We are not wrong if we say that by the time Avengers: EndGame is over, there will be many gloomy, teary-eyed faces in the cinema halls. It is not just about the matter of the shocking deaths of two of our favourite superheroes. The end of Endgame reminds us also of the fact that when the credits roll in, we realise that this is it! Marvel has given us a beautiful, emotional conclusion to the last 11 years of our lives that we had spent loving the Marvel Cinematic Universe, all through its highs and lows (The below feature contains HUGE SPOILERS about Avengers: EndGame, so be careful). Avengers EndGame Movie Review: Marvel’s Superhero Film Is an Emotionally Wrenching, Enriching FanBoy Experience That Goes for Your Heart!
Marvel is known for infusing humour in its films, sometimes even at unexpected places, making the jokes sound jarring. Avengers: EndGame is not bereft of this, and still the humour is reined it, though not at the cost of the fun moments in the film.
Avengers: EndGame is, undoubtedly, Marvel Cinematic Universe's most sombre film, that has the directors (the Russo bros) respect the seriousness of the situation that the superheroes are facing and raise the stakes even higher. Yes, there is victory achieved at the end, but at some huge costs. Avengers: EndGame marks the end of the stay for some of our longstanding superheroes, raising the emotional quotient of the film 3000 times higher (those who have watched the film, know the significance of the number).
In this feature, we look at the 9 moments in the film that got us choked with emotions and reach out for the tissues to wipe away our tears!
'I lost the kid'
Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) nearly dying in space after being stranded there for 22 days is heartbreaking enough, and we can't thank Captain Marvel enough for saving him. However, it is when Tony disembarks from the plane and falls into Cap's arms uttering the above words, that we realise how much Peter Parker's death has affected him.
The Group Therapy session
Five years after the Snap, Captain America (Chris Evans) holds group therapy sessions for the survivors (director Joe Russo has a cameo as a gay survivor). Cap's speech on how we have to accept the reality of where we are and move on is quite touching. Avengers Endgame: 8 Box Office Records Already Broken by The Marvel Film Worldwide.
Thor Meets Frigga
A beaten-down Thor (Chris Hemsworth) goes back in time to Asgard (along with Rocket Raccoon) to retrieve Aether from Jane Foster (Natalie Portman, in a cameo). Thor realises this is the day when his mother, Frigga (Rene Russo), dies and tries to run away. On the way, he bumps into Frigga herself. Frigga figures out that he is Thor from the future and talks to him about facing his failure and learning from it. Considering that they didn't get to talk for the last time before Frigga dies, this conversation feels very moving.
Meeting Howard Stark
Tony Stark always had a frigid relationship with his father, Howard (John Slattery). Remember in the climax of Civil War, when Captain America tries to reason with Tony about killing Bucky, and he replies, 'I don't care. He killed my mom."? Even though Bucky killed both his parents, it was his mother's death that hurt Tony the most. In EndGame, when Tony goes back in time to the '70s, he gets to meet a younger Howard (though not young enough to be Dominic Cooper whom we saw in the first Captain America film). Though, Howard doesn't recognise his grownup son, they have a chat about parenthood, where Tony realises that he is like his father- scared of raising a child, when your whole life is spent running after money and commitments.
Black Widow's Sacrifice
Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) travel in the past to Vormir to get the Soul Stone. Strangely, neither Tony Stark nor Nebula (Karen Gillan) tells them about the sacrifice, despite knowing what Thanos (Josh Brolin) did with Gamora (Zoe Saldanha) in Infinity War. So when the spooky Red Skull tells them about the sacrifice, the duo debate among themselves as to who would take the leap (they both want to be the sacrifice). Hawkeye gets the upper hand and takes the leap to the abyss below. But Black Widow jumps after him and harnesses her oldest friend to the side of the cliff, before she lets herself go to fall to her death. Yes, Black Widow never even reaches the final act, before she bids a teary farewell so that Hawkeye can have his family back.
Spider-Man returns and Tony Hugs him
When the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) brings everyone back from the Snap, they join Captain America in his battle against the 2014 version of Thanos. Here's where Spider-Man (Tom Holland) goes to meet Tony, who embraces him dearly like a father. Ok, it is time to borrow more tissues. We love you, Tony Stark!
Iron Man's Snap
Iron Man wielding the new Gauntlet and snapping Thanos' army into oblivious was an outstanding moment. But it came at a huge cost - Tony Stark's life. The damage to his body was too harmful and it is then we realise that he is dying. From Rhodey (Don Cheadle) carrying his body to the side, Spidey crying over him and Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) telling him to rest, we are in too much of a shock to even let go for ourselves. It is when the light goes off in his arc reactor in his chest is when the tears let go off from our eyes.
Tony's funeral
If his demise was not sad enough, we also get to see Tony's funeral, where most of the heroes assemble to give him the final farewell. The sight of Pepper playing Tony's first arc reactor on the boat is a dose of sad nostalgia. Later, in the same scene, we also have a sting about Black Widow's death when Hulk says he tried to bring her back from the dead but couldn't.
Captain America's Dance
In order to fix the timeline, Captain America travels back in Time to place the Stones where they were in the original timeline. But he doesn't return to the present. Instead, we find out he went on to live the life he missed out on when he went into the ice. The final scene has him slow-dancing with Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) to the tune of 'It’s Been a Long, Long Time'. Cap has found his peace!
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 27, 2019 05:46 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).