Men in Black: International (2019)

It turns out the Men in Black is not only an American organisation, with this latest instalment showing the truly worldwide nature of the organisation charged with keeping the worst of the universe at bay.

Young Molly (Tessa Thompson), who witnessed her parents being neuralised by Men in Black agents when she was a young girl, has been on the search for the top-secret organisation ever since.

She finally tracks them down, and walks straight into Men in Black Headquarters, demanding that they hire her, so that she can discover the truths of the universe.

Agent O (Emma Thompson) accepts her reluctantly, sending her to the London branch, to work under Agent High T (Liam Neeson).

Agent O (Emma Thompson).

There, she meets her new partner, Agent H (Chris Hemsworth), whose latest mission has him guarding the leader of an alien race. H seems to be the favourite agent of High T, the two of them having saved the world together some twenty years earlier.

I really can't say any more about the plot here, but there are plenty of things I can say.

The screenplay, by Matt Holloway & Art Marcum, fits quite well into the existing series of films, with the same quality of humour, action and adventure in a decent mix. The characters are all clearly defined, and there are plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing (though some of these were a little too predictable).

The performances of the cast are also good, with Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson being beautifully matched as partners. Of course, they have had experience together in the Marvel universe before this, and so, their on-screen chemistry is fantastic. Both of them also handle that delicate balance between comedy and action thriller very well.

Agent H (Chris Hemsworth) and Agent M (Tessa Thompson).

Keep your eyes (or rather, ears) peeled for an appearance by Kumail Nanjiani, who voices a small alien creature named Pawny. Though he provides little more than comic relief, he is perfectly cast for the role.

It pains me to say that where this film really falls down is in the score. Despite being written by film-scoring royalty Danny Elfman (with Chris Bacon), this is perhaps the worst example of film scoring I have come across in recent years.

My reasoning is simple: the music goes for the entire two-hour duration of the film. Yes, you read that right: there is not a single second of this entire movie that does not have music underscoring it. And the majority of the music is very poorly suited to the moment in which it features.

In actual fact, my rating of this film is based purely on this sadly deplorable fact. This use of wall-to-wall music completely ruins what is otherwise a half-decent film, distracting the viewer from the action, or emotion of the scene, with ill-suited music.

Agent H (Chris Hemsworth) and Agent M (Tessa Thompson) battling aliens.

Despite the fact that I absolutely loved the first three Men in Black films (all directed by Barry Sonnenfeld), I do not expect I will be watching this film - directed by F. Gary Gray - again.

6 1/2 out of 10.

Avengers: Endgame (2019)

The wait is finally over. The incredible story that began years ago with the very first Iron Man film - but was most recently continued in Avengers: Infinity War - comes to its final conclusion with this film. And what a conclusion it is: it holds the title of being the only Marvel film so far that has made me cry.

I must be very careful what I write, and how much I tell of the story here, as there may still be people out there who haven’t seen the film yet. Sure, it’s been in cinemas for nearly a week, but not everyone goes to movies the day that they open, and any small detail could spoil the enjoyment or suspense for you.

The story picks up shortly after the final events of Avengers: Infinity War, with Thanos having obliterated fifty percent of all living creatures on Earth. As you may recall if you were among the audience, this also included a large number of our heroes: Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, nearly all the Guardians of the Galaxy, Scarlet Witch and the Wasp, to name but a few.

The remaining Avengers - Captain America (Chris Evans), Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Rocket Raccoon (voiced by Bradley Cooper) are desperately seeking some way that they can reverse Thanos’s (Josh Brolin) destruction, bring back their friends and family, and save the world yet again.

We know from the trailer (so this can’t be a spoiler) that there are some new additions to the team who weren’t present during Avengers: Infinity War, namely Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) and brilliant comic-relief character Ant Man (Paul Rudd).

To be honest, I really don’t think I can say any more than that in terms of the plot. I realise that anyone could probably have worked out that much on their own without ever seeing it, but honestly, anything else I say past those few opening scenes would inevitably contain significant spoilers, and I don’t want to do that.

The script for this film, by Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely is very good, beginning with the incredibly bleak tones one would expect following the events of Avengers: Infinity War, moving on to the attempts to salvage whatever hope these heroes can, to the ultimate conclusion of the film almost three hours later (yes, it is a long film, but there is a lot that has to happen). These writers stay true to the characters at all times, which makes for some interesting - yet satisfying - conflict. The script is infused with just the right amount of humour at various points to provide a welcome break from the serious dramatic nature of the story (I spent a fair amount of the film’s running time in tears, and these funny moments throughout were definitely welcomed).

Trent Opaloch’s cinematography is incredible, with plenty of contrasting moments between light and dark, and beautifully-framed shots of the action sequences. I know I’ve said this before with other comic-book-to-film adaptations, but every frame of this movie (especially the high-action moments) looks just like it could have been lifted straight from the pages of a comic book).

The score, composed by Alan Silvestri, works perfectly with the high-action moments, but also with the moments with less tension and excitement. It may not be as innovative a score as that from Black Panther - another Marvel film - but it is still a beautiful score nonetheless.

The performances of the entire cast (and there is a huge cast in this one) are superb. Hemsworth and Rudd in particular have really stepped up for this final film in Phase Three of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, special mention should go to Robert Downey Jr. who, though appearing in basically every Marvel film in the entire MCU, is a far better actor in this film than in any of the others, in my opinion.

Directors Anthony and Joe Russo (who also directed Avengers: Infinity War) have really outdone themselves with this film, bringing us a story that will thrill audiences the world over. Take my word for it, if you have enjoyed any one of the Marvel films (and I mean any single one of them), then you must see this film. If you are able to, see it on the big screen with an audience; it’s well worth the expense.

This is without a doubt the single greatest film Marvel has ever done.

10 out of 10.