Review by Zac Platt.

Usually, a review should provide at least a little insight into what a movie is about so you know whether it’s something you’re interested in, but when it comes to Avengers: Endgame, even the most basic plot outline isn’t something I’d dare give away. Yes, it picks up straight from Infinity War’s giant cliffhanger. And yes, the drive of the story is our heroes figuring out how to, or whether they even can, pull off a cosmic-sized ctrl-z on Thanos’ (Josh Brolin) actions. But what that actually translates into veers sharply from expectations, leaving behind most of what you saw in the trailers within the opening scenes and propelling forwards through one of the most inventive, fan-pleasing and emotional journeys Marvel have committed to the screen.

While the MCU will continue on — there’s already one problematic trailer out for a future film — make no mistake that Endgame is the definitive climax to Marvel’s grand saga. If Infinity War was a showcase of Marvel’s many heroes, this is a celebration of its world and mythology. Longtime Marvel writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely hustle up as many loose ends as they can find, threading them into a very satisfying ending for the now 22-film franchise and giving at least the original six Avengers a sense of closure that their billion-dollar box office success would rarely allow.

With a runtime of three hours, it’s almost miraculous that Endgame is able to keep the pace moving as well as it does. In fact, I’m tempted to say there were a few ideas I wouldn’t have minded exploring just a tiny bit more. Keeping momentum and tying disparate threads together, however, has become almost a trademark of directors Joe and Anthony Russo. The Russos have proved themselves masters of film construction, moving one sequence into the next with almost surgical precision. There is perhaps one section of the film where one of the missions swells a little longer than it should, but even then, it sprinkles in key character beats that bloom brightly in retrospect.

While the creative plotting and focus on character set Endgame apart from its blockbuster ilk, you should be forewarned that there is a trade-off on the action front when compared with previous Avengers entries. Don’t worry, there are definitely some rah-rah moments of heroes teaming up to punch purple space Hitler in the beef — and what a fight it turns out to be — but unlike previous films, we aren’t watching our heroes trying to stop a villain. We are watching them proactively trying to change the new status quo. This is a rescue mission, and while it’s a bold choice to let the heroes simply be heroes and not throw robots or aliens at them every 10 minutes, giving them the room to change, grow — some a little more literally than others — and simply spend time with each other is something to be savoured.

If there’s a nit-pick to be had, it’s that the various tones Endgame juggles aren’t quite as smoothly blended as they were in the roller-coaster ride that was Infinity War. Instead, the film divides itself neatly into three distinct acts. The first, and darkest by a mile, explores what happens when the heroes lose; the second brings that trademark Marvel charm as our heroes get shit done; and the third — well, let’s not get into that here. On the one hand, it allows the story to zero in on and explore each component to its fullest, but the film might have benefited from shuffling the emotions around a little more evenly.

Considering how much is going on, however, that may be a little unfair, as Endgame is meticulous in ensuring it does justice to what has come before it. While it’s far from mandatory to have seen every other Marvel movie — a few are obviously essential — this is, as it should be, a film for the fans, and your mileage will increase with every previous chapter you’re familiar with. From callbacks to fan-favourite moments and looooong-digesting pay-offs to one reference to junk food that made me tear up, it goes beyond fan service and becomes both a loving homage and a thank you to the people who have supported this series since Tony Stark cobbled together his first Iron Man suit in 2008.

Digging too deeply into the characters here, or even revealing who appears in the movie, becomes dicey remarkably quickly, but it is worth acknowledging how well the narrative balances such a large cast without anyone feeling specifically sidelined. Of course, some characters get a little more time than others. The original six are fittingly given precedence, with Jeremy Renner’s Hawkeye finally receiving a little more to do this time round. Chris Evans’ Captain America and Robert Downey Jr’s Iron Man get the flashiest roles and undoubtedly receive the most badass hero moments of the film. It’s also nice to see that the bad blood from Civil War has not simply been swept under the carpet, with the pair forced to work through it in the face of what lies ahead.

Chris Hemsworth’s Thor and Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk are both a tonne of fun and undergo the biggest changes over the course of the film, especially Thor, who has suffered an absurd amount of loss and guilt over the last however many movies. I suspect they will both be a little more polarising to fans this time round, but for those who enjoyed the life Thor: Ragnarok breathed into them, this is a great next step in their journeys. Also, two quick final shout-outs to Karen Gillan’s Nebula, who gets a more deserving slice of the pie this time round given her background with Thanos and importance in the comics, and my boy Ant-Man, played by the perpetually charming Paul Rudd, who is quietly one of the most critical players on the road to victory — though, thankfully, not in the way prophesied in recent memes.

Infinity War might still hold the mantle as the studio’s biggest movie, but Endgame is easily its most ambitious. There were many opportunities for Marvel to take the easy road here, but time and again throughout the film, the filmmakers try to subvert expectations while still doing justice to the story and its characters. And while this is definitely not a jumping-on point for people curious about the series, it’s beyond essential for anyone invested in these characters. It takes a little while to sink in, as only the best movies do, but from its heartbreaking opening to its pitch-perfect final shot, Avengers: Endgame is the perfect ending to one of Hollywood’s biggest experiments.