There's Only One Avenger, and He Doesn't Dress That Way3749335
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Something about this movie made me feel impatient. I saw one advertisement, watched one review, and heard my husband gush about it. That's all I needed. This movie sounded like perfect date-night material . Actually, due to fatigue, we decided to go on a work day, in the morning. (By the way, we had a private showing, no one else came to watch at this hour. We'll do this again. Shhh, let's keep it just between us.)
Going into the movie viewing experience, I can just disconnect my faith from my entertainment, but that isn't really my style. I'm not knocking super heroes, but I have only one Hero in my life and His name is Jesus.
So what's a Biblical babe to do with this knowledge?
I attempted to find a Biblical link with the word "avenger", but ultimately I discovered two things. First, families actually had avengers in the Old Testament- people who killed someone if a family member got killed- glad that day is done. Second, God claims the right to avenge us in the New Testament.
Did this dampen my movie viewing experience? Allow me to share my moments with you.
The Review:
Many people have sung the cinematic praises of The Avengers, you can read those on Fandango. Christian sites have analyzed it's pluses and minuses, you can see it on PluggedIn. What can I add?
As a woman who loves my husband, SciFi geek that he is, going to this movie and even suggesting it lit him up. If this fits you, you won't regret the effort. Marriages grow when we uplift one another and set aside our differences to support the other.
Ironically, I found myself really enjoying this movie.
The Avengers mixes present-day irreverence with old school morality in such a way as to enlighten, inspire, amuse, and intrigue the viewer. The violence level can be compared to Transformers, though we do see one man die for a cause, an eye removed and mention of suicide by Bruce Banner (A.K.A. The Hulk). He wanted to kill the other guy (A.K.A. The Hulk).
As for language, it's fairly mild. PluggedIn gives the details. There's no sex, but a few references are made, by Tony Stark (big surprise). Black widow wears some very clingy clothes and changes in the back of a car.
As a parent, I don't recommend it for the younger crowd (elementary aged) In spite of what many people think, this age of children are incredibly literal and you don't know who they will identify with when you take them to a show like this. What they really get and what they echo back to us are two different things. The movie is PG-13 for a reason.
As a viewer though, I found myself surprised by the morality lesson and simple God connections made. The Avengers will be quoted for quite some time, it's loaded with fabulously catchy one liners. Even more impressive to me is how often people come away with a god-focused one liner.
For example, Captain America - certainly the traditionalist of the group- hears a comment where Black Widow refers to Loki and Thor as gods. In response, the Captain says,"Ma'am, there's only one God, and I'm pretty sure He doesn't dress like that."
This movie packs a CG punch in the truest sense. As my husband would say, "It's big screen worthy." And as entertaining as that is on it's own, there's more to this package. With smart dialog, genuine moral lessons and an eclectic mix of heroes, everyone can find someone to enjoy.
Other reviews to check: Fandango.com and PluggedIn.com
Have you seen the movie? What did you think?
