On May 4th, one of the most monumental moments in modern film made it's way into American multiplexes. A project that's taken over five years and 6 movies to fully realize. A superhero team movie with continuity and all the major characters already introduced in their own films. Let us look back at where it all began.
Iron Man: This was the gamble. If this film didn't do well, everything was shot. But great direction, Robert Downey Jr. almost playing himself (this was his first big movie after his rehab), and a stellar script made this the surprise hit of 2008 and launched The Marvel Movie-verse.
The Incredible Hulk: Also from 2008, this was just as much of a gamble seeing as Ang Lee's 2003 attempt at Hulk, while interesting, was not well recieved by much of anyone. Opting to not rehash the origin, this Hulk concerned itself more with the smashing than the drama. Makes for a good action flick but lacks the pathos that a character like Hulk can and has reached before. Still, it was fairly successful and continued slowly building the foundation for what was to come.
Iron Man 2: On one hand, builds some serious groundwork for the all that's to come. On the other hand, said groundwork short changes both the characters and story in this installment. While still an entertaining and witty film, it lacked a little in letting us connect with the characters and what was happening to them. Mickey Rourke was pretty good though.
Thor: Switching from science fiction to fantasy is no easy feat. Trying to get across that both co-exist in the same universe together is even harder. Such was the task laid before Thor. And yet, somehow, it manages to do this gracefully and without much issue. The realm of Asgard feels tangible. this film aslo has far more Easter Eggs to seek out than the previous ones for comic fans to find/explain to non-comic fan friends and relatives.
Captain America: The final piece before The Avengers, This one was easily the best since Iron Man. Great sense of adventure. Amazing characters. A fine sense of humor. Chris Evans may have already been a Marvel character before, but his performance as Captain America really shows he is far more than a rougish jester. The man can act. Marvel learned from Iron Man 2 and incorporated the universe building stuff much more organically with the story. Simply a great film.
So there you have it. The road to The Avengers has been traveled and the final stop is the theater to see if all this universe building actually pays off.
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