[rating:5.0]

There are very rare times in a movie franchise that hype and the movie are the same. Even rarer when you get top actors together to portray their characters in such away that the chemistry mixes. The Avengers movie hits the mark on every level. Just put it this way . Have you ever read a comic book or any book for that matter and closed your eyes and saw all the action clearly and in such detail that you realized that you were reading something special that immersed you to that level ? Then have you ever gone to a movie version of those books and say well it was good butttttt…. ? In [[Avengers]] there was no but and it captured that same feeling that you get when you see those scenes in your mind when reading a book. It was excellently done from beginning to end. If there was one weak link that some may gripe about it may be the actor who portrayed Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) . It was not a perfect fit but it was pulled off and worked.
This movie played like a Marvel Comic would play out. It also had its fantasy bouts with super hero vs super hero like the comics now and then do. Thor and Iron Man tangle it up together for a bit with Captain America joining in. Thor and the Hulk go toe to toe, Natasha Romanoff AKA Black Widow battles Hawkeye , and there is a piece where the Hulk chases Black Widow. There were also some real light hearted moments when you can tell the actors mixed well together. Especially the scenes with Robert Downey Jr. His portrayal of Iron was not diminished with the appearance of other stars . Matter of fact that mix of actors augmented each others performance . The combo of light scenes and action scenes played out evenly and well through out the whole movie.
The action sequences were well done including the huge battle sequence at the end between the Avengers and Loki’s allies Chitauri which was totally a CGI fans wet dream. Epic does not begin to describe the movie. My opinion is that out of all the DC and Marvel movies done in the past this was the best one ever. And that is saying something considering there were some really fantastic ones that were done. It is a go see and it is a 5 star movie.

once again I give this movie 5 out 5 stars just for being true to the Marvel comics and pulling off a rare moment in movie history where the movie meets the expectation of the hype.

[rating:5.0]

Plot  and cast description From Wikipedia with a few spoilers but not that many that will ruin the movie for you

Nick Fury (Samuel L Jackson), director of the espionage agency S.H.I.E.L.D., arrives at a remote research facility during an evacuation. The commander there, agent Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders), explains that the Tesseract,2 an energy source of unknown potential, has activated and opened a mysterious portal. Through it steps the exiled Asgardian Loki (Tom Hiddleston), who takes the Tesseract and uses his abilities to control the minds of several S.H.I.E.L.D. personnel including agent Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner), as well as physicist consultant Dr. Erik Selvig (Stellan Skarsgard), in order to aid in his getaway.
In response to the attack, Fury reactivates the Avengers Initiative. Agent Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johannson) is sent to India to recruit Dr. Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo), while Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg), approaches Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) and requests that he review Selvig’s research. Fury himself approaches Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) with an assignment to retrieve the Tesseract from Loki. During his exile, Loki encountered the Other (Alexis Denisof), an alien conqueror who, in exchange for the Tesseract, offers Loki an army of the alien race called the Chitauri in order for him to subjugate Earth. Rogers, Stark and Romanoff travel to Stuttgart, Germany, to apprehend Loki, who is recovering iridium needed to stabilize the Tesseract’s power and demanding that the civilians kneel before him. After a battle with Captain America and Iron Man, Loki surrenders and is escorted back to a S.H.I.E.L.D. plane. However, Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Loki’s adoptive brother, arrives and attempts to free Loki to reason with him. Stark and Rogers confront Thor, and Loki is eventually returned to the Helicarrier, a flying aircraft carrier, and placed in a cell designed to hold the Hulk.
The Avengers are divided, both over how to approach Loki and the revelation that S.H.I.E.L.D. planned to harness the Tesseract to develop weapons as a deterrent against hostile extraterrestrials. As the group argues, Barton and Loki’s other possessed agents attack the Helicarrier, disabling its engines in flight and causing Banner to transform into the Hulk. As Stark and Rogers try to restart the damaged engines, Thor attempts to stop the Hulk’s rampage, and Romanoff fights Barton. During this fight, a blow to the head knocks Barton unconscious, breaking Loki’s mind control. Loki escapes, killing Agent Coulson as he does so, and Thor and the Hulk are each ejected from the ship. Fury uses Coulson’s death to motivate the Avengers into working as a team. Stark and Rogers realize that simply defeating them will not be enough for Loki; he needs to overpower them in a very public way so as to validate himself as ruler of Earth. Using a device built by Selvig, Loki uses the Tesseract to open a portal to the Chitauri fleet over Manhattan, summoning a Chitauri invasion.
The Avengers rally in defense of New York, but quickly realize they will be overwhelmed as wave after wave of Chitauri descend upon Earth. With help from Barton, Rogers and Stark evacuate civilians, while Banner transforms into the Hulk again and goes after Loki, beating him into submission. Romanoff makes her way to the portal, where Selvig, freed of Loki’s control, reveals that Loki’s staff can be used to close the portal. Meanwhile, Fury’s superiors attempt to end the invasion by launching a nuclear missile at Manhattan. Stark intercepts the missile and takes it through the portal toward the Chitauri fleet before running out of power and plummeting back to Earth, but the Hulk catches him as he falls. Thor escorts Loki and the Tesseract back to Asgard, while Fury notes that the Avengers will go their separate ways until such time as a new world-threatening menace emerges.
In a post-credits scene, the Other confers with his master (Thanos) about the attack on Earth. In a second post-credits scene, the Avengers—gathered at a shawarma restaurant—eat in silence.

Cast

• Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark / Iron Man:

A self-described genius, billionaire, playboy and philanthropist with a mechanical suit of armor of his own invention. Downey was cast as part of his four-picture deal with Marvel Studios, which includes Iron Man 2 and The Avengers. Downey stated that he initially pushed Whedon to make Stark the lead revealing, “Well, I said, ‘I need to be in the opening sequence. I don’t know what you’re thinking, but Tony needs to drive this thing.’ He was like, ‘Okay, let’s try that.’ We tried it and it didn’t work, because this is a different sort of thing, the story and the idea and the theme is the theme, and everybody is just an arm of the octopus.” About the character’s evolution from previous films, Downey commented, “In Iron Man, which was an origin story, he was his own epiphany and redemption of sorts. Iron Man 2 is all about not being an island, dealing with legacy issues and making space for others… In The Avengers, he’s throwing it down with the others”.

• Chris Evans as Steve Rogers / Captain America:

A World War II veteran who was enhanced to the peak of human physicality by an experimental serum. Evans was cast as part of a deal to star in three Marvel films, in addition to The Avengers.Evans stated that Steve Rogers is much darker in The Avengers, explaining, “It’s just about him trying to come to terms with the modern world. You’ve got to imagine, it’s enough of a shock to accept the fact that you’re in a completely different time, but everybody you know is dead. Everybody you cared about… He was a soldier, obviously, everybody he went to battle with, all of his brothers in arms, they’re all dead. He’s just lonely. I think in the beginning it’s a fish out of water scene, and it’s tough. It’s a tough pill for him to swallow. Then comes trying to find a balance with the modern world.”Regarding the dynamic between Captain America and Tony Stark, Evans remarked, “I think there’s certainly a dichotomy—this kind of friction between myself and Tony Stark, they’re polar opposites. One guy is flash and spotlight and smooth, and the other guy is selfless and in the shadows and kind of quiet and they have to get along. They explore that, and it’s pretty fun”.

• Mark Ruffalo as Dr. Bruce Banner / Hulk:

A genius scientist who, because of exposure to gamma radiation, transforms into a monster when enraged or excited. Ruffalo was cast after negotiations between Marvel and Edward Norton broke down.About replacing Edward Norton, Ruffalo said, “I’m a friend of Ed’s, and yeah, that wasn’t a great way for all that to go down. But the way I see it is that Ed has bequeathed this part to me. I look at it as my generation’s Hamlet.” About the character he stated, “He’s a guy struggling with two sides of himself—the dark and the light—and everything he does in his life is filtered through issues of control. I grew up on the Bill Bixby TV series, which I thought was a really nuanced and real human way to look at the Hulk. I like that the part has those qualities”.Regarding the Hulk’s place on the team Ruffalo said, “He’s like the teammate none of them are sure they want on their team. He’s a loose cannon. It’s like, ‘Just throw a grenade in the middle of the group and let’s hope it turns out well”!Ruffalo also told New York magazine that unlike previous incarnations, he will actually play the Hulk, “I’m really excited. No one’s ever played the Hulk exactly, they’ve always done CGI. They’re going to do the Avatar stop-action, stop-motion capture. So I’ll actually play the Hulk. That’ll be fun”.About his preparation for the role Ruffalo joked, “I’ve lost 15 pounds and I’ve put another five on of just strapping, pure USDA beef… They want me mean and lean, but they don’t want me big and buff”. The Hulk’s body was adapted from that of Long Island bodybuilder and male stripper Steve Romm.The film’s portrayal of the Hulk was considered successful; Marvel executives were “pleasantly surprised” by audiences’ response to the character, and intend to “spin him off to a stand-alone program” if his successful turnaround continues.

• Lou Ferrigno voices the Hulk.

• Chris Hemsworth as Thor:

The god of thunder based on the Norse deity of the same name. Hemsworth was cast as part of a multiple movie deal. He had previously worked with Joss Whedon on The Cabin in the Woods.Hemsworth stated that he was able to maintain the strength he built up for Thor by increasing his food intake, consisting of a number of chicken breasts, fish, steak and eggs a day. When asked exactly how much, Hemsworth joked, “My body weight in protein pretty much!”He remarked that Thor’s motivation “is much more of a personal one, in the sense that it’s his brother that is stirring things up. Whereas everyone else, it’s some bad guy who they’ve gotta take down. It’s a different approach for me, or for Thor. He’s constantly having to battle the greater good and what he should do vs. it’s his little brother there… I’ve been frustrated with my brothers at times, or family, but I’m the only one who is allowed to be angry at them. There’s a bit of that.”

• Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff / Black Widow:

A highly trained spy working for the international peacekeeping organization, S.H.I.E.L.D.^[24] About the character and her relationship with Hawkeye, Johansson commented, “Our characters have a long history, they’ve fought together for a long time in a lot of battles in many different countries. We’re the two members of this avenging group who are skilled warriors — we have no superpowers. Black Widow is definitely one of the team though. She’s not in the cast simply to be a romantic foil or eye candy. She’s there to fight, so I never felt like I was the only girl. We all have our various skills and it feels equal”. Regarding her training Johansson stated, “Even though Iron Man 2 was ‘one-for-them,’ I’d never done anything like that before. I’d never been physically driven in something, or a part of something so big. For The Avengers, I’ve spent so many months training with our stunt team, and fighting all the other actors, it’s crazy. I do nothing but fight—all the time.”

• Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton / Hawkeye:

A S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and master archer known in the comics as the “World’s Greatest Marksman”. Renner said it was a very physical role and that he trained physically and practiced archery as much as possible in preparation.About the role, Renner remarked, “When I saw Iron Man, I thought that was a really kick-ass approach to superheroes. Then they told me about this Hawkeye character, and I liked how he wasn’t really a superhero; he’s just a guy with a high skill set. I could connect to that.Regarding Hawkeye’s sniper mentality, Renner stated, “It’s a lonely game. He’s an outcast. His only connection is to Scarlett’s character, Natasha. It’s like a left hand/right hand thing. They coexist, and you need them both, especially when it comes to a physical mission.” Renner said Hawkeye is not insecure about his humanity explaining, “Quite the opposite, he’s the only one who can really take down The Hulk with his [tranquilizer-tipped] arrows. He knows his limitations. But when it comes down to it, there has to be a sense of confidence in any superhero.”

• Tom Hiddleston as Loki:

Thor’s adoptive brother and nemesis based on the deity of the same name. In regard to his character’s evolution from the film Thor, Hiddleston stated, “I think the Loki we see in The Avengers is further advanced. You have to ask yourself the question: how pleasant an experience is it disappearing into a wormhole that has been created by some kind of super nuclear explosion of his own making? So I think by the time Loki shows up in The Avengers he’s seen a few things.”About Loki’s motivations, Hiddleston remarked, “At the beginning of The Avengers, he comes to Earth to subjugate it and his idea is to rule the human race as their king. And like all the delusional autocrats of human history, he thinks this is a great idea because if everyone is busy worshipping him, there will be no wars so he will create some kind of world peace by ruling them as a tyrant. But he is also kind of deluded in the fact that he thinks unlimited power will give him self respect so I haven’t let go of the fact that he is still motivated by this terrible jealousy and kind of spiritual desolation”.

• Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury:

The director of S.H.I.E.L.D., who was revealed in previous films to be coordinating the “Avenger Initiative“. Jackson was brought to the project with a deal containing an option to play the character in up to nine Marvel films. In April 2011, Jackson’s script was stolen and leaked on the internet after a digital copy was left in a printer. Jackson stated he does more in The Avengers than in any of the previous films and joked that “You don’t have to wait until the end of the movie to see me”. About the role Jackson commented, “It’s always good to play somebody that is a positive in society as opposed to somebody who is a negative… I tried to make him as honest to the story and as honest to what real-life would seem.” Jackson compared the character to Ordell in Jackie Brown, calling him “a nice guy to hang out with, you just don’t want to cross him”.

• Cobie Smulders as Maria Hill:

A S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who works closely with Jackson’s Nick Fury.Smulders, whom Joss Whedon once considered for his unproduced live-action Wonder Woman film, was selected from a short list of potential actresses including Morena Baccarin. Smulders’ deal would integrate her into nine films.^[34] Regarding her preparation, Smulders stated, “I hired this amazing black-ops trainer to teach me how to hold a gun, take me to a shooting range, how to hit, how to hold myself, how to walk and basically how to look. I don’t do a ton of fighting in the movie, which is why I wasn’t offered a trainer, but I wanted to look like I had the ability to.” On relating to the character, Smulders commented, “I can relate to her being a mom and being a businesswoman and trying to work full-time and raising a family and having a career. We’re asked to do a lot of things these days. I feel she is just all about her job and keeping things going.”

Clark Gregg, Stellan Skarsgård, and Gwyneth Paltrow reprise their roles from previous films as Phil Coulson, Erik Selvig, and Pepper Potts, respectively.Paul Bettany returns to voice JARVIS. Frequent Whedon collaborator Alexis Denisof voices the Other, leader of the Chitauri. Avengers co-creator Stan Lee has a cameo appearance in a news report. Harry Dean Stanton also has a cameo as a security guard.