Here is the conclusion to “My Ranking Of The Marvel Cinematic Universe Films Part 2“.
7. Captain America: The First Avenger
Easily my favourite Marvel film within Phase One, Captain America: The First Avenger is set during World War II and sees a young, frail man named Steve Rogers selected for a program to create a superhuman to help America win the war. The film does practically everything right with some sharp humour, political commentary and strong action scenes. It’s a film that shows how a government can exploit someone gifted, such as when they use Captain America for propaganda and war bonds, establishing Steve’s personality, his devotion to protecting others, while also explaining how he ended up in the present day.
6. Spider-Man: Homecoming
Spider-Man: Homecoming was the first Spider-Man film in the MCU and expanded on Spider-Man/Peter Parker after his introduction in Captain America: Civil War. Smartly skipping past his origin story, which has been explained to the general populace to death, Spider-Man: Homecoming focuses Peter Parker’s desire to be a hero while waiting for Tony Stark to call him like he did in Captain America: Civil War. Peter Parker’s schoolmates are charming and lovable while Michael Keaton plays Adrian Toomes, an excellent villain who is committing wrong while trying to provide for his family and loved ones.
5. Avengers: Endgame
The film that basically concluded the Infinity Saga, Avengers: Endgame proved to be a surprisingly touching sendoff for many of the Avengers cast. There is an excellent sense of humour and emotion as the Avengers must go back through time to undo the Thanos Snap and numerous callbacks to various films and moments throughout the MCU. Admittedly, the one cast that I was left slightly dissatisfied with was the Guardians of the Galaxy who I felt didn’t get enough screen time to flesh out the impact of the events of Infinity War. However, I still believe that Endgame was a well executed conclusion to the Infinity Saga that expertly handled the large number of cast members and gave each one a satisfying conclusion to their storylines.
4. Thor: Ragnarok
What a turnaround! As you saw, I ranked the Thor movies near the bottom of this list and now here we are, a Thor film near the top! Chris Hemsworth has fully settled into his role as Thor, expertly balancing moments of humour and emotion with a story that sheds the dry worldbuilding of the previous films for a more sci-fi, wacky universe that was established in the Guardians of the Galaxy films. All of the new cast members are superb in their roles while one of the loose plot threads from Avengers: Age of Ultron is revisited in a smart and funny way. Truly, Thor: Ragnarok is, for me, what saved the Thor franchise and actually makes me look forward to future Thor films.
3. Captain America: Civil War
Captain America: Civil War seemed like it should have been too lofty for its own good. Having the Avengers split by a new government plan to oversee and closely monitor the Avengers Initiative should have been too complex to handle in a single film. Instead, the film expertly moves from character to character, explaining why they would either submit to the new government regulations or fight against them. New fan favourites such as Spider-Man and Black Panther are introduced who give a new viewpoint with regard to Iron Man and Captain America respectively. Honestly, I can’t recommend Captain America: Civil War enough!
2. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
I’m sure many people will be upset with my decision to place Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 so high above its predecessor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe films ranking but I can’t help it. True, the film has a slower, more methodical pace than the original but it chooses to delve deeper into the characters relationships with each other, Peter Quill with both his biological father and his adoptive father, Peter Quill with Gamora, Gamora with Nebula etc. This culminates in a film that takes everything that made Guardians of the Galaxy so great, the humour, the universe, the characters and drives it to a new high point. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 may remain controversial amongst Marvel fans but I can’t help but look at it as one of the best films the MCU has ever produced.
1. Avengers: Infinity War
Avengers: Infinity War, the film that I consider to be the crowning achievement of the MCU, their magnum opus. True, Avengers: Infinity War requires prior knowledge across numerous MCU films to understand but, for those who put the time and effort into watching the prior movies, Marvel fans will be truly rewarded. The film finally introduces us, beyond merely a glance, to Thanos and what a character he is. As much as I can talk about the perfect interactions of characters throughout the MCU, the sharp writing, the emotional conflicts, it all comes down to Thanos for me. They took what I thought was going to be a typical movie villain and developed him to such an extent that I clearly understood his motivations, why he pursued his goals with such fervour and how he would do anything to achieve them. It is hard for me to imagine Marvel, or any other studio, being able to make a movie like Avengers: Infinity War again that so clearly deals with so many plot threads from so many films and expertly weaves them together into such an incredible film.
I’m sure many of you may disagree with my ranking of these Marvel Cinematic Universe films and, in that case, how would you rank these movies? In addition, I would love to hear your experiences with these films, whether you like the MCU overall or not, your thoughts on the future of the MCU and any additional information you might have on the topic.
Hopefully you have found this article interesting and informative and, if you wish to seek any of the works I mentioned, don’t hesitate to use amazon.co.uk or amazon.com for all of your needs!