"Avengers: Age of Ultron" Movie Poster

I have to be completely honest; I never thought I would thoroughly enjoy a Marvel movie. The only ones I’ve ever seen and truly liked is The Amazing Spider Man and its sequel, however, they didn’t “wow” me. So when I saw the Avengers movies and appreciated them as much as I did, I surprised myself.

From left to right: The Hulk, Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver, Ironman,
Captain America, Thor, Black Widow, Hawkeye

The movie began with the Avengers raiding a Hydra (a terrorist organization in the Marvel universe) base in Sokovia that is experimenting on humans with Loki’s scepter, which we see distinctly in the first movie. They then meet twins Quicksilver (super speed) and the Scarlet Witch (telekinesis) - two of the organization’s experiments - before retrieving the scepter. Tony Stark (Ironman) and Bruce Banner (The Hulk) then find an “artificial intelligence” inside the scepter, and use it to complete Stark’s defence program, which he has named Ultron, without telling the other Avengers. However, Ultron backfires, and thinks the best way to save the world is to eradicate humanity. It gets rid of J.A.R.V.I.S., Stark’s current computer system, and attacks the Avengers. Ultron then recruits the two twins (who later leave him), and makes an army of robots to destroy the Avengers. He also attempted to make an artificial body, but the Avengers retrieve it. Meanwhile, Stark is re-uploading J.A.R.V.I.S. to put into the synthetic body, along with the mind stone, which is one of the six infinity stones, the most powerful objects in existence. They call this being “The Vision.” The Avengers, along with The Vision, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch, go to Sokovia to fight Ultron and its army. As every superhero movie ends, the Avengers win. They then open up a new base in upstate New York to train the new avengers; The Vision, the Scarlet Witch, and two others.

From left to right: Ironman, Ultron, Captain America

I personally liked this movie more than the first Avengers movie. It might have been that the plot was more clear to me, or that there wasn’t as much ongoing action. I also like how they always seem to add humour, which takes away from the heavy conflict going on. One thing I didn’t like was how there was continuity from previous comics and other movies; while, yes, this might please many Marvel superfans, it hardly gave any background information for anyone who didn’t understand the “infinity stone” concept, or especially, the end credits scene.

The Avengers: Age of Ultron loosely followed the Hero’s Journey. While I sometimes found it hard to follow, it was evidently there:

Status Quo:	For the Avengers, their status quo would be fighting and defeating villains. We don’t get to see too much of their life otherwise (however, there are flashbacks, relaxed moments in the movie, etc.).
Call to Adventure:	The call was when Ultron had crashed the party, destroyed J.A.R.V.I.S., and stolen the scepter. The trigger for them leaving was when they realized that Ultron would be in everyone’s databases using it for evil. There was no refusal.
Assistance:	There was no main mentors/guides. However, they had help from eachother, Hawkeye’s family, J.A.R.V.I.S., and other allies.
Departure:	The first departure when they really took off, was when they went to Africa. Although, most people would qualify their trip to Sokovia as their departure. There was more than one departure (as there was more than one trial).
Trials:	There were many trials; fighting Ultron at the party, fighting/the hallucinations the Scarlet Witch bestowed in Africa, Ironman and the Hulk fighting, etc. The first half of the movie was mainly all trials.
Approach:	I couldn’t detect a real approach; they just went and fought.
Crisis:	The crisis was Ultron and its army eradicating the human race by trying to recreate a mass extinction, to make the Earth “calm.” As said in the movie, Ultron didn’t know the difference between saving and destroying.
Treasure:	I couldn't find a treasure either; if there were to be one, it would either be to kill Ultron or to have the infinity stone.
Result:	The Avengers saved the world from extinction.
Return:	After fighting in Sokovia, they returned to their base in upstate New York.
New Life:	There wasn’t as such a “new life,” as there was a new Avengers base and another fight in their memories.
Resolution:	“                                                                                  “
Status Quo (Revised):	Their lives carried on as superheros, with more Avengers to add to their group and more knowledge.

Overall, I surprisingly really enjoyed this movie. I had very scarce negative comments, and it’s definitely a movie I would watch again and recommend!

★★★★☆

8/10