Avengers Assemble

The Avengers (Avengers Assemble)

Directed By: Joss Whedon

Written By: Zak Penn, Joss Whedon

Produced By: Kevin Feige

Cast: Robert Downey. Jr, Samuel L. Jackson, Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hiddleston

Plot: When power hungry God, Loki (Hiddleston), attempts to take control of the world, S.H.I.E.L.D Director Nick Fury (Jackson) must bring together a team like no other.

I was a little concerned when rumors of the film surfaced on the internet. All the members of the team have very large personalities, enough to fill their own franchises. It would seem like one member of the team would be focused on the most. A potential daunting task that would be messy and wouldn't translate well onto the screen. However, the way in which Whedon and Penn have brilliantly written the script, each character has an equal share of screen time. The characters have already been established due to the other films, and when their personalities clash, the outcome is very explosive. 

It is essentially a mash-up of all the contributing films in the series (Iron Man 1+2, The Incredible Hulk, Thor,  Captain America) with a terrific story line that spans from all 5 previous films. The characters are well fleshed out due to the other films, and when their personalities clash, the outcome is very explosive.  There is a brilliant mix of humor and tension, there are some hilarious moments concerning The Hulk, which definitely pleased the audience. The film is fast-paced and there isn't a dull moment. 

The entire cast give a pitch-perfect performance. Robert Downey. Jr again plays the cheeky billionaire Tony Stark, but this time we see a little deeper into his personality, and we get an insight into how the situation affects him emotionally. One of the most interesting performances for me was Chris Evans as the time displaced Captain America. It was intriguing to see how he reacts when being moved out of his own time. Chris Hemsworth doesn't really change his character of Thor, but we do see him get marginally angrier with his mischievous brother Loki. The villain himself, played by Tom Hiddleston is a marvellous performance. His devillish charm goes hand in hand with his rage.

There is some brilliant character development revolving around two characters we have but glimpsed upon in the other films, Black Widow and Hawkeye. We come to realise that they feel an immense amount of guilt for the actions and murders they have both committed in the past. Whedon has created the perfect superhero movie, with a fresh blend of comedy, thrilling action sequences, and enough heroes to make any fanboy happy.

7/10

Written by Eammon Jacobs

The Cabin In The Woods

The Cabin In The Woods

Directed By: Drew Goddard

Written By: Joss Whedon, Drew Goddard

Produced By: Joss Whedon

Cast: Chris Hemsworth (Thor, The Avengers), Kristen Connolly, Anna Hutchison, Fran Kanz, Jesse Williams, Richard Jenkins, Bradley Whitford

Plot: Five unsuspecting teenagers go to 'The Cabin In The Woods' to get away from college for the weekend. What they do not realise, is that they are being manipulated by a group of sadistic 'puppeteers'.

 The films' premise comes across as rather generic; five teens on holiday in a remote location get slaughtered one by one by a horrifying force. The film does follow this, but in a completely unconventional way. We see how they are being controlled by an organization who are watching them, using whatever means available to have them killed in specific ways. It is almost as if the organization are trying to parody various 80's slasher flicks. However, there are moments which are genuinely scary, and some of the jumps are brilliant, but they do seem to lack true terror.  

 I was impressed with Chris Hemsworth's performance as the Jock. We find that he is actually quite intellectual, and that he is majoring in Sociology at College. There is a short but brilliant scene where he suggests some books for another character to read, which I feel is a great piece of character development, and helps the audience connect with his character. We end up identifying with all of the characters in one way or another, and as one of the men controlling the deaths says himself "I'm kinda routing for her" 

I feel that the film its' self is one giant twist, as every generic cliche is turned on it's head, but with a few similar components, for example, creepy cabin and Zombies, two of the characters go out in the woods to have sex, but every part of it is engineered by the 'Organization'. Fans of blood and guts won't be disappointed, as the final fifteen-twenty minutes is a violent blood bath between a mix of horror genres. I think that Whedon and Goddard have reinvented the horror genre, creating a fresh blend of horror and science fiction that hasn't been done before. The film is one of the most intriguing to have been released this year so far.

6/10

Written By Eammon Jacobs