Well, Joss Whedon does it again. I continually find it amazing how well he handles ensemble action pictures. He usually has the perfect combination of character (to keep the story on a higher level) while infusing great action sequences (to keep it interesting). Marvel Studios has been very astute in keeping him on both Avengers movies because it could have devolved into mindless claptrap in less capable hands (yes, I'm looking at you, Michael Bay and George Lucas!).
The Avengers: The Age of Ultron is essentially picking up the pieces from the events of the first Avengers, Iron Man 3, and Captain America: The Winter Soldier. After the near annihilation of NYC after the alien invasion the Avengers thwarted, and reeling from the dissolution of SHIELD, Tony Stark and Bruce Banner ask Thor if they may study Loki's scepter before Thor takes it back to Asgard. They find it has one of the immensely powerful Infinity Stones in it. Through deciphering the science behind the Infinity Stone, Stark mentions they could use some of its properties to build a sentient machine to prevent the next alien invasion before it happens. It works only too well, creating a sentient program named Ultron that inserts itself into the Internet so that it becomes part of all all things. It begins to build copies of itself to wipe out humanity. Stark and Banner then build the artificial life form The Vision, which they will use to battle against Ultron. The end is a mindless melee of thousands of Ultrons and the world is saved once again. There's a lot more to it, but I don't want to give everything away, and in some cases, doesn't make a lot of sense.
Frankly, just because the movie doesn't make a lot of sense doesn't mean that it's no good. It's a hoot. The magic element for me in this outing was the development of all the characters, particularly the Black Widow and Hawkeye, who up to this point have essentially been background eye candy. This movie goes behind these two shadowy figures and really gets underneath who they are. There is an interlude in the movie at a farm that some people have complained about, (most notably Disney and Marvel execs-see article: http://www.avclub.com/article/corporate-drone-joss-whedon-fought-pure-artistic-i-218967?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=SocialMarketing&utm_campaign=LinkPreview:1:Default) because they felt it's boring and slowed the movie down. Well, it sort of does, but the movie needs this exposition to humanize their characters. Basically, anyone who hated it is either nine years old or has not progressed past nine. This exposition is the point of excellence to the film that it lacks otherwise. It gives some much-needed depth to the characters and story, giving us a reason to like Johannson's Widow other than her fabulous tits. This is what separates good movies from great movies, sparks like this.
Unfortunately, this fairly good, but somewhat insensical movie gets ruined by its last, epic 15-minute fight scene. I realize that's how all these movies need to end, but there needs to be a better way to do it. Captain America: The First Avenger, Guardians of the Galaxy, Iron Man 3 and the first Avengers all suffer from this malaise. It seems that the final clash has no real reason to be there other than ending on a high note. The fights are too big and impersonal and unillustrative of a greater theme. Instead, the point seems to be shoving as much fake-looking CGI visual information in the frame as possible, which ultimately takes us out of story. We feel we are watching an unreal comic book. It no longer engages, but rather pounds us into submission. Filmmakers have become overly dependent on CGI to tell their stories, it has made them lazy. Like any other tool or spice, CGI should be used sparingly, to support the greater themes rather than being the point unto themselves. That's why The Winter Soldier's final act works so well. Yes, it was busy, but in the end, it was about Steve Roger's moral compass fighting against the seemingly inevitable compromises and corruption that he felt SHIELD represented. That's what works there. In Ultron, it's our heroes fighting a bunch of little Ultrons, but doesn't really go anywhere beyond that.
The movie was fun, very entertaining and enjoyable on several levels, and only goes off the rails at the end. I hope Marvel learns from it (according to the article above, I'd say they didn't), but I will not hold my breath. In any case, see it. It is good fun and worth the watch. And don't bother with the 3D. It doesn't really add anything other than $3-$5 to your ticket price.
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