Movie Review: Avengers: Infinity War (2018) *Spoiler Free*

Movie Review: Avengers: Infinity War (2018) Spoiler Free

Ten years in the making and Marvel finally releases part one of the Avengers versus Thanos, A.K.A. Avengers: Infinity War.

After seeing all 18 films in the MCU prior to this, and liking most of them, I was pretty confident this movie would not disappoint.

Other than a few minor issues - that are all my personal taste and in no way reflect on the quality of the film - it really delivers. Thanos is indeed the big, bad villain of the MCU that we've been antcipating.

The Good Stuff

This movie really goes out of its way to explain and even show Thanos's motivation and backstory. I've read some reviews that say his motivation in this film doesn't make a lot of sense, that his motivation in the comics, that this film draws inspiration from, is better, but I disagree.

In the comics Thanos is trying to kill half the population of the universe to impress a girl (a character called 'Death'). Totally boring, somewhat selfish, typical, non-caring, evil villain.

Infinity War has him trying to solve the problem of an unsustainable universe through population control (not really a spoiler). That's a cause, you as an audience member can at least understand, even if you can't get behind his solution. Essentially he thinks he's doing the right thing for unselfish reasons that he believes are necessary.

Way better than killing people to impress a girl. You may even start to care about him a little because of it.

The balance of screen time with all the characters is a master class of storytelling. It's hard to believe people initially had concerns about balancing the storylines of all the characters in the first Avengers movie.

What's even better is the different pairings of characters and how they interact. For example, you get to see more of Peter Parker and Tony Stark but then you throw Doctor Strange, Starlord, Drax, and Mantis into the mix and it's becomes an even more fun dynamic as everybody tries to figure each other out.

The special effects and CGI are outstanding. At no point in this film did I notice any seams between what was real and what was CGI. Thor Ragnarock and Black Panther both had a few dodgy CGI moments but Infinity War is stunning. Particularly with so many CGI characters, this thing is more animated cartoon than live action much of the time but all the CGI characters seem very real.

I enjoyed all the humor in this film. Sometimes it's used to take the edge off really dramatic moments, which some reviewers have said can be a little jarring but I didn't find that to be so.

As most people anticipated the stakes in this movie are real. Several major characters do indeed die throughout the course of the story. It's sad but it's great at the same time... and we know these are comic book movies. No one is ever truly dead.

Minor Issues

With almost every major superhero character from past MCU movies in this film it's inevitable the ones you really want to see probably won't get nearly enough screen time for you.

That isn't a bad thing in terms of the movie. Both the writers (Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely), and the directors ( Anthony Russo, Joe Russo) have done a stellar job of balancing all the characters so that the time they do have on screen isn't wasted. They either move the story along or provide a great action beat (or both). It's just that, no matter which character is your favorite, you're going to wish they had a bit more screen time (bring on Part 2).

My next, really, really minor issue is a joke with Drax that doesn't really pay off. It's such a fun moment, that I think it was probably a flip of the coin as to whether it should stay or end up as a deleted scene. I'm kind of glad it's in there but there's no pay off later. Maybe the pay off ended up being cut?

I only mention it because the scene stuck in my head as such an odd, awkward, but funny sequence. You'll probably spot it when you see it. It's not really a spoiler since it's a joke that goes nowhere later, and even if it did, it would only be to provide an additional joke.

Last issue, the ending. Don't worry, no spoilers here. Obviously, with a Part 2 coming out in May 2019 this film was destined to not tie everything up in a nice neat bow. Thankfully it's not just one movie split in two. It has a proper end with a set up for part 2 but all the same, I really don't like the year wait to find out what happens next.

To Sum Up

Overall, I enjoyed Avengers: Infinity War. It really does deliver a great Marvel villain, along with a well told story, filled with trademark humor and comic book action brought to life. This movie really is Marvel Studios at the top of their game.

Definitely see it on a big screen if you can. It looks amazing and you'll have a great time seeing your favorite characters doing their thing.

Are Ion Thrusters the Future of Flying Cars? Spoiler - Probably Not But... Hover Boards... Maybe?

Undefined Technologies Ion Propulsion Drone prototype 3D concept image. You may have heard of Ion engines or, more likely, Ion thrusters. NASA uses them on their spacecraft to help maintain a craft's position or to propel them through space. Upon hearing that you might think they're big, powerful engines, but actually they are not. They work well in the vacuum of space but, once any kind of atmosphere and gravity is involved they'd be hard pressed to launch you off the ground if you strapped four of them to your lawn chair and yelled "up, up, and away!" I am no expert on Ion thrusters - they're basically magic that science has an explanation for. If you want to know the details, The Space Techie website has a layman's explanation . Build Your Own Ion Thruster Earth based Ion Thrusters work a bit different to their space based cousins by Ionizing the same air that we breathe to create thrust (an effect known as Ionic-wind ). While they sound highly soph

Skateboard Trick Tips: Two Ways to Ollie North (Ollie One foot)

You have to be quick to see my Ollie Norths! Ollie One Foots, otherwise known as the Ollie North, is one of those skateboard tricks you learn and then tend not to do very much as more interesting trick challenges grab your attention. However it does look really cool if you learn how to kick your front foot well past the nose of your skateboard. Still shot from Braille Skateboarding's Ollie North tutorial. I was inspired to make my video below, showing two different techniques to achieve a successful Ollie One Foot, when I not only saw that Braille Skateboarding's Tutorial used a different method to the one I had learned but also, when I looked at various other video tutorials, I discovered yet another technique, with no one using the method I had originally learned. Braille's method is to simply Ollie and drag your front foot past the front of your board. The second method I came across in several video tutorials is to Ollie, drag your front foot and tap your

How to Transfer Any Line Art to Your Griptape - Easy Skateboard Griptape Art Tutorial

Dog Star Griptape Art by TET Griptape art is once again gaining popularity amongst modern skateboarders. For those of us who have tried to create our own griptape art, using paint pens, you'll know reproducing your design onto the grip, without making any mistakes is incredibly challenging. Mostly because you just have to go for it and draw the design freehand, with paint pens, directly onto the griptape. You can make the odd mistake here or there but if you get the proportions of the design completely wrong, it can be very difficult to fix. Often you just have to live with the mistake. To address the problem I've come up with an easy way anyone can transfer a line art design to their griptape, removing almost all the anxiety of getting the proportions wrong. In fact, you could do this with any line art design, even if you have no drawing skill at all. Watch the video below to see my technique in action and/or skip past the video where I highlight the basic steps to get your de

Review: FP Footwear FINO Skate Shoes

FP Footwear FINO Skate Shoes I first saw FP's FINO skate shoes in a video by YouTube channel, Braille Skateboarding, titled, THE FIRST EVER NON NEWTONIAN FLUID SKATE SHOES!? As someone whose feet hurt and bruise relatively easily just from the basic tricks of skateboarding (Ollies, Pop Shuv-its etc.) the 90% absorption of impact energy selling point seemed like an ideal solution for minimizing my injuries. A day later I placed an order through FP's website . Ordinarily I wouldn't mention Customer Service but I can't let the lack of communication on my order slide. FP's website says to expect delivery within 7-14 days of your order. After close to two weeks, my order was still marked as being processed. I sent an email asking for any kind of update, to no response. A day or two later my order was marked as completed but still no signs of shoes in my mail? About two weeks later (just over a full month of placing my order) the shoes arrived. I'm sur

Robot Uprising Update: Robot Waiter, Fasta Pasta, South Terrace, Adelaide CBD, South Australia

On the second evening of my partner, Enigma, and I's weekend stay in Adelaide we decided to have dinner at Fasta Pasta . Strangely enough our hotel staff, at the Alba, had not mentioned Fasta Pasta as an option for an evening meal while their restaurant is closed for refurbishment, even though it is literally next door on the corner of South Terrace and Pultney Street. You may be aware that Fasta Pasta is an upmarket Italian restaurant franchise with its beginnings in Adelaide. Currently they have 19 restaurants Australia wide (with the majority in South Australia - we even have one in Gawler, our home town). I've never had bad food at a Fasta Pasta, and their food never looks like a franchise meal. You always feel you're at a restaurant that's a little bit more quality than your typical hotel/motel meal. Maybe it's because you don't see as much pasta based meals on an Aussie pub menu. Despite the name, it's not all pasta. I went with a basic plate of fish a

Nobody move, I've dropped my brain!

I'm probably one of the last Pirates of the Caribbean fans to see At World's End which is still playing at a few cinemas as it nears the end of its run. The title of this post, which is a quote from the movie, aptly describes the difficulties of trying to get your head around the plot. Although it does continue from the previous film in the series (all the characters are there) it doesn't seem critical to know the back story. The main plot is established right at the start. The East India Trading Company is out to wipe out pirates and anyone that so much as glances at a pirate. Our motley crew, Will Turner, Elizabeth Swan and Captain Barbossa join forces to bring together the Brethren of Nine pieces of eight (nine pirate lords who can unite all pirates) and stop the massacre of their kind. Slight problem. Captain Jack Sparrow is one of the nine and he died in the last film. Since Captain Barbossa died in the film before that, we know that coming back from the dead isn'

Is AI Art 'Art'? The Say NO to AI Art Movement, and Why Human Artists Will Adapt

AI Art No T-Shirt by TET Also available on other items . Right now there is a big debate over not just whether AI art is 'art' but whether AI's are actually ripping off the work of actual human artists, without their consent, to create their images - particularly images 'in the style of' specific artists. From my own observations this debate started to get more traction when artist's signatures began appearing in the output of AI Art image generators. Is It Art? Cool Froyd the Cat Sketch by TET. My style is very much influenced by classic Disney and WB character styles. To get some clarity on how real human artists work (of which I am one)... we, that is all of us... take influences from the art that has come before. i.e. whatever artists we like, have studied, seen etc. we are influenced by. It shows up in our work, intentionally or not. If you really study my own cartoony art style you'll see I'm heavily influenced by early Disney and Warner Bros cart

TET.Life (The Extraordinary Tourist Life)

Search This Blog