have spoke about how The Avengers line up should be changed to keep it fresh, with "The Avengers: Age Of Ultron" releasing next year it looks like Mr Marvel himself Joss Whedon has took that to heart with the addition of Paul Bettany as The Vision, Arron Taylor-Johnson as Quicksilver and Elizabeth Olsen as Scarlet Witch.

If ever growing rumours are to be believed then it looks like when it comes to Phase 3 and The Avengers 3 we could be getting some new additions the story comes from Badass Digest who are reporting that Marvel may hold back Thor, Captain America and Black Widow in order to keep them for another film resulting in them not needing to renegotiate contracts.

With Robert Downey renegotiating his contract last year, in order for himself to have a starring role in the second and third Avengers films. So it is kind of safe to say that if Marvel were to hold back aforementioned characters then Stark would be left behind in a sense to rebuild a new set of Avengers, here are some of the characters I think would be a good addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

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"Avengers 2" Vision concept art

Marvel released a teaser for "The Avengers: Age Of Ultron" at Comic Con this year, and since then the whole Internet has damn near exploded with people trying to get their hands on it. In that teaser we got to see Ultron and the "twins" Scarlett Witch and Quicksilver however we didn't get to see The Vision a character all Marvel nuts and movie lovers are excited for.

The only real look of The Vision we have upto now is in the background of Quicksilver's character poster released at SDCC, hardly the look we were all anticipating check it out below, the picture below that is  a picture of the concept art for the character himself.

"Avengers: Age Of Ultron" first official pictures

Not long after Entertainment Weekly debuted their "Avengers: Age Of Ultron" front cover, they now have the first official pictures form the upcoming instalment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The first picture I absolutely adore, just look at it Mjolnir just chilling on the table.
Cap: "Let's invite Thor around for drinks and food."
Thor turns up and puts one of the most powerful weapons in their universe on the coffee table!!! Haha!

"Avengers 2:Age Of Ultron" set photos

We have known for the past few weeks that Marvel's "The Avengers: Age Of Ultron" was going to be filming in Italy over this week. Now we have been blessed with some set photos of aforementioned filming.

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Anthony Mackie tlaks his NEED for "Avengers: Age Of Ultron" appearance

The cast of Marvels sequel to their hugely popular and successful "The Avengers", "The Avengers: Age Of Ultron" already has a much larger cast than its predecessor. Which is set to have a whole new batch of Marvel heroes and now it looks like the film might be expanding ever so slightly more with "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" star Anthony Mackie who plays Sam Wilson aka The Falcon wanting to join the set up. Speaking to Total Film recently he had this to say;

"I call all of them at Marvel every Monday," Mackie told Total Film. "I'm like, 'So have y'all decided if I'm in Avengers 2 yet? I'll get on the bus to Albuquerque tomorrow!' I wanted to be a superhero from the first day that I started in this business, and to have the opportunity to be a superhero is kind of remarkable. If I get the opportunity to be in The Avengers 2, 3, 7 and 18, there's no way I would complain or balk at any part of that…"

FINALLY Elizabeth Olsen and Aaron Taylor-Johnson join "The Avengers: Age Of Ultron"

Image courtesy of Just Jared

Feels like forever that we have been waiting for official conformation on Elizabeth Olsen and Aaron Taylor-Johnson joining "The Avengers: Age Of Ultron" today we finally have it. We have had quotes from various places plus even from the actors themselves now we have official conformation from Marvel themselves. Check out Marvels official release below;

Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Elizabeth Olsen have officially joined the Avengers family as the brother-sister duo of Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch in Marvel's "Avengers: Age of Ultron," the highly-anticipated sequel to 2012's smash-hit "Marvel's The Avengers"! "Avengers: Age of Ultron" arrives in theaters May 1, 2015.

Taylor-Johnson broke out with his roles as Dave Lizewski in the "Kick-Ass" franchise and with his portrayal of a young John Lennon in "Nowhere Boy," for which he won an Empire Award for Best Newcomer. Since then, Taylor Johnson has starred in 2012's critically-acclaimed "Anna Karenina" and director Oliver Stone's "Savages."

Since making her big screen debut in 2011 with "Silent House" and "Martha Marcy May Marlene," for which the actress garnered a number of awards and nominations, Olsen has gone on to star alongside the likes of Robert DeNiro and Sigourney Weaver in "Red Lights," Josh Brolin and Samuel L. Jackson in director Spike Lee's "Oldboy."

Taylor-Johnson and Olsen will share the screen as leads in the highly anticipated "Godzilla" remake scheduled for a May 2014 release.

"Avengers: Age of Ultron" will bring the Marvel Universe's biggest heroes together again to face one of their biggest villains, with "Marvel's The Avengers" director Joss Whedon returning to write and direct the sequel. "Marvel's The Avengers" was released in 2012 and went on to earn $1.5 billion worldwide, making it the third-largest grossing movie of all time.

In addition to "Avengers: Age of Ultron," Marvel Studios will release a slate of films based on the Marvel characters including "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" on April 4, 2014; "Guardians of the Galaxy" on August 1, 2014; and "Ant-Man" on July 31, 2015.

James Spader is ULTRON!

The news broke about two weeks ago that James Spader more than likely widely known right now as Robert California in "The Office U.S" has been cast as Ultron in the upcoming Avengers sequel "The Avengers: Age Of Ultron". Whenever I think about this casting all I can imagine is Robert California, he just doesn't suit the role of Ultron maybe seeing him in something else might sway my mind. For now, Spader is wrong let's bite our tongues until we see some clips or a trailer.

Whedon say NO Loki in "The Avengers 2"

There are very few details for "The Avengers 2" but the latest piece of information we do have came from current Mr. Marvel himself Joss Whedon. Whedon has confirmed to the Empire Movie Podcast that Tom Hiddleston will unfortunately not be reprising his role as Loki in the upcoming sequel.

When initially asked about his progress on the movie, Whedon gave a similar answer to what we've heard for some time: "I've turned in a first draft, but the story is very set. Everybody's very much on board with the exact movie I'm trying to make which is what worked the first time."

Whedon also became the bearer of bad news: "Immitating what I did before is the surest way to do it not as well. Second of all, and Loki is not there to say those terrible things."

How will this effect the happenings in "Thor: The Dark World" is yet to be seen, but Thor does threaten/promise to kill Loki if/when he betray him in the recent trailer for the film

Joss Whedon talks "S.H.I.E.L.D" and Coulsons return

Later this year we are being blessed with the first TV series set within the now loved Marvel Cinematic Universe in "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D". Marvels go to guy Joss When spoke recently to EW about the show and what we should be looking forward too.

"Well, it's a very interesting explanation... We're gonna earn it, that's not something you take lightly."

Whedon also confirmed that the series "stands alone" for any new viewers, offering them an entrance to the Marvel world.

"It's very important to me that the show stands on its own, that people who never saw any of the movies can tune in and enjoy it. We like being a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, we like having all of the mythos to play off of. But if the show was "You just missed Tony Stark, wow, he was just here!" it would be the most unsatisfying show ever. We have a new ensemble, apart from Clark, it's all people I've never worked with before, but I'm really excited about them, I'm really proud of them and I think people are just going to want to see them every week."

When asked who actor J. August Richards is playing in the upcoming series, whom many believe to be the character "Rage," Whedon offered this:

"I'm not going to say who he's playing, but he's certainly cranky as you can tell from the trailer. It''s great, he came in to guest star and he tears it up. He's got that kind of energy, he's so much fun, and such a lovely guy."

Joss Whedon talks Quicksilver, Firefly and Batman???

Joss Whedon is one of my favourite people in Hollywood he has made some incredible things so whenever I see people talking about his interviews I check them out. The other days the Film Society of Lincoln Center hosted "An Evening with Joss Whedon" which included a screening of his highly anticipated modern adaptation of William Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing".

Apparently after the screen the film was met with incredible applause after which Whedon sat down on the stage for a Q&A session. He went on to answer several questions including questions on "Firefly"s future, video games, the ballet he wants to make, the Quicksilver owning fiasco an his vehemence to one day take on the cape crusader that is Batman! Yes, Whedon wants to do a Batman film. I nearly died with happiness when I read this ha. Here are the questions he answered below;

On continuing the "Firefly" universe…

"Right now I'm happy to say everybody is working doing good jobs. There's a real fear of 'The Monkey's Paw,' you know? You bring it back to life and it isn't the same. Even if it's GREAT and it isn't the same. I'm dying to get on a ship with those guys again, but I'm also doing yet another goddamn huge ensemble movie ['The Avengers 2']. Why can't I do a movie about just one guy? So right now I can't even access that part of my brain. If all the planets align that would be great, but I'm not going to do what I did the first time and move heaven and earth to make it happen."

On what he'd like to conquer next in film or television…

"Probably not film or television. There's a ballet I'd like to do. The three people who'll go see it will love it! I can't really play any music and I want to do a full-length musical. There are books I want to write, so many things I'm excited about. There are more movies, obviously, more TV shows. I still haven't written enough spaceship movies, I can't get enough spaceships!"

On doing a video game movie…

"I've been approached a few times and gone down the path a little bit but it's never amounted to anything. I still don't understand why they never made a 'Firefly' game because it lends itself to a massive multiplayer thingy with many 'M's… I don't know what it's called! I'm old, look at me for God's sake! I have reading glasses. But at first I wasn't interested in video games because there really was no narrative, no character, no decision making, it was just 'bang-bang,' and that's really changed, it's become more and more interesting and more a form of storytelling that a lot of people are gravitating towards. The problem is I don't play 'em. There's video games, there's a career, there's a family, pick two. I never got the handle of them, as my nephews found out when they tried to play 'Gears of War' with me and suddenly I wasn't the cool uncle 'cause I kept shooting them by accident."

On Patton Oswalt's now-famous Star Wars filibuster scene on "Parks & Recreation"…

"A timeless piece of joy."

On any Marvel character he wishes he could "do" (rephrased: to bring to some medium)…

"If I could get my hands on absolutely anybody it would be Batman. (audience applause) He's a Marvel character in the DC universe. And if I could 'do' any, probably Thor, because face it, those arms… (laughs)"

Quicksilver in "Avengers 2" and "Days Of Future Past"?

In recent weeks it was confirmed that Quicksilver would be featuring in "Avengers 2", an now it has been confirmed the character will feature in "X-Men: Days Of Future Past" played by Evan Peters who is more than likely known by most for his roles in "America Horror Story".

"Though it seemed like the cast of X-Men: Days of Future Past was all filled up, director Bryan Singer just revealed one last addition. Through Twitter, Singer announced that “American Horror Story” regular and Kick-Ass co-star Evan Peters is playing Quicksilver, a character with superhuman speed who happens to be the son of Magneto and the twin brother of Scarlet Witch." via FirstShowing


A lot of people questioned how he was going to work in two different films that are being made by two different studios. Luckily for them the great guys over at Superhero Hype asked Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige that exact question, read what he had to say;

"There’s a specific arrangement with those two characters that would allow us to use them with Avengers, but not discuss or reference their mutant or Magneto-related lineage. [Fox] can use them as mutants and as Magneto’s relatives, but cannot have anything to do with The Avengers.” So while Fox and Marvel can use the characters, they’re limited as to what parts of the comic book mythology they can use. This has the potential to create some confusion for fans, but there will likely be plenty of explanation online if necessary."

So he will exist within the two universes, and have relationships with The X-Men and The Avengers but each universe will not mention the relationship he has with the other group of superheros, right got it? Have I? It's upsetting that the studios can't come to some sort of agreement for these type of events like Spider-Man and possible Avengers connection. The plots for both studios would be exponentially better if they mixed up their characters more. Like if Quicksilvers origins were linked back to him being the son of Magneto and having The Avengers come in an help fight Magneto an his army of whatever. Just could be so much better if the studios didn't own certain characters.

 

Joss Whedon confirms Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch...

For "The Avengers 2". Yeah you read that correct, Joss Whedon himself has confirmed that Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch will feature in the film.

"You know, they had a rough beginning. They’re interesting to me because they sort of represent the part of the world that wouldn’t necessarily agree with The Avengers. So they’re not there to make things easier. I’m not putting any characters in the movie that will make things easier."

It was kind of obvious that these rumours would be confirmed at some point, but the question is how will they be included in the film? Are we going to see them in X-Men related films? Will we see the as "easter eggs" in Marvel films? It is far to early for me to speculate on who could play these characters, for one the film is soooo far away and another I know nothing at all about the characters. I will do a little research an get back to you guys and girls.

Joss Whedon talks "The Avengers 2"

Entertainment Tonight were lucky enough to get a talking in with Joss Whedon about "The Avengers 2" while he was at the MTV Movie Awards, Whedon said that they are set to start filming next February.

Ryan Reynolds not interested in Green Lantern

It's a well known fact that Warner Bros. is working on bringing DC Comics' Justice League to the silver screen. However it looks like the studio may have to find themselves a new Green Lantern. During an interview with Empire, "Green Lantern" star Ryan Reynolds" explains why he doesn't plan on reprising his role of Hal Jordan anytime soon. Can you really blame him? The first film wasn't the best but if I'm being honest Reynolds gets a lot more bad press than he deserves for that film. He was working with a terrible script and idea an done what he could with it.

"I saw how difficult it is to make that concept palatable," he explains, "and how confused it all can be when you don't really know exactly where you're going with it or you don't really know how to access that world properly. That world comic book fans have been accessing for decades and falling in love with. So at this point I have very little interest in joining that kind of world."

For all you worried fans out there, he did go on to say that he is not completely writing himself off from the film. The right man at the helm could help persuade him to return.

"[A] great script and a good director can always turn that around," he admits. "...I believe that Joss Whedon is the guy that just nails it and Christopher Nolan obviously nails it. So if they were gonna do it like that, it would be an interesting thing to do."

Joss Whedon talks Firefly

The second I heard that the creator of "Veronica Mars" was using Kickstarter to raise funds for a Veronica Mars film. I thought to myself get Joss Whedon on the phone an make him do it for "Firefly" ha, seems like a few people have had the same idea. So Whedon has spoke out about the project, I knew that Joss wouldn't drop everything to go back to "Firefly" but was hoping we would get it a bit sooner than he mentioned. Plus, let's be honest if he was to do a Kickstarter Campaign he would need to make himself a lottt of money, because if he done it on a smaller budget then the film would more than likely flop again like "Serenity" unfortunately.

"My fourth feeling when I read about [the Veronica Mars Kickstarter campaign] was a kind of dread. Because I realized the only thing that would be on everybody’s mind right now. I’ve said repeatedly that I would love to make another movie with these guys, and that remains the case. It also remains the case that I’m booked up by Marvel for the next three years, and that I haven’t even been able to get Dr. Horrible 2 off the ground because of that. So I don’t even entertain the notion of entertaining the notion of doing this, and won’t. Couple years from now, when Nathan [Fillion]‘s no longer [on] Castle and I’m no longer the Tom Hagen of the Marvel Universe and making a giant movie, we might look and see where the market is then. But right now, it’s a complete non-Kickstarter for me."

"For me, [Kickstarter] doesn’t just open the floodgates. God knows, things are cheaper now than when we made even Serenity. Good effects can be done in a different manner. Nor is that universe all about spectacle either. But it is a tad more expensive — and a little all-consuming! And of course, there’s the other fear: What if it’s not that good? I can do something that’s not that good — that’s fine. But if I do that and it’s not that good, I’m going to feel really stupid."

Kevin Eastman talks Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles reboot

If you are not familiar with the name Kevin Eastman, well you should be he is the co-creator of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles along with Peter Laird. Despite disagreeing with Laird on what the upcoming TMNT film will be like Eastman believes we are all jumping the gun and misjudging the film.
In his recent release he spoke about Joss Whedon and "The Avengers" which is always a good sign, I loved the Ninja Turtles growing up even have my original Turtles from the last 1980's.

"One of the things that’s awesome about the relationship I’ve had with Platinum Dunes and Michael Bay and Jonathan Liebesman and some of the producers, Scott Mednick and Galen Walker on the series, is that It’s probably amusing to a lot of people what the press puts out there and what they say people behind the scenes really want to do with the movie, but [Platinum Dunes'] main goal is actually to make the best possible “Turtles” movie with respect to the fans and the core audience as possible. We’ve learned from movies like “The Avengers,” which to me was a superhero movie so good to me personally that I practically wept. It was perfect, you know what I mean? That’s the stuff that I grew up on. Joss Whedon just knocked it out of the park, the whole team did, and that includes choreographing all the interlocking movies. From everything that I’ve seen in the ["TMNT"] script and the development and everything they’ve asked my input on specifically, it’s gonna be an awesome, familiar, solid “Turtles” movie. It’ll have everything that fans are gonna want and then some."

Cobie Smulders could feature in "S.H.I.E.L.D"

Cobie Smulders is set to reprise her role as Agent Maria Hill in Marvel's upcoming "Captain America The Winter Soldier", Smulders has been speaking about her possible addition to the TV adaptation of "S.H.I.E.L.D".

"The commitments to ['How I Met Your Mother'] don’t affect it," 
"and I can’t really say but there are definite talks about it… I will do Maria Hill until they fire me and hire someone else to do it."