The Avengers

I was skeptical of The Avengers, which could have gone wrong in a million different ways. But Joss Whedon delivers the goods, resulting in the best blockbuster film in years.

Loki (Tom Hiddleston) arrives on Earth to retrieve the Tesseract, which will give him control of the universe or something. SHIELD Director Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) renews the "Avenger Initiative," assembling the superheroes we've met before: Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Bruce Banner/the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Steve Rogers/Captain America (Chris Evans), Thor (Chris Hemsworth). Also thrown in are assassins Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), who have a shared past. The heroes have a hard time getting along but must come together to defeat Loki and his alien army.

The Avengers risks being top-heavy with so many protagonists crammed into one film. Amazingly, Whedon pulls it off, delivering an immensely enjoyable film. Every Marvel fan has their childhood dream come true, but even comic heathens like myself can appreciate this well-crafted thrill ride.

Whedon's contribution can't be overstated. He builds on the protagonists' previous incarnations while believably developing them. His knack for snappy dialogue provides much-needed humor and pathos. Whedon also scores with small moments: the elderly German defying Loki, Agent Coulson's (Clark Gregg) hero worship of Rogers, Banner's explanation for his self-control, Stark reminding Loki of "one more guy" he pissed off.

Then there's the cool factor of four superheroes in one movie. Whedon balances them perfectly, giving each protagonist ample screen time and great interplay. The foursome don't really like each other and several even come to blows. The best dynamic is between the rakish Stark and straight-arrow Rogers. Just seeing this disparate team come together is enough to sell the film, making the payoff extremely effective. Even with a slew of supporting characters the movie never feels clunky or overstuffed.

Avengers delivers equally on its second promise: lots of action. Whedon's action scenes are large-scale and thrilling, admirably free of handheld camera and lens flares. The two big set pieces - the battle aboard SHIELD's mobile headquarters and an epic rumble in New York - are very long but never grow exhausting like Return of the King. Ubiquitous CGI aside, they set the standard for blockbuster excitement.

Some reviews critique the film's simplicity but so what? Nobody's coming into this for penetrating insight into the human condition. They want to see Hulk and Thor smash things. The "dark superhero" genre has been exhausted anyway, and I far prefer well-made, unpretentious fun to insufferable self-importance (Watchmen I'm looking at you). On the former score, The Avengers is faultless.

Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans and Chris Hemsworth build on their previous appearances and mesh together perfectly. Mark Ruffalo stands out, his awkward, self-effacing Banner far superior to his Hulk predecessors. Scarlett Johansson gets a well-realized character but Jeremy Renner is underused. Tom Hiddleston's Loki is more overtly malicious than before. Clark Gregg and Samuel L. Jackson relish expanded roles as SHIELD agents and Harry Dean Stanton has a hilarious cameo.

The Avengers is probably the best superhero film ever. I'm willing to forfeit my cinema snob cred by proclaiming: it's fucking awesome.