The Avengers

Marvel Studios has been preparing audiences for this thrilling, star-studded action-adventure for the past few years, beginning with Iron Man and continuing with Iron Man 2, The Incredible Hulk, Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger. Here, Thor's brazen, bitter brother, Loki (Tom Hiddleston), arrives on Earth from Asgard and swipes the energy-packed Tesseract—an all-powerful cosmic cube discovered on the ocean bottom—through which he can summon intergalactic alien invaders. Eye-patched Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), director of the international peace-keeping agency known as S.H.I.E.L.D., calls the disparate yet similarly egocentric, spandex-clad superheroes to a summit aboard his enormous airship. Snarky playboy billionaire Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) immediately spars with the earnest, no-nonsense WWII hero Steve Rogers/Captain America (Chris Evans), along with the straight-laced, imperious, hammer-wielding Nordic god Thor (Chris Hemsworth). Fury's sultry, covert operative Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) has a vested interest in breaking Loki's spell on her archer ally, Clint Barton/Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), while world-weary scientist Bruce Banner/Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) struggles to control the curse of his terrible temper. Based on the comic book series created by Stan Lee (glimpsed in a cameo in the climactic chaos) and Jack Kirby, writer-director Joss Whedon's slam-bang epic combines sly, snappy dialogue with awesome special-effects, particularly during a massive battle in midtown Manhattan. Highly recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by director Joss Whedon, an “Assembling the Ultimate Team” cast featurette (7 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are deleted/extended scenes (15 min.), the “Marvel One-Shot: Item 47” short film (11 min.), “A Visual Journey” production featurette (7 min.), a gag reel (4 min.), the music video “Live to Rise” by Soundgarden, and bonus DVD and digital copies of the film. Bottom line: a solid extras package for 2012's biggest summer blockbuster.] (S. Granger)