I'm following ian's sterling example by watching all 23 MCU films in order (chronological by release date, not the supposed canonical order). I figure that I might enjoy them more if I fill in the gaps with the ones I haven't seen before, which might make me care a bit more about the characters (or at least have a fucking clue who they are). Also seems like a sensible way to use my lockdown time - and I need something mindless to distract me from the news.
So far:
Iron Man (2008) - Superb. I remember loving this when it first came out, and it has aged well. Good fast pace, but not too manic. A full two hours long but doesn't feel like it outstays its welcome. I vaguely recall when it came out there was some controversy over the choice of Robert Downey Jr in the lead, but I really can't imagine anyone better for the role. He's fantastic. Also nice to be reminded how good an actor Gwyneth was before she went mad.
The Incredible Hulk (2008) - This is one I missed first time round. Probably gave it the swerve after seeing the earlier Ang Lee take, which was just weird. It's a considerable improvement on that. Some great fight scenes, though the final showdown is a bit meh. Edward Norton is OK as Banner but I can see that replacing him with Ruffalo was probably a good move. Tim Roth makes an excellent Bond-style villainous super-henchman. Tim Blake Nelson steals the show for me.
Iron Man 2 lined up for tonight. Can't remember whether or not I've seen it before. Thor, Captain America and Avengers after that - definitely haven't seen any of those.