Disclaimer: Contains spoilers!
Plot Summary: The Avengers assemble once more to fight Tony Stark's failed creation, Ultron.
Review: Wow...absolutely do NOT believe the hype. What the hell happened?! I was initially worried, when it was revealed Thanos was being saved for an Avengers 3 and 4, that this film would be nothing more than filler, and those fears were realized. All this movie set out to do was kick members off the team, add a few new ones, and explain why there wouldn't be another Iron Man movie. And even at that, the film's pacing is a complete mess--much of the story being rushed through, and Ultron being one of the worst developed villains in the Marvel cinematic universe thus far. You'd think after the sheer awesomeness of "Guardians of the Galaxy" and "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" that they would continue that hot streak but nope...not even close. What a complete disappointment.
I'll go over what was done right first since that won't take too long. Obviously I love the characters and the way their banter plays off one another; though, the comradery is significantly toned down compared to the first entry. Seeing such beloved heroes together is great even if the assembling aspect worked better in part one as well. Each character does get a chance to shine and contribute something of importance to the plot. The special effects were on par with what I would expect, but I should note a few scenes, that could have looked goofy, turned out surprisingly well; that is certainly noteworthy. Umm...I'm really struggling to think of anything else positive. I guess the technical achievements are all there to bring together a competent and well done film, but it better be with that kind of budget.
Okay, where did things go wrong? First up: Ultron himself. He never felt like a serious threat and was defeated soooo easily. On top of that, he's such a cartoonish villain. I can just imagine a stupid Disney focus group being asked questions about the first Avengers movie, and they're like "we want more Iron Man!" So Disney was like, "Okay, make Ultron have Tony Stark's personality and forget his origin story even though we're making an Ant-man movie anyway!" I still don't understand why Ultron became evil immediately. There was an AI-like system inside Loki's staff that was warped by Tony's vision of how to save the world? Whaaaat? Okaaaaay. And Ultron's plan is to reveal himself to the Avengers in an attack that he knew he couldn't win, why? They mention Ultron is trying to access the world's nuclear weapons yet he never goes out to activate them manually? Instead he's too busy trying to build a vibranium device that will lift a city into the atmosphere and drop it down like a meteor--destroying everyone; just a tad convoluted when you think about it. Of course he's stopped, but he was never putting up much of a fight to begin with. His only advantage was having a million bodies to keep implanting himself in but why didn't he build a vibranium body? Or did he? I think he mentioned it, but was he simply talking about Vision? If he did have a vibranium body, it didn't help since everyone was wrecking him and his minions effortlessly. Finally, all there is to Ultron was Stark-esque quips and cliched villain monologuing. My goodness, I hope they don't handle Thanos is this fashion.
As for the rest of the faults, I'm just going to name random bullshit. For the love of god, why was Hawkeye's secret family in this movie? Way to bring the action to a screeching halt. And now Black Widow is in love with Hulk?! Psh...that's a good one; cornball as all fuck. Wait, Tony is quitting the Avengers because of Ultron? That was rushed. Hawkeye also quit, but did Thor and Hulk quit too? Let me get this straight, Thanos is finally getting off his lazy ass to collect the infinity stones even though one was in Loki's staff all along? You're shitting me, right? If Loki had an infinity stone, why did he lose so easily too? Dude, Vision looked terrible! Like, bad cosplay levels of shit. And he was able to wield Mjolnir to boot?! I like how they keep mentioning that Hawkeye is struggling to hold his own compared to the likes of Thor, Hulk, etc. yet Black Widow isn't?! She's just a human--she's just as useless as Hawkeye so shut up. Of course both get a chance to shine, but, come on, they worked better in part one staying at the edge of the main fight. Plus, since when were, a seemingly unlimited amount of, bullets and arrows enough to hold their own against Iron Man-esque armors? After all, that's pretty much what Ultron is basing the build for his minions on. Oh god, the Hulkbuster armor was such a tease and squandered. If you saw the trailers, you saw all scenes with that armor. In fact, a lot of the best scenes you think will be relevant to the plot are either downplayed or just a delusion from Scarlet Witch.
I know I sound extremely harsh on this film, but I had high as hell hopes. I'm still going to give this film a decent rating, because it does have it's moments, I enjoy the characters, and it's technical aspects are top notch. But the story is nothing special and appeals more to the Michael Bay crowd than comic book fans. Oh, I'm sure many will disagree with me, but, objectively, try and tell me this shit was anywhere on par with GotG or the Winter Soldier? Ultron is stupid, rushed, and appears as filler. The film has glaring problems and comes to an abrupt crawl during the middle. The final battle is anticlimactic as Ultron and his minions are dispatched with effortlessly. Overall, if you're going to watch this, and you will, set the bar low and hope to be pleasantly surprised. This was nowhere near as good as the first entry that's for sure. Thankfully, I am positive about where they're going with Thanos since they're bringing in the writing and directing duos from the Winter Soldier. Here's hoping...
Notable Moment: When everyone tries, and fails, to lift Thor's hammer. They were kind of implying Captain America almost lifted it, but, too bad, the whole scene was cheapened by Vision using it.
Final Rating: 6/10
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