Avengers = Amazing

I never would have pictured myself enjoying a superhero/comic book inspired movie. I am easily the romantic chick flick type of gal who smiles every time she watches Matthew propose to Mary in "Downton Abbey" and the gal who cries at the ending of "An Affair to Remember". That being said, I'm trying to expand my genre list of films--and after having friends encouraging me to give something along the lines of "Iron Man," "Captain America" or "Thor" a try, I did watch "Captain America" a month ago.....and great enjoyed it. After seeing promos for "The Avengers," which tosses all of said characters, along with a few others, into one plot, I thought, "what the heck. We can give it a try. Even if I hate it, my brother will love it." Turns out, I didn't hate it. I was heartily entertained for over two hours.

Since I'm not versed in the ins and outs of these character's back stories, I don't feel qualified to give an adequate review. I totally understood what was going on in the film (it ultimately boils down to a battle between good and evil), but I wouldn't be able to communicate everything well. So, I'm going to turn the review aspect of this post over to my friend, Ruth. She wrote a brilliant take on this film, which you can read here. On my blog, I will discuss my favorite aspects of "The Avengers." I think that will adequately fill up time and space. =)

Inevitably I have been asked as to the identity of my favorite Avenger. I have got to tell you, it is as easy as pie for me to admit which one I like the best: Captain America! His "old fashioned" charm, his sense of honor, duty and country, Steve Rogers is the type of guy every girl should desire....or at least what I think they should want ;-) Because I am a girl who every night watches an old movie, and has a mother who writes a classic film blog, I love things vintage and out of WWII. You also never forget your first and Captain America was my first introduction into this world of Marvel. Add it all up and there you have it; you have my superhero of choice. Chris Evans does a superb job playing the guy who was "asleep" for seventy years, trying to find his way into a new world. Also, he looks really great in his tanned leather bomber jacket.....just putting that out there!

However, my second favorite Avenger would be Iron Man and for one reason: Robert Downey Jr. His sense of humor absolutely, positively cracked me up! I must say, his acting did not seem like a stretch for how RDJ is in real life. I am dying for this guy to host either the Golden Globes or the Oscars; he would be so much better than the hosts of recent remembering. Anyway, I now intend to add the Iron Man movies to my viewing queue, as I want to see Iron Man in action. In "The Avengers," I enjoyed seeing how the more selfless guy (Captain America) dealt with the more self centered (Iron Man) individual. It had a good resolution, which I am always glad to be a witness to.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that Tom Hiddleston plays a FABULOUS villain. At first I struggled with seeing him bad--I haven't seen "Thor" and the one film I did see him in, War Horse, he was a great guy who dies far too early. However, as the movie progressed, I loved watching Tom (or rather Loki, his character's name) His smile was so evil; it bordered on creepy. You could tell that Tom made the character dastardly in a genuine way. He wasn't trying to force people to buy what he was selling. He sold it easily. I loved when he was on screen. With a sequel being in the works, both for this and for Thor, is it too much to hope for him being in both? And being even more of a bad villain?

The special effects were fabulous. I saw this film in IMAX 3D, so I had surround sound, big screen, the whole nine yards. It really is a fun way to watch a movie every now and then. I do wish that there had been more of a soundtrack; after all, some of my favorite films have sound tracks attached to them that are quite recognizable. However, it is a moot point. At the end of the day, I was focusing on all of the good elements of the film more than I was the downsides.

With an all star cast and a tightly wound plot, there wasn't a logical way in which I could NOT like "The Avengers." I see what all the fuss was about. So now I want to hear from you, especially those of you who have either seen this film or some of the other ones. Just who is your favorite avenger? And wasn't this a kick start way to the summer?!