FILM 10 - Avengers assemble

After Loki seals the infinitely powerful Tesseract from Nick Fury, the director of S.H.I.E.L.D, the international peace keeping agency, Nick Fury sets in motion the project The Avengers, by joining Iron man, Captain America, Thor, The Hulk, Black Widow and Hawkeye to save the world from the powerful Loki and the alien invasion.

Even though this film contains many superheroes which is very different to the typical superhero genre film, there are still many of the normal conventions present:

Special powers - Each of the six superheroes possess some sort of power. Iron man has super strength as well as being lightweight enough to fly. Hulk, the scientists, also holds super strength . Thor is a god who has a hammer which shoots out lightning bolts, Captain America after being injected with super serum becomes s super soldier, Black widow is a spy working for the agency and Hawkeye is a master archer. Together these powers are lethal.

Moral - Each one of the avengers share the same main aim and moral which is to defeat Loki and to protect the earth. However, through each superhero it does change slightly as they have there own individual means as well. For example, Thor believes that Loki can be changed for the good and that he just needs convincing that he is actually good.

Headquarters - The headquarters of S.H.I.E.L.D is actually destroys by Loki, however, Nick Fury gets an airship suited for them, and as it is able to move, making it easier for them to search for the Tesseract.

Identity -  Five of the avengers keep their identity a secret by wearing a costume or masks. Except for Thor, as he is a God and isn't from Earth he doesn't need a secret identity. For Bruce (Hulk) it is much harder for him to keep his identity a secret as he can't control when he becomes Hulk.

Achilles Heel - From all of the previous films for each superhero, we know they they all have their own weaknesses. However they have each other to rely on and with the help of each other they can get past these weaknesses in the end.

Rogues Gallery - In the Avengers, it is Loki who is the main enemy along side Chitauri, who works with Loki. The avengers must assemble and help defeat Loki and the Chitauri to get back the tesseract.

Back story - As each of the avengers already have there own back stories there isn't really a main back story within this film. However, Hawkeye and Black widow have only been seen in small parts of the superhero films and we get a little snippet into there own back stories, as it is revealed that they used to fight alongside other teams.

Due to the amounts of action filled scenes and violence, stereotypically, the film would be said to appeal more to the teen male generation. Also the fact that it contains six of the famous superheroes means that it would gain more appeal to those who have previously seen other superhero films to root for there favourite superheroes. I think that the film would appeal to all ages as it has a lot to offer. The female audience is hooked in due to the fact that one of the avengers is a female, which is very rare within the superhero genre. Those who maybe have never seen any superhero films and are uncertain to who he avengers are, may not be appealed as much.

The most obvious binary opposition would be the good V's evil. As we have the avengers coming together to fight Loki and Chitauri and save the world as well as to win back the Tesseract. As we have so many superheroes it makes the fight more interesting.


Gender stereotypes are reinforced as there is only one female superhero out of six. However, the Black widow doesn't lack power as she is cunning and sly and extremely intelligent. As she is the only powerful women, it still shows that the gender stereotype is being reinforced, the director of S.H.I.E.L.D, the antagonist, and the five other avengers are seen to be more powerful and are male. She also holds no super power compared to the other avengers who do. However, this could show that you don't need a super power to be successful and powerful. From previous superhero films where the women has been seen as weak, and in need of saving, this is challenged by the Black widow as she is not weak.

Overall the film entertains it's target audience by bringing the well know superheroes together for the first time. People will want to see there favourite superhero amongst the others. The intense fighting scenes also brings appeal also bringing with it suspense and tension as well as excitement as we root for the avengers and  wait in suspense to see if they have been able to defeat Loki and save the world. The role of the Black widow is important as it brings the female audience, as well as challenging the gender stereotypes as we see a powerful and intelligent female hero who isn't just on the sidelines. The use of humour also entertains and prevents the film from becoming too serious or boring and causing the audience to laugh, making it more enjoyable for the audience.