The 225 million dollar action movie, The Avengers, has been thrilling audiences since its release on May fourth. My experience was no exception. Director Joss Whedon has mastered the balance between edge-of-seat intensity and laugh-out-loud comedy. The blend allows for a uniquely engaged audience. Humor never seems forced or out of place, and the movie is very much an intense action movie. There is also a kind of seriousness about it that is very real and appropriate.

As expected, the action scenes were positively breath-taking. I’m sure the movie makers had fun using the various weapons and battle talents of the heroes. Perhaps the one criticism I have with the movie is the lack of a strong villain. Loki is no doubt evil, but I find that I am rooting against him more because I like the “good” characters, the heroes, better, not because I loathe Loki’s very being, as I do some villains. I am always interested in what made a villain evil, and why he or she feels entitled to hurt the world. Particularly conflicted and twisted characters make for phenomenal arch nemeses. Loki, the trouble-maker in The Avengers, lacks that central conflict that makes great villains, or at least it is not fully explored in the movie.  Admittedly, I have not seen the other Marvel movies in which his character is perhaps more developed, but I also hold the strong opinion that a movie should be able to stand on its own.

Through good acting, writing, editing, or a combination of all three, I felt The Avengers was produced beautifully, and it also allowed the heroes to indulge in their humanity. Between friendly banter, struggles with teamwork, and moments of friendship, an amount of depth that is not often explored in superhero movies was added. The character development that I felt Loki lacked was more than made up for in the heroes.

Over all, The Avengers is an exciting and truly entertaining film that maintains quality dialog and plotline as well as having mind-blowing special effects. I was truly impressed by the film as a whole and would consider it to be one of this summer’s must-see movies.