The Avengers (2012) (1 Viewer)

[Sean Bryan]

Was it mentioned if this was a U.S. or a foreign disc?

 

[Kevin Lamb]

No, he didn't know what Region it was. I'm hoping its just a UK thing but will be very frustrated if it was censored straight across the board.

 

[dpippel]

Originally Posted by Kevin Lamb /t/278084/avengers-movie-thread/300#post_3965264
No, he didn't know what Region it was. I'm hoping its just a UK thing but will be very frustrated if it was censored straight across the board.

I'm in complete agreement with you.

 

[TravisR]

I can't imagine why it would be changed from the theatrical cut. Maybe if there had been some kind of outcry about the violence in the movie but I never heard anything about people objecting to the violence in it. My guess is that it's either an alteration for another country and the US disc will have what was seen in US theaters or it's an outright lie (and even that seems pretty unlikely).

 

[TheBat]

Loki is a trickster and a manipulator.
His plan wasn't to get caputred just to get rescued. His plan was to get in close enough proximity to Banner to influence him, getting him to change into the Hulk, which would reek Havock with the power base of his adversaries. His plan worked pretty well.
We learned that from Black Widow's discussion with Loki in the holding cell where she played him into giving that up.
We'd been shown that Loki can basically "own" someone by touching their chest with his staff. Here, he was going for an more subtle influence, but influence none the less.
Just before Banner changed, all of the "team" was getting pretty agitated with each other. And S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secret super weapons manufacturing plan came to light, which he also didn't like. Plus, that whole deal with him holding Loki's staff and not even being aware of it as they were arguing made it pretty clear that he was being influence by Loki.
So while basically being in the middle of an argument with the other Heros and being influenced by Loki (jacked up aggression and mistrust) they are also physically attacked.
-Loki sparks argument and mistrust amongst the whole team.
-Loki specifically influences Banner (staff scene) to amplify his angst and mistrust.
-Then his men physically attack. The purpose of the attack was two fold: Push Banner over the edge into a change, and rescue Loki.
The combination of all that lead to Banner losing control and turning, and the agitation towards the others (S.H.I.E.L.D. in particular) directed the Hulk's actions as they played out.
On the streets of New York, Banner chose to turn into the Hulk of his own free will. He was past the "Loki-jacked-up agitation" towards the other team members. And before he changed he had a clear purpose in his mind of what he wanted to do: fight the invading alien army.
I agree that it could have been spelled out a little clearer, but it's still all there and does make sense.

some recent deleted footage from the blu ray has shown up online. they do explain more about it. try the loki and barton conversation.
Jacob

 

[Sean Bryan]

I am looking forward to checking out the deleted scenes, but I think I'd like to wait for the Blu-ray.
Someone at AVS said that Coulson edited scene is from a foreign disc. Let's hope the U.S. disc isn't victim to the same silliness.

 

[Sean Bryan]

MARVEL is promoting a theatrical re-release this Labor Day weekend.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=427199330671412&set=a.229675623757118.60886.126757470715601&type=1
Nothing about an extended cut is mentioned, which is too bad. But since the Blu-ray is already out in some other countries with just the theatrical cut this is no surprise.
I caved and watched a few of the deleted scenes that are online. The one with Banner and Harry Dean Stanton was a nice expansion on his conflict about who he is and who he should be. And it's an absolute shame that extended intro to Steve Rogers was cut. I can't for the life of me understand why this was left out. The only reason I can swallow is if they want to basically transplant that scene into The Winter Soldier (or re-film it in the context of that film).
Marvel's facebook post also reminds us "Don’t forget to stay through the credits…". I doubt they have anything new attached. They are probably saying that because lots of people probably missed the funny final schwarma scene.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

ILM breaks down how they accomplished that shot:

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Road to Endgame Revisit #6:
Squeezed in a double feature today, because the ending of Thor had me really pumped to roll into The Avengers. And because it had been five and a half years since I'd last seen it, and because I didn't want to deprive myself of the entertaining ride, I watched this one without the audio commentary.

The first thing that struck me, watching this so close to the Iron Man movies, Captain America: The First Avenger, and Thor, is how this is perhaps the least technically accomplished of the Phase One movies. The Iron Man movies and Thor were shot on film, the latter anamorphically, and all of those movies have really great, really distinctive cinematography. Captain America: The First Avenger was shot digitally, with 1080P Panasonic Genesis cameras, but Joe Johnston and his cinematographer Shelly Johnson really knew how to light and frame scenes to create something nostalgic but but engaging. The Avengers was the first Marvel movie shot with Alexa cameras, and it was in the early days before cinematographers like Roger Deakins showed what could be done with the cameras. The lighting is less interesting, the framing less sophisticated. Joss Whedon comes from a TV background, and there are times during the movie when it really shows.

But the thing is, none of that matters, because the movie as a whole just works. This is the first major team-up movie of superheroes from various individual franchises. It should feel like a major cinematic event, and Joss Whedon makes sure that it does. The opening sequence at the Joint Dark Energy Mission Facility in the Mojave Desert kicks things off like a Bond movie with a thrilling action sequence delivering violence and explosions. But because this movie is so jammed back, it doesn't just deliver violence and explosions. It brings Loki to Earth, adds Hawkeye and Dr. Selvig to Loki's ranks, and creates a crisis big enough to motivate SHIELD to bring the Avengers together.

For us to feel like the Avengers coming together is a big deal, each individual member needs to have weight. And Whedon knows it. First we encounter Black Widow tied to a chair in a warehouse, being interrogated by a corrupt Russian general. She's clearly in the third act of her own standalone movie, when suddenly a henchman's cellphone rings. It's Coulson; she's being recalled her for reassignment. She's not ready to go; the general is blurting out valuable intel. Coulson tells her Hawkeye's been compromised. She begrudgingly agrees to end her mission prematurely. Tied to the character with the cellphone held between her ear and her shoulder, she proceeds to take down the Russian general and all of his men. Black Widow tracks down Bruce Banner in a remote and poverty-stricken part of India. She uses a tiny girl to lure him to a remote shack on the outskirts of town, and convinces him that SHIELD needs Banner the scientist, not Hulk the monster. He agrees to come along, even as he knows he's being played. Cut to Nick Fury defending his decision to reactivate the Avengers initiative to the World Security Council. Even the boss has a boss. Wars aren't won by sentiment, they lecture him. No, he replies, they're won by soldiers. Cut to Steve Rogers, pummeling the hell out of a series of punching bags in a boxing gym that looks relatively unchanged from the 1940s. Fury walks in, enlists him in a new mission: The tesseract has been stolen. "You should have left it in the ocean," Captain America admonishes him. Cut to Iron Man, in the ocean, splicing a modified arc reactor into a large pipe or cable feeding his new skyscraper towering over Grand Central Station. He returns to the penthouse suite and is getting romantic with Pepper when Coulson shows up and interrupts. Tense words are exchanged, but before long Tony's in problem solving mode. It takes a bit longer for Thor to enter the picture, but when he does, he enters on a bolt of lightning.

All of the scenes interlock with one another like jigsaw puzzle pieces. All of the scenes establish the Avengers in their separate worlds before bringing them together. Joss Whedon's writing has a distinctive voice, but most of the Avengers are well enough established at this point that he's able to capture their own voices. What follows is a series of crises building one into the next until we reach open war in the skies over Manhattan. Along the way, the Avengers have to reconcile themselves to one another, learn to trust one another and rely on one another.

Thor's fight with Iron Man and Captain America in the forest isn't necessary, but it's fun. Hulk tearing through the helicarrier isn't necessary, but it's fun. Seeing the heroes clash is exciting and interesting, but seeing them find ways to work together and leverage each other's strengths is even more fun.

And when we get to the Battle of New York at the end, it legitimately is the biggest spectacle the Marvel Cinematic Universe has provided us thus far. The decision to use the 1.85:1 aspect ratio instead of the 2.39:1 aspect ratio suddenly makes sense, because there is so much going on vertically. The staging of the battle is so well done. Even though the Chitauri suffer from the same faceless cannon fodder problem that the Frost Giants did in Thor, the various Avengers employ so many different methods to take them down that it never feels repetitive or stale. We have seen so many action sequences like this that become incomprehensible, with so much sound and fury thrown at you that it becomes impossible to make sense of it. The Avengers makes sure you're always aware of the objectives and the stakes, and where the Avengers are in relation to one another. There's that wonderful shot where they circle up, backs to one another, a team at last. And then there's that amazing shot mid-battle a little later on where the camera floats through the air, moving from one Avenger to the next without any cuts. The whole thing really feels like the culmination of the MCU journey up until this point.

Alan Silvestri's score is the high watermark for the MCU movies so far. His team for the Avengers is iconic enough that you can hear a handful of notes and know exactly what franchise you're in.

Connections to other parts of the MCU: Watching the opening sequence again tonight really made me appreciate just how carefully Captain Marvel was slid into the existing continuity. I thought Project P.E.G.A.S.U.S. was something invented for that movie, but no, the Joint Dark Energy MIssion Facility featured here is also part of Project P.E.G.A.S.U.S., and involved the same Infinity Stone. The other big connection is the first appearance of Thanos, looking notably less like Josh Brolin than he will in Infinity War. Thanos doesn't actually say anything, which is probably smart, since they don't want to box future movies in.