Avengers: Infinity War (part 1)

Avengers: Infinity War (Part 1) (2018) starring Robert Downey Jr, Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, and Scarlett Johansson. Released by Disney/Marvel Studios. Budget: $400 million.

There was a ton of hype for this movie – and it was well-deserved. Setting box office records all over, Avengers: Infinity War (spoilers – there’s a part 1 and 2), will easily break the $1 billion mark before the end of May.

However, I believe there were a some basic problems:

  1. If you haven’t yet seen the last 3 Marvel movies, you’ll be completely out-of-the-loop. The movie makes a few quick jabs at trying to remind audiences of why a certain hero is here or there, and what the general motivations of them are now… but do yourself a favor – don’t go into this movie without watching at least Captain America: Civil WarThor: Ragnarok, and even Black Panther.
  2. Hawkeye???
  3. At certain points in the movie, the plot begins to drag because it tries very hard to flesh out the villain (Thanos) with more than simple motivation of ruling the universe. To be honest, I don’t think most audiences cared. He is a villain that could go hand-to-hand against the Hulk – which makes him a good enough match for the rest of the Avengers. There’s no need to spend 45 minutes trying to explain his complete backstory.
  4. Hulk???
  5. Spoilers: Although the Spiderman death-scene was emotional, it was a complete waste by how they make Peter Parker wuss out. He should have been brave and fearless meeting his fate, instead of a whiny, begging, crying kid.
  6. Ending of movie was way, wayWAY too sad (and unresolved). I couldn’t believe that they would end on such a down note. I kept hoping that Captain America would at least say something about how to fix this.
  7. Why kill off everyone but the original Avengers? I’d prefer killing them off and forcing the newbies to get together to win. Really doesn’t provide a good transition for the future of the MCU.

Things were great about the movie:

  • Action scenes were excellent (although maybe a little CGI-heavy), but wasn’t distracting the rest of the story.
  • Epic battle in Wakanda was great – but felt too erratic. I’m completely surprised how ineffective and useless the Wakanda military is.
  • Thanos recovers the mind stone and uses the full gauntlet was (although not surprising) a very nice plug for the next movie.
  • Although I don’t approve of having Stormbreaker in this movie, its origin story is nicely done.

My final assessment:

From a technical standpoint, the movie leaves a lot to be desired and wastes a ton of potential. Additionally, if you try to watch this movie without watching any of the previous ones, you’re going to be more confused than entertained. That said, this movie was not meant to be a “stand-alone” and/or technical movie. This movie was specifically made as a sequel of sequels. And in that perspective, it succeeded – fantastically so.

Author: Kue Lee, MBA
Kue has a Masters in Business Administrations (MBA) from California State University, Fresno. He works as the Director of Education and Outreach for the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation in addition to being a contributing writer for news, business, and international blogs. He has also written, directed, and produced an award-winning film as well as authored several books on business, philosophy, and Asian folk lore.