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#tom has waited almost 10 years to bring to the screen a portrayal of Loki that highlights more of his magic and humor
mayinwinter · 3 years
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I wonder how was this Wednesday for Tom Hiddleston. What was he doing, how he was feeling.
Was Tom te he he he'ing in his apartment, watching the internet collapse in happiness at Loki Episode 3?
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All 19 Marvel Cinematic Universe Movies, Ranked
If you’re a massive comic book fan like me, the surprise announcement of a cinematic universe based on Marvel characters back in 2008 had you elated. Now, 10 years later, after the release of Avengers: Infinity War, we all need a refreshing look back on how far we’ve come by re-visiting all 19 (!) Marvel Cinematic Universe movies.
Eighteen: Iron Man 2 -- ‘Is that Mickey Rourke?’ was my only thought throughout this whole movie. Rourke as Whiplash makes you question what direction the production wanted to go in. It’s a muddled storyline, but the charm of the MCU saves it from being a complete flop.
Seventeen: The Incredible Hulk -- They literally wanted to erase this one from history. Edward Norton is criminally underwritten as Bruce Banner, being able to showcase his immense talent and range by doing nothing but make silent, weird faces throughout the movie. The Hulk has so much potential, we’ve seen him shine with the Avengers and Thor, that I think it’s time that we revisit a solo Hulk movie.
Sixteen: Doctor Strange -- Marvel has perfected their movie-making process in the past couple years, fixing what used to be their generic storylines into further-developed ideas, but that wasn’t the case with this Benedict Cumberbatch-starring blockbuster. The Sorcerer Supreme has such an immense realm of powers that it’s almost hard to capture, but I think that’s where this movie goes above and beyond. The visuals are amazing, but the story doesn’t have much substance outside of it.
Fifteen: Thor: The Dark World -- I think this movie is the best showcase of the overused thread for comic book movies (a problem that especially plagues Marvel) with a bland and forgettable villain and little to no substance weighing the film down. However, the cast has such fun chemistry together that it keeps this movie from falling further down the list.
Fourteen: Ant-Man -- I’ll be honest, I was really hoping Edgar Wright was going to direct this movie as planned. Instead, I was left wondering what could have been. Paul Rudd gets utilized to the best of his abilities and Evangeline Lilly really saves her character from being just another love interest, however, I just wish that we could have gotten that trademark Wright quirky feel, it really could have taken this movie to another level. Fingers crossed that Ant-Man and the Wasp fares better treatment.
Thirteen: Thor -- This one really gets a bad rep. I still feel that new, innocent feeling of when the MCU was first introduced when I rewatch it, and I would recommend you do, too. The acting is incredible, especially the relationships between Anthony Hopkins’ Odin, Chris Hemsworth’s Thor, and Tom Hiddleston’s Loki. It borders on Shakespearean, however, and it doesn’t always fit into the traditional summer blockbuster picture. They opened the mold just wide enough for this movie to fit inside, and I think it really works, bringing a new concept into a franchise that could have easily run into the ground by that time.
Twelve: Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 -- Last summer’s sequel to the surprise smash hit that was the original Guardians, Vol. 2 has the same basic story as before, but the newly introduced stuff isn’t as enjoyable (how do you waste Kurt Russell, of all people?). The third act especially gets muddled, and the source material is a little out-there for casual fans to catch on to. We’ll see what James Gunn comes up with for Vol. 3, I guess.
Eleven: Thor: Ragnarok -- Taika Waititi’s inventive, bubbly spirit is everywhere in this movie, and considering how the last two Thor movies were received, it was a welcome addition to a franchise bursting with possibility. Who knew that Thor had such sharp comedy chops?
Ten: Iron Man 3 -- This movie is so much heavier than what was advertised. A superhero struggling with PTSD? Yes, please! It makes for a much more interesting story than usual, especially for Marvel’s first three-quel. Considering they still touch on the ideas introduced in this movie, I would definitely suggest a re-watch.
Nine: Avengers: Age of Ultron -- Another underrated movie, Ultron flew under the radar for most. It was a little underwhelming as a sequel compared to The Avengers, but it still has great comedy and introduced the gut-punching emotional moments we’ve all come to know as a part of the MCU. The storyline definitely peaks interest, but it can sometimes get buried underneath the subplots that are treated as equal (especially when they can get a little problematic). Nonetheless, a worthy addition to the Marvel canon.
Eight: Guardians of the Galaxy -- The first trek into space, Guardians blew everyone’s expectations out of the water. What was expected to be a subtle sidekick movie to the main Avengers flicks, instead delivered a fun, musical ride alongside the team that no one knew existed. An amazing feat, especially considering James Gunn didn’t have many directing credits to his name before signing his contract.
Seven: Captain America: The First Avenger -- Another one of my favorites, this movie introduced the Star-Spangled man with a plan, a fan-favorite throughout history. It could have easily been a kitschy patriotic tale, but instead had some surprising gravitas to it with the addition of pal Bucky Barnes and solemn setting of World War II. It also gave us the best love interest in the Marvel universe, with Hayley Atwell’s Agent Peggy Carter (I definitely recommend seeing her spin-off TV series if you haven’t). An all-around crowd pleaser.
Six: Iron Man -- The first movie in the than-unannounced cinematic universe, this movie hit the motherload in charisma with star Robert Downey, Jr. as Iron Man and Jeff Bridges as Obadiah Stane. The world-building is nuanced, as it had to be, but the surprise post-credits scene (another soon-to-be staple of MCU films) had hardcore comic fans rolling in theater aisles with excitement. A great kickoff to an unforgettable franchise.
Five: Captain America: Civil War -- A more somber option, Civil War brought together all of your favorite heroes (and then some more) to duke it out over their philosophical principles regarding their jobs. It might sound a little heavy for the MCU, but it culminates in a 15-minute fight scene, so nothing too far from normal. The only reason it isn’t higher on the list is because the source material, Mark Millar’s 2006 series, is treated with such hard-hitting tonal brutality that doesn’t translate so well to the screen adaptation. For such a great comic series, the movie becomes underwhelming and doesn’t have any real consequences. It’s still a winner in my book, though.
Four: Spiderman: Homecoming -- After being introduced in Civil War, Spider-Man set out on his own solo (sort of) adventure in this 2017 blockbuster. Starring newcomer Tom Holland, this was the first Spider-Man film to employ an actual teenaged actor, and it shows. Peter Parker discovering his abilities within the pressure of a much-larger MCU world made for a charismatic, heartwarming portrayal of a relatable character.
Three: Black Panther -- The box-office smash of February, Chadwick Boseman wore his claws with such ferocity and style that it was hard to remember that this was a Marvel movie. Add to that a scene-stealing supporting cast, an amazing soundtrack, and the power of representation, you’ve got the recipe for a classic.
Two: Captain America: The Winter Soldier -- This movie changed the game at a time when the superhero formula was growing tired. A sleek spy thriller brought a fresh take to the first Avenger, especially considering the weight that this movie carried in terms of world-building. There’s a reason directors Joe and Anthony Russo keep getting asked back.
Honorable Mention: Avengers: Infinity War (SPOILER ALERT!) -- The most recent MCU movie, I really, desperately need you to go see this without any context before you read on. Okay, if you have seen this one, you understand why I was nothing but a sobbing, stressed-out mess throughout the whole two hours and 40 minute run time. They promised us heartbreak, and boy, did they deliver. All of your favorite characters are dead (it was only a matter of time, I guess). I can’t wait to see how they continue the story in the subsequent Avengers movie and the coming standalone films.
One: The Avengers -- There was a time where I was able to quote this movie word-for-word from beginning to end (no joke) from watching it so many times. This movie had so much going for it, it would have been so much easier to make a mediocre movie that satisfied fans’ lowest expectations and nothing more. Instead, we got this, the culmination of four years of carefully escalating storytelling and meticulous character building. This was the first time we got to see Marvel’s gift in ensemble pieces, somehow being able to establish every character equally, introduce new ones, and create coherent stories that keep our interest. I still don’t know how they’re able to pull all of this off, but I’ll keep rushing to the theater as long as they’re still doing it.
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Released: May 4, 2012 Running Time: 2 hours 23 minutes
“When Thor’s evil brother, Loki, gains access to the unlimited power of the energy cube called the Tesseract, Nick Fury, director of S.H.I.E.L.D., initiates a superhero recruitment effort to defeat the unprecedented threat to Earth. Joining Fury’s “dream team” are Iron Man, Captain America, the Hulk, Thor, the Black Widow and Hawkeye.”
Marvel Cinematic Universe – Source – Marvel
You can find all of the reviews for the Marvel Cinematic Universe at the link here. At that link, you can also find the dates that the other reviews for the Marvel Cinematic Universe will be posted. My plan is to release one every single day, and because I’ve already reviewed Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 here, and Spider – Man: Homecoming here, they will not be included in the two weeks leading up to Thor Ragnarok.
As such, I will now move onto the actual review of the film, and I hope you enjoy!
Marvel’s The Avengers – Source: Paramount Pictures & Marvel Studios
Cast and Crew
This film was written and directed by Joss Whedon, while Zak Penn helped with writing the story with Whedon. Joss Whedon’s directorial work includes mostly television shows that includes ‘Buffy: The Vampire Slayer’, ‘FireFly’ and ‘Dollhouse’, and has since worked on He has since worked on ‘Much Ado About Nothing’, the sequel to this film, ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’, as well as took over directing for Zack Snyder after he left the project for personal reasons for DC’s ‘Justice League’ that will be released on November 17, 2017.
I’ve already mentioned Penn’s previous work when I included him the Incredible Hulk Review, along with his recent work that he has done. Joss Whedon’s previous work as a writer includes films such as ‘Toy Story’ in 1995, ‘Titan A.E’ in 2000 and ‘Atlantis: The Lost Empire’ in 2001. He also gained a huge fan following from writing television shows mentioned in the paragraph above. He has since worked on films mentioned above as well as some edits to the script ‘Justice League’.
From Left to Right: Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff / Black Widow, Chris Hemsworth as Thor Odinson, Chris Evans as Steve Rogers / Captain America, Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton / Hawkeye, Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark / Iron Man, Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner / Hulk – Source: Marvel Studios & Paramount Pictures
The cast featured Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hiddleston, Clark Gregg, Cobie Smulders, Stellan Skarsgård, Samuel L. Jackson, Gwyneth Paltrow, Paul Bettany, Alexis Denisof and Stan Lee.
Review
The music that was orchestrated by Alan Silvestri, who had previously worked on another MCU film ‘Captain America: The First Avenger’, was brilliantly put together and the theme for the Avengers is something that is a really epic song. The score for this movie really meshed together all of the different themes and scores from the previous films, rock for Stark, erratic and somewhat spooky for Banner, heroic and grandiose for Thor and heroic and inspiring for Rogers and made a really fantastic soundtrack for the film. He is currently composing the score for the next Avengers film ‘Avengers Infinity War’ which is set to be released on May 4, 2018, exactly 6 years to the day that this film came out.
The director of photography Seamus McGarvey, the man in charge of the cinematography of Marvel’s the Avengers was extremely well put together. Having to cram that much star power on one screen, and doing it properly was really great to see. The one shot spin shot of the entire team on the street in New York was another great sequence, that has become a staple in the MCU.
The Tesseract – Source: Marvel Studios & Paramount Pictures
The Chitauri in the MCU are very different than the Chitauri in the Comics, as displayed in the pictures below, in the comic books, they are shape shifting aliens that are able to take the physical appearance of their enemies after they have consumed them, while in the MCU, they are controlled by the hive mind, and were lent to Loki by the Other, in order to get the Tesseract to give to Thanos.
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The character of Loki is fantastic to use as the villain that brings all of the Avengers together. He has the personal connection with Thor, which would bring him back to Midgard, and kills Phil Coulson who was a fan favourite, a somewhat friend to Tony Stark and an admirer of Steve Rogers. As I’ve mentioned in the Thor Review, Tom Hiddleston brings such lovable, that it’s hard to hate almost any character that he plays, and he portrays Loki with such relish and charm that he’s probably having the time of his life playing dress up and pretend to be the God of Mischief.
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Iron Man in this film starts out as the defacto leader of the group, as he thinks of himself as the leader at all times, and questions what made his father so obsessed with Steve Rogers. He tries to annoy the Hulk because he’s extremely curious and wants to ‘see it in action’, and it has all become a big game to him at this point. It’s not until that he loses someone, Coulson, that he realizes that it’s real. By the climax of the film, he has learned that while he might have the biggest guns, he lets Steve takeover as leader, and looks to him to lead them in battle as he has done countless times before in WWII. It comes down to a point where he is willing to sacrifice himself to save the world, especially when he’s faced with the fact that aliens exists, and they want to kill them all.
Captain America in this film is still coming to terms with being around 70 years later, with almost all of his friends dead, and then finds out that there’s another bad guy that he has to deal with, and he gets back in his groove. He has a target and a mission, and takes charge. He is slowly becoming aware that his worldview of black and white is no longer applicable to the modern world, and that is something that is explored further in the sequel to his first film, ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’.
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Thor is on Midgard to get his brother and bring him home. Even though they might have had their differences, he believes that Loki is good, and everything can back to normal. When he realizes that that’s not the case, he gets involved in the rag tag group of ‘tiny’ superheros to foil his brothers plan.
Director of S.H.I.E.L.D Nick Fury had an idea, as mentioned during the post credit scene of Iron Man, as well as throughout the sequel Iron Man 2, that he can put together a team, that could defend the earth from their enemies. He puts together his group after he made the mistake of fooling around with the Tesseract, and accidently opens the door for Loki to come to earth. He is a great strategist, as he uses the untimely death of Coulson to bring the team together to face a common enemy, and in the end, his plan worked.
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When Marvel Studios decided to recast Bruce Banner, making it the third iteration of the character in a decade, it was met with some apprehension. It was quickly forgotten when Mark Ruffalo encapsulated the character so brilliantly. His portrayal of the mild mannered scientist / raging green monster was one of the highlights of the film. He showed a lot of chemistry with Robert Downey Jr., having previously worked with him in ‘Zodiac’, which was essential because they needed to have that give and take between the characters. He also performed some of the motion capture for the Hulk, and did a good job with it. While I wish we could have seen Norton come back for this film, and for people to remember that his film is part of the MCU, I’ve grown to really love Ruffalo’s interpretation of the character, and I can’t wait to see him and Thor get better acquainted in the upcoming movie.
Black Widow is the character that gets sent to bring in the Hulk, and even she thinks that that’s a bad move for her. Throughout the film, you see her learn that there is something in the world that scares her, and that’s the Hulk. She was terrified when he tested her in the cabins, she was even more so after Loki influenced him into changing during the attack on the Helicarrier. She is most at home on the battlefield, and takes on the Chitauri as if she’s been doing it forever. She once again proves that she’s a badass, and when the time comes for her to act under pressure, she can get the job done.
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Hawkeye was ultimately wasted in this film. Jeremy Renner is not given the right tools to bring justice to the character, and everyone knows that, Marvel knows that, the director knows that, as does the actor himself. He demonstrates his athletic and amazing skill with the Bow throughout the film, but it’s his intelligence that is on display for about 10 seconds at the beginning of the film that shows the potential for that character to do more. He is the one that manages to see that the Tesseract is a doorway, and that it opens on two sides, something that nobody else apparently thought of.
Maria Hill is awesome. Cobie Smulders does a good job with what little was given to her, and is the narrator at the beginning and end of the film. She’s a fierce agent that shows why Nick Fury would hold her in high regards.
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This will be my paragraph when I get to absolutely fanboy on this movie, because this was everything that I could have wanted from a comic book movie and more growing up. To see these characters team up together on the big screen, bringing the comics to life, all brilliantly acted, with the characters pretty much spot on, was something that blurred the lines between 10 year old me, and the 20 year old me that first saw this movie. Even today, when I watch this film I get little goosebumps and laugh just as much as I did then. It was something that could have gone wrong in so many way, if they screwed it up, but they didn’t and because of that, the MCU is one of the most trusted brands in movies in terms of quality and fun when going to the movie theatres. People go to the theatres either to be entertained, and to be able to share the experience with a room full of people that are all hopefully enjoying it with them, and the MCU films succeed at doing just that.
From Left to Right: Iron Man, Hulk, Captain America, Hawkeye, Thor, Black Widow – Source: Marvel Studios & Paramount Pictures
The storyline for Phase One of the MCU, and The Avengers in particular takes inspiration from the 2002 comic book run of The Ultimates, as displayed above in the pictures displaying the Chitauri being the villains for that first run. It features; the first time that Nick Fury was African American as mentioned during my Iron Man Review, even casting Samuel L. Jackson to play himself in a movie – Captain America being found frozen in the ice, still alive – Banner meeting with Fury instead of Natasha with armed backup nearby, before he became the Hulk – Iron Man being known for doing flybys to impress people – Thor vs Hulk – Banner’s Cage – the Helicarrier – The Chitauri being the villains – The entire team of the Avengers is included except for Wasp, Quicksilver & Scarlet Witch in this film.
They obviously changed a lot of stuff from the comics, but they did so in a way that made it better than the comic books, and brought back characters that we had fallen in love with, in this case Loki. As you can see below, are screenshots from the Ultimates storyline that I’ve mentioned in the paragraph above.
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When the Son of Coul was stabbed through the chest by Loki, it was the saddest point of the MCU thus far. I understood why they did that for the story elements that brings along, as I’ve mentioned in one of the paragraphs above, but I don’t understand why they never brought him back into the movies. I know the television show and the movies are not 100% connected, but you would think a fan favourite like Coulson would have been brought back into the movies in some way, just to see the look of horror and shock on Robert Downey Jr.’s face.
The Hulk vs Thor fight was fun and you can see that Thor is holding back some, and becomes especially evident when he tells him he doesn’t want to hurt him. One of the highlights of the fight was when Mjolnir was thrown at the Hulk, and he couldn’t lift it up and Thor grabs it with ease and hits him, as shown below. I have to mention the ‘revenge’ that the Hulk gets on Thor, when he just surprises him with a left punch to the face as shown in the gif below. It’s just a nice piece of comedy thrown into the battle that worked amazingly well with the tone of the film.
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This film featured many funny moments that were unexpected in its execution, but none of them stand out as much as when Hulk absolutely destroys Loki after he had yelled at the Hulk that he is a God. The ‘Puny God’ line was the line that I can still remember everyone in the packed theatre absolutely laughing their asses off during that exchange, and the beating that followed.
Hulk demolishes Loki – Puny God – Source: Marvel Studios & Paramount Pictures
One of the problems that a lot of people can agree on, is that they didn’t utilise the character of Hawkeye properly. They made him a brainwashed monkey that helped Loki, while not interacting with the team enough. I feel like they’ve made up for it a bit during the Age of Ultron film, actually giving Jeremy Renner something to do as an actor other than to look spaced out.
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Marvel’s The Avengers was the first MCU film to include multiple post credit sequences, pictured below, which included the Avengers all taking a break after the Battle of New York, to eat at the shawarma place that Tony had seen during the battle, and the Other telling Thanos that Planet Earth is protected, and that the inhabitants are better prepared than they would have thought, indicating that to go up against them, would be to court Death, leading to a shot of Thanos smiling at the idea.
Thanos is one of those characters that has been hinted at, and briefly glimpsed over the last 5 years, and it’s something that has made fans both extremely excited, as well as anxious. Thanos is arguably the greatest villain that the MCU could use for one of their movies, and they can’t afford to screw that character or the story up. we have seen so far two Infinity Stones that would one day go into the Infinity Gauntlet, in the Tesseract and the Mind Stone that is inside of the staff that Loki was using, which later ends up as the gem on Vision’s forehead. We will see what they do with Thanos in 2018, and I for one, can hardly wait.
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Overall, I feel that if it wasn’t for the charisma and absolute brilliance that Tom Hiddleston brings to the character of Loki, this movie would have been far worse. The army of minions all dying once the big ship was destroyed was lame, and copied Independence Day as well as other films. The usage of mind control to make Hawkeye and Selvig work for Loki, but then have Selvig create a loophole to be able to defeat the bad guys was kinda sad.
The movie gets as high of a score as it does because it was the first time that we saw a team up of this magnitude, and it was absolutely brilliant. As a fanboy, this surpassed my expectations and made me so happy that I literally walked out of the theatre, and bought a ticket for the following showing, making it the first time that I ever did that. I saw this movie 7 times in theatres in 2012, and I don’t regret it whatsoever. At the end of the day, I remember having given it a perfect 10/10 score when I first saw it, and every single time after that, however, it’s not a perfect film, as I’ve already went over some of the problems with the film that I had, and thus, I could not give it a 10. In the end, I would give this film a score of 9/10.
What did you think of the film? Are you excited for Thor Ragnarok? Let me know in the comments below!
Thanks for reading,
Alex Martens
  Marvel’s The Avengers Movie Review Released: May 4, 2012 Running Time: 2 hours 23 minutes "When Thor's evil brother, Loki, gains access to the unlimited power of the energy cube called the Tesseract, Nick Fury, director of S.H.I.E.L.D., initiates a superhero recruitment effort to defeat the unprecedented threat to Earth.
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