Spanning eleven years, twenty-two movies, and three phases, this chapter of the Marvel Cinematic Universe that audiences have grown to know and love - known as The Infinity Saga - has come to a close. Even though there’s still technically one more film to go in Phase Three - Spider Man: Far From Home - the many storylines Marvel has been building up to all these years have been wrapped up and the franchise can now look ahead to a fresh new start, with plenty of new characters, settings, ideas, and concepts to look forward to.
Marvel has come a long way since they kicked things off with Iron Man back in 2008. There have been plenty of bumps in the road, and not every movie in their filmography has been a winner. Some have gone on to become critically acclaimed, while others, audiences would rather just forget.
So before closing the book entirely on The Infinity Saga, here’s a look at how each of these movies stand against one another, from worst to best.
Edit 7/6/19: Updated to include Spider-Man: Far From Home, which is the official final chapter in Phase 3, and The Infinity Saga as a whole.
23) Avengers: Age of Ultron
The second of the Avengers movies is by far the most forgettable in not just the Avengers series, but in all the Marvel movies themselves. It does have some relevancy, as there are some important plot points brought up that get mentioned in later films, and it does introduce audiences to Scarlet Witch and The Vision. And the film does have some fun moments, kicking things off with a bang, and ending on a decent note, with a few solid moments of humor sprinkled in between. But the film has a sluggish second act that completely drags the movie down, with much of the dialogue-heavy drama feeling more like a soap opera, and takes too many detours for the sake of setting up future installments. Plus, while James Spader is funny, Ultron is a weak villain, and some of the action scenes aren’t as grandiose as many other movies in the Marvel canon.
22) Thor: The Dark World
A valiant attempt at trying to do some world-building for Thor totally backfires here, with a severe amount of exposition constantly dropped when introducing some new villains who are frankly just not interesting. Malekith is easily at the forefront of bland, uninteresting Marvel villains, and it’s difficult to care all too much about anything he does. Meanwhile, the film could have made much better use of its human characters, including a totally wasted Natalie Portman, despite receiving second billing. The movie does have some entertaining moments of levity, and benefits from a fun performance by Tom Hiddleston as Loki, but for the most part, it tends to be way too serious for its own good, leaving for an experience that’s just a bit too dour for the mostly light-hearted Marvel universe.
21) Iron Man 2
Marvel’s first true misfire wound up being more like an Avengers prequel than a true Iron Man sequel. Like Age of Ultron, it starts off great and ends on a solid note as well, but the middle is where it loses its way. The film detours to focus too much on the forthcoming Avengers film, and also deals with a subplot involving Tony Stark at his most unlikable. The film also wastes its heavily advertised villain - Mickey Rourke as Whiplash - who starts off as a truly menacing force only to be sidelined for the majority of the movie up till the end. While the second act is painful, the third act redeems the movie a bit, even if it’s not totally satisfying. This was also the first movie to make extensive use of Marvel’s trademark quips and one-liners, which helped save it in multiple instances.
20) The Incredible Hulk
The long-forgotten second installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is actually fairly underrated, though far from perfect. Probably the closest thing to a totally serious movie, it’s rare to find anyone crack a smile in this one, which winds up being its biggest problem. Though the story is pretty solid, and it’s paced fairly well, including telling the Hulk’s origin story all over the course of the opening credits so the film starts with Banner already well established as the titular hero. The film’s other big downfall is the fact that its villain isn’t the greatest, despite Tim Roth doing a fine job with the material he’s given. Still, there are some great performances, and while Mark Ruffalo is the undeniable face of the Hulk now, Edward Norton gave a solid performance in this one.
19) Thor
This is an example of a movie that definitely got better as it went along. Thor’s first venture is plagued by tonal inconsistencies, with its first act filled with corny dialogue, and hammy over-the-top acting. The film didn’t really start picking up the pace until when the focus shifted to Earth, and even then, the Thor-Jane plot isn’t the most fun to watch. However, the mood lightened up immensely once it got into the second act, and could actually be a bit fun to watch, even if it still suffered from some jarring tonal shifts here and there. Plus, this is one of the few Phase One movies to actually have a completely enjoyable villain, that being Tom Hiddleston as Loki, even if this wouldn’t be his best performance as the God of Mischief (more on that later).
18) Ant-Man and the Wasp
Easily the weakest of the Phase Three movies, but that doesn’t mean it’s anywhere near bad, despite how low it ranks on this list. The movie brings a lot of the laughs and the charm that made the first Ant-Man so immensely enjoyable, though these moments just doesn’t come as consistently. The film can be a bit overstuffed at times, and unfortunately, its secondary villain, played by Walton Goggins, is more engaging to watch than its main villain. While the story surrounding the film’s villain, Ghost, isn’t itself bad, the acting by Hannah John-Kamen simply isn’t that good and that takes the audience out of the moment and lose a bit of interest. Still for the most part, it’s a lot of fun and one of the more enjoyably light-hearted entries in the MCU.
17) Captain America: The First Avenger
The first Captain America film is one of the more underrated entries in the Marvel canon. The film often feels like a throwback to older war movies, and it just fills the air with a nostalgic sort of feel. While the action here doesn’t reach the same bombastic heights as later Captain America installments go, they still kick things into high gear when they’re going, and give the film a pulpy adrenaline rush. Since the film does feel like older war movies, it is also filled with moments of cliched dialogue similar to those movies, though these don’t dominate the entire movie. The only other issue is that Red Skull is a fairly one-dimensional villain, which is in line with many of the earlier Marvel villains. But Steve Rogers’ journey is one of the most emotional in the Marvel canon, and this film does a great job kicking things off.
16) Captain America: The Winter Soldier
While it’s typically viewed as one of the most acclaimed entries in the Marvel canon, this tends to be a bit too dense at times, which can be a bit weary. There’s so much going on and there’s a ton of exposition so if one doesn’t pay attention for a moment, it’ll be easy to miss something. And it’s also one of the most serious Marvel outings, with much of the movie focusing on an incredibly layered political conspiracy while still pushing Cap’s story forward. Despite the fact that so much is going on, this also contains some of the finest action in nearly any Marvel movie, including an excellent car chase sequence that gives some of cinema’s finest a run for their money.
15) Doctor Strange
One part Inception, one part superhero movie. Doctor Strange is one of the most visually mesmerizing experiences in all of the MCU, with the journeys into the Mirror Dimension and all other parts of the unknown making for some of the most unique settings and bizarre visual effects. The film also benefits from some immensely likable performances, including Benedict Cumberbatch as the titular hero and Benedict Wong as… Wong. The film suffers just a bit from the fact that it has an uninspired villain in Mads Mikkelson as Kaecilius, and it does disregard many of the characters it focuses so heavily on in the first half, namely Rachel McAdams' Christine Palmer. However, it’s a fun, demented tale that proved that Marvel knows what it’s doing even when taking some big risks.
14) Iron Man 3
One of the most divisive films in this series, fans were enraged with this one simply over the portrayal of the film’s villain, The Mandarin. Those who aren’t as familiar with the villain will more than likely not be bothered by this so much, and while the final result isn’t exactly one of the strongest villains in the MCU, it’s definitely one of the better portrayals when it comes to the Phase One and Two villains. Otherwise, Iron Man 3 is a vast improvement over Iron Man 2. While it does have the occasional plot point that gets wrapped up a bit too quickly, contains many of the elements that made the first film so beloved, including an excellent performance by Robert Downey Jr., plenty of laugh-out-loud moments, and some fantastic visuals.
13) Avengers: Infinity War
One of the biggest superhero team-ups of all-time, only to be topped by one other film (take a wild guess which it is). Infinity War mostly delivers on its global, catastrophic destruction, and despite its (much welcomed) constant use of humor, it contains easily one of the saddest and most iconic endings in all of the MCU. Though it’s a film that has so much going on that it tends to be a bit overstuffed, with so much going on that the two-and-a-half-hour run time can occasionally be felt, while some heroes can get sidelined for extended periods of time. Though with so many heroes sharing the spotlight here, at the heart of this movie is Josh Brolin as Thanos, who easily gives the best performance in this film that portrays him as a three-dimensional being, despite the fact that he’s such a chaotic madman, making for one of the best villains in the MCU.
12) Captain America: Civil War
The kick-off to Phase Three continued Captain America’s story with some fantastic and highly emotional results that also shed some tragic light on Iron Man as well. On top of all that, the film delivered on its promise of superhero-on-superhero action, with plenty of well choreographed action scenes, including a brawl in the third act that’s one of the best fights in the series. The film can be a bit too overlong at times, and suffers from a villain who’s more of a plot device to fuel Cap and Tony’s stories rather than being a unique character in his own right. Though the film has plenty else going for it, including the highly acclaimed introduction of Black Panther as well as the incorporation of Spider-Man into the MCU, as well as getting Ant-Man in on the Avengers action after his solo outing a year prior.
11) Ant-Man
While the film isn’t the strongest in the story department - including, once again, a weak villain - it’s one of the most fun entries in the MCU. The film is a borderline straight comedy, with plenty of big laughs that stem from many of the size-based jokes revolving around Ant-Man himself. The film contains a charismatic performance by Paul Rudd as the titular hero, as well as a hilarious supporting performance by Michael Pena as Luis. The film tends to suffer a bit when it introduces any sort of drama. While many of the scenes centered around Scott and his daughter are done very well, the film tends to not come back to them as often as they should, which is a shame considering it would make for a very compelling story. Despite this, it’s a fun, light-hearted venture that came right off the heels of Age of Ultron, and has enough likable charm that makes it a very enjoyable experience.
10) Captain Marvel
While Captain Marvel got a lot of criticism for feeling like just another superhero origin story, it actually provided a fun, subversive take on many of the series’ Phase One films, while still feeling very much like a product of Phase Three. The film benefited from some wonderful chemistry between Brie Larson and Samuel L. Jackson in what felt like a buddy comedy, and also managed to be a fun tribute to the 90’s, dropping cheeky references galore and utilizing its throwback soundtrack whenever it got the opportunity. Not only did the film offer some fantastic visuals on a cosmic scale, but it also provided some excellent character drama for multiple characters that showed the humane side of many extraordinary beings.
9) Spider-Man: Far From Home
Unlike most entries into the MCU, the second solo effort starring Spider-Man is first and foremost a teen comedy and is a superhero movie second, serving more as a palette cleanser after the global-spanning events of Avengers: Endgame. It’s more of a laid-back film, and at first is one that would be described as “cute” more than anything else. But if anything, it showcases just how great both Tom Holland and Zendaya are as Peter and MJ, respectively. They share some fantastic chemistry with one another and seeing them get to play off one another is one of the most fun things about this film, as it provides plenty of big laughs and reminds the audience that at the end of the day, Peter Parker is still just a kid who’s trying to live his life. As far as the superhero elements of the film goes, Far From Home does take some time to find its footing. There’s a lingering sense that there’s more than meets the eye and it’s hard to shake that feeling as the film unfolds. But once it gets to the second half, that’s when the film is allowed to truly shine, with some truly impressive visuals and a standout performance from Jake Gyllenhaal as Mysterio. Fun, relatable, and hilarious, Far From Home is a stand-out entry to the MCU canon.
8) Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
Make a superhero movie too serious, it’s no good. Make it “too funny,” that’s still no good, and that was the big problem many people had with the second Guardians installment. While the film does hone in a bit too much at times on many of the elements that made the first Guardians work so well, it’s still an absolute blast. Many of the jokes do work, and the film doubles down on its pop culture fused soundtrack that are used as the backdrop for many action scenes that make them a lot of fun. Meanwhile, the film was the first in a string of great movies that featured three-dimensional villains, with Kurt Russell crushing it as Ego, who has easily one of the better backstories as far as Marvel villains go.
7) Iron Man
The one that started it all is still easily one of the best films in the entire Marvel canon, with an excellent, charismatic performance by Robert Downey Jr. leading the charge. It’s a bit darker than some may remember it to be, as it relied a bit less on CGI and offered some brutal moments such as shots lingering on people being lit on fire, among other instances. The film isn’t as flawless as some remember it to be, as it does contain a weak villain in Obadiah Stane, despite a fine job being done by Jeff Bridges, who worked well with the material he was given. Though being the first film in the MCU, it benefits immensely from not being restricted by relying on other films to tell an effective story, and is clearly the product of a Marvel who weren’t totally sure they were going to be anywhere close to where they are nowadays. It’s one of the few films in the entire MCU that is almost completely standalone (outside of its game-changing end-credits scene, of course) and will go on as one of the most legendary superhero films of all-time.
6) Guardians of the Galaxy
The first Guardians film was the first big risk Marvel took outside of using Iron Man to kick off their shared universe. The Guardians were virtually unknown at the time outside of any devoted fans of the comics, though this film catapulted them to the same superstardom that Captain America and Iron Man now have. The film is an excellent mix of light-hearted, over-the-top fun and emotional drama, with its pop-culture soundtrack known as the Awesome Mix highlighting many of the film’s dramatic beats. Family and acceptance are a major recurring theme throughout the movie, as it shows how humane characters like a talking space raccoon and talking space tree can be. As with many of the earlier films, the fact that Ronan the Accuser is such a weak villain hurts it a bit, but it’s still one of the most unique, fun entries in the entire MCU.
5) Black Panther
Not only is Black Panther just an excellent superhero movie, but it’s a huge political statement that’s highly reflective of today’s culture. The film thrives in the culture that influences it, and offers plenty of relevant social commentary that make for some really intense, emotional conflict. The film isn’t exactly subtle when it expresses its views, but it’s far from heavy-handed. The film is equally entertaining as it is socially relevant, with some high-speed action sequences and fantastic set pieces, including a beautifully filmed Wakanda. The film also benefits from the gripping performances by Chadwick Boseman and Michael B. Jordan, as well as a charming supporting performance by Letitia Wright.
4) The Avengers
The first time that Earth’s mightiest heroes teamed up is still one of the finest entries in all of the MCU. Despite being two-and-a-half hours, it moves at an incredibly quick pace, and doesn’t waste a minute of its run time, keeping the screenplay tight. The film manages to expertly blend in moments of laughter, action, and serious emotional weight, and there’s not even a shred of tonal inconsistencies that plagued much of the earlier MCU entries. The film also contains one of Tom Hiddleston’s best outings as Loki, being both menacing as the film’s main antagonist while still fueling some great character drama between himself and Thor. The film also introduces Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk, replacing Edward Norton, who made the role his own, making the rest history.
3) Avengers: Endgame
The culmination of all the movies on this list is without a doubt a fitting end to this chapter of the MCU. While Infinity War was focused much more on being an action-driven team-up movie, Endgame - while still containing that - focuses much more on who the Avengers are as people, and is easily the most humane look at each of these characters. The film is often somber, sometimes heartbreaking, though it still stays true to what made everyone enjoy all of these movies in the first place. The film still maintains its sense of humor, and the film mixes silly laughs with meaty character development. At a whopping three hours, it shockingly doesn’t feel like it’s too long or overstays its welcome, unlike the over-stuffed Infinity War. While there are some little moments here and there that could be cut and maybe a few jokes that don’t necessarily work, these are minor gripes in the grand scheme of things. All this leads up to a final hour that’s easily the single best moment in the entire MCU.
Despite Endgame being one of the biggest superhero film of all-time, there are still two movies that manage to top it…
2) Spider-Man: Homecoming
What makes Spider-Man such an excellent character is just how real he feels. Despite having fought in the big superhero-on-superhero brawl in Civil War, and already having many brushes with criminals and evil geniuses, Peter Parker is still very much a flawed individual, and many of his struggles stem from problems that nearly any audience member can relate to. He’s not shown as someone who gets it right on the first shot, and even if he gets it right once, he suddenly does have his methods perfected. And that’s what makes Homecoming such a joy to watch. It’s a superhero movie that still shows the struggles of a teenager living in New York City, making for plenty of real human drama. Plus, the film has what’s easily the greatest villain to date to enter the MCU, and that’s Michael Keaton as the Vulture.
1) Thor: Ragnarok
Say what you want about this movie being number one, but if one’s looking for a movie that will deliver on having a good time, look no further. This is another movie that some have criticized for trying to be “too funny,” but honestly, the jokes work. Well, too. The film is hilarious, and unlike many of the other films that get criticized for their humor, this one doesn’t necessarily stop the entire movie to make a joke (for the most part), with many of the jokes stemming from the situation at hand. The film also contains an excellent villain of its own, with Cate Blanchett absolutely crushing it as Hela. While her backstory isn’t as compelling as other stronger villains, her vibrant personality is a driving force behind why she works so well, and the amount of destruction she causes puts Loki to shame. The film is tightly paced, and never wears thin. Plus, it’s one of the most visually pleasing experiences in all of the MCU, with the Sakaar sequences, as well as many of the action scenes being brilliantly shot. Ragnarok was a turning point for Thor, whose earlier films were plagued by being too serious and filled with corny dialogue. Ragnarok took one of the MCU’s least-enjoyed film series, and gave it a new lease on life that will only just hopefully be the beginning of what’s to come for the God of Thunder.
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