Okay, lets give the inevitable complaint out of the way right now. Yes, this is the thirdAvengers: Age of Ultrontrailer that Marvel and Walt Disney have released since the initial teaser leaked back on October 22nd, 2014. That initial teaser, which was supposed to debut on October 28th before getting leaked online, was followed up by a slightly different variation on the same trailer which in turn dropped the morning of November 12th, 2014. So two months later to the day we get this third trailer, meaning that Walt Disneyshas put out three distinct full-lengthAvengers 2trailers in 82 days, for an average of one trailer every 27 days. At this rate,not counting a possible Super Bowl commercial in three weeks, well get around seven trailers between October 22nd, 2014 and April 23rd, 2015. NowAvengers 2trailers make for good clickbait, and Ill take them as they are offered, but there is still a part of me that wishes Disney wouldnt be so trigger-happy.
Now if every trailer was cut from the same general batch of footage, that would be one thing, but such a number of long-form teasers automatically mean that stuff that perhaps shouldnt get spoiled will probably get spoiled. Having said that, I can choose to be optimistic and hope for just maybe a Super Bowl commercial mostly from the footage weve already seen as of tonight and maybe a final trailer on April 3rd attached toFurious 7. And yes, the irony of a trailer to anAvengers sequel debuting in the middle of atelevisedfootball game is not lost on me.But still, for a film that could go with a barebones teaser and little else and still flirt with a $200 million opening weekend, well, youve heard this rant before. I promise I wont spend the entirety of anAvengers 2trailer article complaining about the existence of anAvengers 2trailer, so lets move on to something that I find incredibly exciting.
One thing I would like to focus on is the fact that this will be the eleventh film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. If what we are getting is one long-form story that began withIron Manon May 2nd,2008 and ends withAvengers: Infinity War part IIon May 3rd, 2019, then what were looking at is a 21-film long-form epic the likes of which weve never seen in motion picture history. I know its fashionable to hold up comic book movies as the root of all evil in Hollywood. But the level of ambition, scope, and scale that is being attempted is really the stuff that would make the protagonists of Martin ScorsesesHugoblow their lids with excitement.
I dont want every film to be a big-budget comic book superhero spectacular, but I cannot help but be impressed at what Marvel is well-on-their way to pulling off, especially as someone who feared that long form franchise storytelling would end withHarry PotterandSawas Hollywood became reboot-happy in the wake ofThe Amazing Spider-Man. I would argue, similar to how I defend Spielberg and Lucas against charges of wrecking Hollywood withJawsandStar Wars, that the fault lies not in the trendsetters but rather in those who attempted to mimic said successes (even if to be honest we have yet to see any results of saidmimicry, and yes Im hopeful for what DC has up itssleeve).
Assuming the schedule that was established last October actually comes to pass relatively unscathed, were basically atthehalfway point. And thats what makesAvengers: Age of Ultronso exciting.It is literally smack-dab in the middle of the two halves of this cinematic tapestry, with ten films that preceded it and ten films that will follow it. The (Im guessing) under/over 140-minute running time ofAvengers: Age of Ultronwill literally be the end of the beginning and the beginning of the end, similar to howHarry Potter and the Goblet of Fireserved as a powerhouse mid-way point for the seven-book series. The notion thatAvengers: Age of Ultronwill serve as the finale to the first half of these Marvel movies and the beginning to however this thing ends makes the film far more exciting than if it were justThe Avengers 2.
The trailer looks great, even if I didnt need as much story as they are revealing and I didnt need as many action beats as Ive been offered this early in the game. But the marketing thus far has been far superior too much of what soldThe Avengersthree years ago, both in terms of the specific footage and the artistic choices being made. I dont quite know what will happen inAvengers: Age of Ultron, and I sincerely hope I can avoid finding out between now and whenever I see the picture. So actors, writers, and executives, please try to avoid discussing what happens inCaptain America: Civil War, Dr. Strange,orThor: Ragnarokuntil afterAvengers: Age of Ultrondrops. Im sold, and I imagine most of the general moviegoers are already onboard too.
Avengers: Age of Ultron, written and directed by Joss Whedon and starringRobert Downey, Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Aaron Johnson, Elizabeth Olsen, Samuel L. Jackson, and James Spader, opens in America on May 1st, 2015 in 2D, 3D, and IMAX 3D. As always, well see.
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Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2015/01/12/avengers-age-of-ultron-gets-a-third-trailer/
