So let’s see: a depressed claustrophobe, going for an MRI to determine what’s wrong with his spine, worried that it might be similar to what afflicted his dead father, and having the MRI on the weekend of the anniversary of his father’s death? You’re goddamn right I ditched work for the whole day. And that means only one thing: an afternoon movie, in this case my third viewing of The Avengers.
Some thoughts after three tries, not all of which were revealed on the third try but all of which are clear after my third go-round:
1) Tony Stark arrived in Stuttgart by overriding the PA system and playing AC/DC’s “Shoot To Thrill” at top volume – the same song that heralded his arrival at Stark Expo. Tony Stark has theme music. That fact alone tells you tons about the kind of guy he is.
2) Similarly, Captain America’s throwaway line is significant: “There’s only one God, ma’am, and I’m pretty sure He doesn’t dress like that.” In one stroke, we learn that Cap has the religious beliefs and values of his era, and that he is the kind of person who still feels compelled to address one of the world’s most dangerous assassins and spies as “ma’am.” A Boy Scout to the last, our Cap. That’s why his line to Agent Coulson asking of the starts and stripes on the costume weren’t “a bit old-fashioned” seemed out of place. I’d buy that coming from Stark, but I don’t think it would ever occur to Steve Rogers that the Stars and Stripes would go out of style.
3) Again, one of the best lines isn’t a line at all, but a callback to Steve saying “I don’t think anything could surprise me” and Nick Fury saying “Ten bucks says you’re wrong.” And then the SHIELD Heli-carrier rises up from the water, ascends to the sky, and cloaks itself to disappear…and without a word, Steve reaches into his pocket, pulls out his roll of bills, peels off a tenner, and passes it to Nick Fury without a word. Just perfect.
4) Tony Stark’s deepest moment is when he’s talking to Bruce Banner, the only person who can keep pace with him in the brains department. He points out how the arc reactor is part of him now, and how it saved and changed his life, and says, “It’s…a terrible privilege.” And if that line doesn’t hit you where you live, well, you probably didn’t grow up gifted in the deep South in the 70s and 80s. I strongly suspect that at some point in his life, Tony Stark has said “I AM THE GOD OF HELL FIRE!! I am, right?”
5) It needs to be said again: how many All-Star games are just complete clusterfucks? How often do you get to bring together a whole bunch of leading players and cram them together as a team and it works out? Joss Wheedon took full responsibility – story, screenplay-director – for delivering the payoff of five movies since 2008, and he delivered completely. People I know who have seen this movie without any of its predecessors loved it. That tells you what kind of movie it is – that it can pay off the buildup while still remaining accessible to those just showing up.
Actually when was the last time I saw a movie three times in the theater? Hell, I’m considering going again Tuesday night…