Anthony e Joe Russo
Avengers: Endgame

One might cite Back to the Future or Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Blockbusters that share the theme of time travel, a beloved topic among sci-fi fantasy and science fiction enthusiasts.

Alice Through the Looking Glass by James Bobin also deals with time travel, for instance.

I loved the aforementioned Harry Potter, where Harry and Hermione, going back in time, had to worry about changing the future without being seen and discovered.

In Avengers: Endgame by the brothers Anthony and Joe Russo, something similar happens, leading to the first pillar of the film: the souvenir of past films. With this device, the viewer enjoys a dual effect.

The first is closing a saga by projecting the fan into the memories of Avengers, The Winter Soldier, Guardians of the Galaxy, etc.; the second is for the storyline itself.

Guys, what a masterpiece the last chapter of the Infinity Saga by Marvel Studios is, which began in 2008 with Iron Man, directed by Happy Aka Jon Favreau. The title, literally "end of the game," makes us think of a chess game now concluding, a predetermined end already indicated by Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) after handing the time stone to Thanos (Josh Brolin) saying <<we are in the Endgame now>>, "we are at the end of the game now," unintentionally announcing to fans the title of the film, which was supposed to be called Infinity War part two.

Instead, this nomenclature, solemn and desperately necessary, was likely destined to close 11 years of comic book cinema.

The comedy is not lacking, as it wasn't in previous films, this time sprinkled with an abundant dose of kitsch and fan service that finds its peak in characters like Thor (Chris Hemsworth); the intent was to create a film for the fan and concurrently close a series of films, in this case, the two directors have hit the mark.

But what is this Avengers 4 about?

It shows how our heroes in their original formation Cap (Captain America Chris Evans), Iron Man (Tony Stark Robert Downey Jr.), Black Widow (Natasha Romanoff Scarlett Johansson), Thor, Hulk (Bruce Banner Mark Ruffalo) and Hawkeye/Ronin (Clint Barton Jeremy Renner) must remedy the damage caused by the terrible despot Thanos: the invulnerable titan possessor of the infinity stones; in silence: blue space stone, yellow mind stone, red reality stone, purple power stone, green time stone.

The crystals thrown at the dawn of the universe's birth, united by a magical glove catalyzing their energy, constitute the ultimate weapon in the wrong hands. A bit like Sauron's rings or the Horcruxes that make Voldemort invulnerable. But do you know what differentiates a Thanos and his glove from other Villains? It's not the charisma, although he has it in spades; nor is it power, equally. No, none of these attributes would suffice to describe a villain better. The strength of will, the attribute that connects the heroes Avengers, to their enemy. I'm talking about the second pillar of the film, the very nefarious antagonist Thanos.

He defines himself as inevitable as destiny itself. Yes, I would say, because in Infinity War, the episode preceding Endgame, he managed to snap his fingers and wipe out half of the entire universe's population. In the film, his reasons go beyond ethical purposes <<the end justifies the means>> a phrase emblematic of the genius Machiavelli in his work The Prince: "To achieve the purpose of preserving and enhancing the State, Machiavelli is popularly and speculatively attributed the maxim 'the end justifies the means', according to which any action by the Prince would be justified, even if it contrasts with the laws of morality."

His ultimate goal is to rebalance the universal scale, now compromised by the overpopulation of all living beings present in the cosmos. A story perhaps already heard, perhaps in the comic of the other great company linked to Marvel, Watchmen by DC comics. I'm explaining the evil plan of Ozymandias.

Certainly, the plot of Endgame lacks originality, but the technical department, the consistency, and the evolution of the protagonists, united with the great expanded beam of the Infinity Saga, put Infinity War and Endgame a notch above the competition in recent years.

As I said before, the time travel device proves to be suitable for celebrating each key character, revisiting their emotional and intricate journey through arduous physical and sentimental tests to face over the course of the various episodes. And so Iron Man, Thor, and Cap find themselves in the past with one more chance to clarify those situations, which due to their hero work, they had to overlook. Therefore, we arrive at the third aspect of the Russo's film: love and the sense of family, a leitmotif that pushes Tony, Cap, and Thor to hesitate along the path to retrieve the stones.

As they showed us in Iron Man 2, Captain America: The First Avenger, and Thor: The Dark World, our heroes had unfinished business with the people they care about most: Tony with his father Howard (John Slattery), Cap with Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell), and Thor with Frigga (Rene Russo).

Each will have the opportunity to embrace and clarify for the last time with the people they care about most. Tony, who in the mentioned film said: <<my father was cold, calculating. He never said “I love you.”>>, now understands it wasn't so. Thor, who didn't have the chance to hug dear mom Frigga, now can. And Cap? I won't even tell you: and if you've seen Endgame to the end, you already know.

In short, a glorification of the characters we love that emphasizes feelings where and when it is right. One of the peculiarities of this saga is the attention producers and directors have been able to give to each hero, in this way, we fans remain attached to a product not only for entertainment.

That all of this is true is proved by Tony himself at the end of the film, when through a hologram, he greets his loved ones and his little Morgan and tells us:

<<Everyone wants a happy ending, right? But things don't always go that way. Maybe this time. I hope that when you hear this message it is to celebrate, I hope that families are reunited, I hope that everything has returned and something has been reestablished that is the normal version of the planet, assuming it ever existed. What a wonderful world, what a universe! If somebody told me ten years ago that we weren't alone... and about other life forms, imagine that! Who imagined the epic forces of darkness and light coming into play! For better and for worse, this is the reality we live in and where Morgan will have to find a way to grow. So I thought: better to record a little goodbye in the event of an untimely demise, mine, I mean. Tomorrow's time travel is keeping me up with this survival thing. But that's the hero's task: a part of the journey is the end. But why this trip? Everything will go exactly as it has to go... I love you 3000!>>

All the energy accumulated during 11 years of cinema is returned to us in the grand finale.

A heartfelt thanks to Stan Lee, the editor father of the entire Avengers Assemble, to Kevin Feige, president of the Marvel Studios, and to all the directors who rushed to film the various movies.

As I was saying earlier, the finale of Endgame is monumental: capable of leaving the viewer breathless until the end.

The real strength of the Marvel Cinematic Universe constitutes not only the last pillar of this film but of all the others: the crossover, meaning the celebration of the individual hero in the initial phase, and the assembly that brings them all together in the continuation.

A folkloric and commercial operation, but nowadays new, which has convinced fans both for the freshness and for the dedication given to each hero.

I'll say goodbye, as I have a lot of crap to deal with.

Federicocope for Debaser.