Wednesday, August 22, 2018

‘Blu-ray or Bust’ - AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR


‘Blu-ray or Bust’
AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR (2018, 149 minutes, PG-13)


The Quick of It -
Faced with the decision of buying a Blu-ray of a film you have already seen can be testing.  Is it worthy of the visuals on my 4K super badass TV that I had to study the user manual three days to understand the damn thing?  Does the sound live up to the possibilities on my also badass Bose surround sound system that took me twenty hours to wire only to find out it’s wireless?  What do I get for spending my extra fundage on something I have already seen and had to work half a day to afford?

After this ‘risky’ purchase, INFINITY WAR quelled any fears I had on this ‘tiny’ investment of time and money.  So, how does this help you when staring at the display at your local store?

First off, you HAVE seen the film and know that this is one of the strongest comic-made-movie adaptations you could have hoped for.  If you haven’t seen it… I’m not saying you are a loser… in the sense that you should have… but just losing out on this epic moment that has been promised by all the previous MCU films.  Either way, no discouragement at this point.  Right… loser?


Then, I have previously expressed in my initial review that you finally get the villain that completes a well-rounded story.  I hate that Marvel feels the need to make their bad guys flat, just having a sinister side.  I think the producers and studio stand on the principle of a good vs. evil plotline at the core, avoiding too much gray area.  The Mad Titan, Thanos, who is played by the compelling Josh Brolin, makes you slightly believe in his cause, finally leading you into the gray area as you yearned for in the past.  Well, at least I yearned.  Thanos has come to believe that the universe is plagued by those planets and people that do not practice caution in disrupting the natural flow of the universe.  With that troubling his awfully large brow, he desires to unite the Infinity Stones, using the power to reduce the universe’s pesky population in half.  His opposition is everyone else in the MCU.  EVERYONE.


The cast is a long list, one you have become familiar with after three lengthy phases.  Do I really have to name them all…?  Each is allowed enough airtime to give you a taste of what you come to love about each, but never enough to dominate the overall screen.  This chance of distilled goodness quickly tells you that the imagery has to be grand to keep with each story the films have come to deliver.  You have the universe to tell this visual story and the cinematography does not let you down.  This also solidifies the sound aspect.  You have every possible scenario that assaults your aural senses, heightening the experience to the next level.  Bam!  (Oh wait, that’s kinda a 60’s Batman thing.  Oops.)


The final selling-point is what you find on the back of the case.  All the extras they include; some added deleted scenes that slightly expand on character stories, behind the scenes examinations of particular confrontations, and a gag real.  And then some more…  ‘Strange Alchemy’ teases the future of characters and who they crusade with (damn, another Batman thing, I’m such a DC fanboy).  I would be remiss in my duty not to point out the Audio Commentary you can turn on during the film.  The commentary is provided by the directors, Anthony and Joe Russo, and the screenwriters, Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely.  The in-depth insight into the creation and thought processes involved in making INFINITY WAR will feed your film junkie needs.

So, treat yourself with this fine film… again.  Right?! 

Grade: A
Special Features: A
Blu-ray Necessary: Absolutely

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