Prepare yourselves for a two hours and twenty minute nerdfest known as Avengers: Age of Ultron (directed by Joss Whedon). The Avengers are back and face another but tougher challenge: Ultron (James Spader). He’s an invention gone wrong. It all starts with the superheroes retrieving the stolen sceptre once belonging to Loki, the antagonist of the first Avengers film.
Once they retrieve the sceptre, they find out that it carries artificial intelligence and Tony Stark/Ironman (Robert Downey Jr) secretly decides to use it for his Ultron “global defence program.” He ends up creating something sentient; something much more powerful and dangerous. And that something becomes omnipresent via technology, hell-bent on annihilating humans to achieve “peace” (standard). But first, Ultron needs to get rid of the Avengers.
Ultron recruits super-powered twins Pietro/Quicksilver (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) to help him cause chaos between the Avengers. Soon the team turns against each other as their desires and fears come to the surface thanks to Scarlet Witch’s manipulation. Despite this, the Avengers manage to work together to stop Ultron who in the meantime is building an army of robots and “evolutionising” himself, occupied with building stronger bodies for himself.
Eventually his ultimate body goal is an android which will be infinite. And perfect for a counter-defence for the Avengers.
Age of Ultron was spectacular in terms of visual effects, acting, well-timed comedic lines and of course linking the Captain America, Thor and Ironman films without contradictions. But Avengers stands out on its own. The only thing to criticise is the out-of-place romance between Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Bruce Banner/Hulk (Mark Ruffalo). It felt forced, cringeworthy and unnecessary unlike the romances in other superhero films. It was refreshing to see the softer sides of Black Widow and the Hulk but the romance didn’t feel right and it dragged Black Widow down as a strong character. Like, oh, another female character needs a boyfriend? Pass us the bucket.
Speaking of soft sides, Ultron was surprisingly soft given the conflicted villain or villain-is-still-human treatment. He’s simply misunderstood and a rebel, wanting to be free from his parent/master Stark. His constant mention of having no strings on him was in reference to Pinocchio. Yes, that’s unsettling.
The Maximoffs showed their soft sides through their loyalty to each other and tragic past; eventually they redeemed themselves upon discovering what Ultron had in store for humanity. Another thing was the introduction to Clint Barton/Hawkeye’s (Jeremy Renner) family. It was intimate, timely and slightly strange but refreshing to see something that isn’t superhero-ish or action. This film is for everyone, even for those who aren’t fans of superheroes and action.
Age of Ultron left the audience breathless with a mind-blowing mid-credit scene that hinted at a possible Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy crossover. Now we’re begging to see Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War – Part 1. Hopefully they will be as infinite as Age of Ultron.
Fashion Industry Broadcast’s Rating: 9/10.
