Comic book heroes lose a bit of their KAPOW!
For anyone struggling to understand why African refugees risk so much to get here, I cannot recommend The Good Lie more highly. Watch it and you won’t see this week’s tragic deaths in the Mediterranean, or indeed the world, in the same light again.
It’s the decades-spanning story of a group of south Sudanese refugees forced to flee the civil war of their own divided country, first by risking wild animals, enemy soldiers and dying of thirst to walk to Ethiopia and then, when turned away, going south to Kenya. Not all of them make it, and the oldest of the newly orphaned group is probably no more than 13 or 14.
After 13 years in a refugee camp the four survivors get to start a new life in the US. But are their problems over? Not a bit of it.
Directed by Canadian film-maker Philippe Falardeau and produced by Ron Howard and Brian Grazer, the hugely powerful opening section depicts the terrifying barbarism of war and the risks the children are forced to take. The young African cast are magnificent, as are the been in the past. It’s important to say that Whedon hasn’t lost his touch altogether. With Chris Hemsworth’s Thor leading the way, there’s a lot of humour in the film – watch out for a very good running gag about Thor’s hammer – and the ongoing flirtation between the Black Widow and Bruce Banner (Hulk’s even-tempered human counterpart) is very nicely played out by Johansson and Ruffalo.
Evans also does well, helped by the fact that Captain America’s entombment in Arctic ice for several decades means he is emerging as the most interesting of the Avengers, particularly as Tony Stark’s star begins to gently wane.
But none of this is quite enough to sustain a film this long, or one based around a subject – artificial intelligence – that has been so comprehensively covered of late in films such as Ex Machina,
Big Hero 6 and Chappie. For once, the Avengers franchise feel a little behind the creative curve.
Hardcore fans will find enough to enjoy here – Elizabeth Olsen certainly makes a promising debut as the mind-manipulating Scarlet Witch – but I found the pace at times slow, the visual effects somewhat disappointing (particularly compared to
The Winter Soldier) and the story less than engrossing.
What is interesting is that, for once, my teenage son agreed.