“The Avengers” is the epic conclusion of the Marvel movies “Captain America”, “Thor”, “The Incredible Hulk”, and “Iron Man”.

The cast consists of stars such as Scarlet Johansson, Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Samuel L. Jackson, and Robert Downey Jr. Downey Jr. demonstrates superior acting ability. His timing is impeccable, and his overall charisma and charm captivate the audience. At times, the script is lackluster, however the innovative special effects, including 3-D and masterfully produced sound compensate for other shortfalls.

 The movies leading up to “The Avengers” set the foundation for the plot of this film. In the movie “Thor”, a demigod named Loki suffers a humiliating defeat from his brother, Thor, on the planet Asgard. As a result, Loki would later embark on a tyrannical rampage to obtain power and revenge.

“Captain America” features the Nazis, part of the terrorist organization HYDRA, using a cosmic cube called the tessaract as a weapon of mass destruction, but Captain Steve Rogers (also known as “Captain America”) managed to fly the cube into the ocean, temporarily lodging the tessaract into the depths of the ocean floor.

In “The Avengers”, Loki has re-obtained the tessaract, which he plans on using as a gateway between Asgard and Earth. That way, he could in theory transport his army of soldiers to Earth and enslave the humans. In response, leader of the espionage agency “S.H.I.E.L.D.” Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) calls together a group of superheroes known as “The Avengers”. What the superheroes don’t know is that Fury has a big secret, something he’s been working on without any of the heroes knowing.

“The Avengers” is successful in large part due to the occasional documentary-style filming. In several scenes, Director Joss Whedon utilizes sudden zoom-ins, making the film seem more realistic and more similar to films including “Cloverfield” and “Super 8”. When asked what the biggest challenge for “The Avengers” would be, special effects supervisor Jeffrey White responded, “We created a lot of New York City for the film and needed to build flying shots of Iron Man all from photography. We had to build a new Iron Man suit — the Mark VII — and Stark Tower. We had to build the alien race. When you add all of those things up, there are quite a few challenges there.”

On the other hand, Downey Jr. yet again demonstrates sensational acting ability. His humor brings the audience to hysterical laughter throughout the film. His characteristic of overconfidence enthralls the audience. As a result of Downey Jr.’s expertise and White’s magical special effects, “The Avengers” is the highest-grossing opening weekend blockbuster of all time at $200 million.

(Sources: MTV, Box Office Mojo)