Thursday, April 25, 2019

Avengers Reviews, Assemble

The end is almost here—or at least, Avengers: Endgameis. The supersized culmination of this phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is a three-hour behemoth of a movie. And according to V.F. chief critic Richard Lawson it’s also pretty good! His spoiler-free review praises the film’s surprisingly thoughtful tone and inspiring overall message: “Instead of a kill-a-thon, Endgame is a solemn and unexpectedly un-violent caper, a quest to undo the worst thing imaginable,” he writes. “Sure, there are action scenes peppered throughout—but Endgame is largely about stealth and internal reckoning. It presents the warming, moving idea that the strength and ingenuity of community can amply combat despair, even when all seems a frozen and lonely ruin.” Like the rest of us, Lawson has no illusions about this movie really marking the end of anything—we already know that Guardians of the Galaxy and Black Panther sequels, at least, are in the offing. Still, he points out, “it does seem like this is the last time they’ll all be together, at least in this exact configuration. In that light, Endgame delivers a fond and fabulous farewell.”
Elsewhere in HWD, Julie Miller digs into the most emotional episode of Fosse/Verdon yet; we present the first full trailer for George Clooney’s rip-roaring Catch-22adaptation, coming soon to Hulu; Yohana Desta previews HBO’s Euphoria, which will open the Austin TV Festival in May; and Laura Bradley chats with Juliette Lewis,taking on a decidedly mature role in the newest episode of The Act.