As a stand-alone film it doesn't work as well as some of the other films, most notably The Winter Soldier. It feels like a long episode of an Avengers television show, (and I do mean long). I'm exhausted just watching all of these films from the Marvel cinematic universe, so I can understand why Joss Whedon is tired of making them. There's too many characters to pay service to, too many plot-lines to pay attention to, and too much special effects for the filmmakers to get them all done well. (The opening sequence had rubbery digital people as bad as The Matrix Reloaded's Agent Smiths fight. Haven't we moved past that phase of CG?) As one would expect there was some great comedic moments in the film, and clever dialogue in true Whedon style. But the film is drably directed, trudging along its set path, moving from one scene to another, without really sitting long enough to completely take anything in. Surprisingly, Hawkeye had some of the most memorable moments, and I thoroughly enjoyed Paul Bettany as The Vision, although there wasn't nearly enough for him to do in the film. Strangely enough, this was one of the smaller storylines in the Marvel universe, and yet, once again, the fate of the entire world was on the line. It's hard to stay invested after the world has been in peril this many times.

3 Stars (out of 5)