Catch up on part one right here!
10. Thor
I have a huge soft spot for the movie. It’s far from the best in the MCU, but it may be the most solid of the origin stories for the main three Avengers. The action is good, the acting is great and cheesy and feels properly comic-book-esque, a fish-out-of-water story with Shakespearean ridiculousness. That all said: I’m glad they got rid of the blonde eyebrows. They were horrific.
9. Iron Man
Iron Man is never judged just as a movie in its own right. It’s too important for that, being the beginning of the most successful movie franchise of all time. It’s rudimentary compared to what would come after it, but it’s anchored by the great Robert Downey Jr who makes Tony much more layered than he deserves to be. This would become a habit.
8. The Avengers: Endgame 7. The Avengers: Infinity War
In years to come, this two-part Avengers saga, the finale to end all cinematic finales, will be seen as overrated, with the very fact that the team at Marvel pulled this whole thing off possibly being overlooked. Yet these are really great movies; with a sprawling cast, the universe at stake, and proof that time travel can get you out of anything, Infinity War and Endgame are proof that shooting for the moon at least lets your land among the stars. Even if you can’t fit all of them on the poster.
At this point in the list, I consider the remaining movies to be brilliant. Ragnarok is the best Thor movie by a mile: a movie that manages to juggle familial relationships with a Thunderdome-esque sub-plot of galactic wrestling and Jeff Goldblum in face paint. If you still need proof that Taika Waititi is one of our best directors, look no further than Ragnarok,
The biggest risk the MCU ever took, the titular Guardians went from comic book limbo to genuine pop culture icons, and it’s thanks to this movie. Guardians of the Galaxy expertly juggles all the style and humor to tell a story of how a group of misfits, and the traumas that define them, can create a family for themselves.
Tom Holland is the best Spider-Man and Homecoming is an absolute joy from start to finish. Also, the orchestral version of the theme song? That’s some chef’s kiss mastery right there. No notes.
3. The Avengers
The team-up movie to end all team-ups, and still, after eight years, the only one to get it right. Studios have been trying to copy this movie since a minute after its worldwide premiere yet it still remains the gold standard, and probably always will.
The only thing stopping Black Panther from being number one is the appalling effects in the final fight with Killmonger. The rest of the movie is frankly perfect. The supporting cast may be the strongest of any Marvel Movie, and the Casino/car chase scene is an all-time great action scene. I can’t wait to see what Ryan Coogler does next.
The Winter Soldier is my favorite MCU movie, and I’m as surprised as anyone about it. Cap isn’t my favorite Avenger (that’s Thor, for some reason), and The First Avenger and Civil War are two of the weaker movies in the MCU. Yet The Winter Soldier just gets me.
The action is utterly spectacular mainly due to the lack of CGI bonanzas (except for the final fight), but more than anything it’s the relationship between Cap and Bucky that makes The Winter Soldier sing. Instead of a love interest, we have a deep male friendship, the kind that questions Cap’s own code of conduct. It’s a superb movie and would probably be number one if all it had going for it was that Nick Fury car chase. Now, that’s cinema.
By Kevin Boyle
Featured Image: Firstsauce.com
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