The Best Scene in Every MCU Movie – Phase Three, Part One

Welcome back to yet another rundown of what I believe are the best scenes in every MCU movie, this time looking at the Phase Three slate of films. Phase Three saw the conclusion of the Infinity Saga and is arguably the best of the three Phases, as new iconic heroes and terrifying villains were introduced. As there were so many films in Phase Three, I will be splitting this article in to two parts, so make sure to check back for part two when you’re done here.

Captain America: Civil War (2016) – Airport Battle

2016’s Captain America: Civil War continued Steve Rogers’ journey, as well as serving as a sort of Avengers 2.5 with the amount of superheroes on display here. With MCU debuts for Spider-Man (Tom Holland) and Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman) as well as returns for the likes of Ant-Man, Vision, Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and Falcon (Anthony Mackie), and serving as an adaption of one of the most iconic Marvel Comics stories of recent years, there was a lot of expectation on this film. Thankfully, the directorial talents of the Russo brothers were able to pull it off, with a film full of spectacle and drama. There are numerous moments that stand out in Civil War, but the airport battle between Team Cap and Team Iron Man cannot be overlooked. Watching our favourite heroes battle one another on-screen is equal parts heartbreaking and thrilling, but each character gets their own chance to shine. It’s amazing that in just one sequence their are so many memorable moments, like Spidey taking on Cap and realising their New York connection, Clint battling his bestie Natasha (Scarlett Johansson), and of course Ant-Man’s giant transformation. This is a definite top 5 MCU scene!

Doctor Strange (2016) – “Open Your Eye”

Doctor Strange was a character myself and many other comic book fans had been excited to see enter the MCU for the longest time, and when it finally happened, what we received was a solid and visually spectacular origin story, with yet another brilliant central performance from Benedict Cumberbatch. Although not my first choice for the role, he really encapsulated the character of Stephen Strange. Doctor Strange has a number of wonderfully inventive, visually mind blowing scenes, but the one which stands out most of all is when Strange is told to “open his eye” and is taken on the craziest trip imaginable.  The Ancient One (Tilda Swinton) introduces Strange to concepts he never thought to believe, and the crazy visuals along the way are clearly influenced by Steve Ditko’s Doctor Strange artwork from the 1960s. I can’t wait to see what unique imagery we will get in the sequel, The Multiverse of Madness, in a year or so!

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017) – Yondu’s Funeral 

The first Guardians of the Galaxy film was such a surprise success, with its unique characters, otherworldly settings and departure from the slightly more grounded Marvel movies we had seen so far. I personally prefer Volume 2, as I find it more relatable on a personal level, but for many people the first film remains their favourite in the series. What I love about this film is the amount of heart it has, and nothing pulls on the heartstrings more than Yondu’s (Michael Rooker) sacrifice in the film’s closing moments. His line to Peter of “He may have been your father, but he wasn’t your daddy” never fails to bring a tear to my eye, and we finally see Yondu for the hero he always was. If that moment of selflessness didn’t break you, then what follows surely will, with Cat Stevens’ ‘Father & Son’ playing over the stunning visuals of the funeral and each Guardian having a small moment to show how far they’ve come over the course of the film.

Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) – The Dad Talk

I’ve loved all three of the live action Spider-Men we have seen over the years, but for me Tom Holland’s performance captures the essence of the character more than any previous actor, and that may be one of the main reasons I rate his films so highly. When the Vulture/Adrian Toomes was announced as the main villain for this film I was highly skeptical, as I’ve never been a particularly big fan of the character, but with Michael Keaton in the role I knew there was always a chance this could be special. Keaton ended up stealing the show, and he’s no better than in his scene in the car with Peter, where he’s deduced his true identity as the Web Slinger. The tension of the scene has been building for a while, from the moment Peter knocked on the door to pick up Liz (Laura Harrier) for their Homecoming dance, and came face to face with his foe, who at this point had no suspicions he was Spider-Man. The car journey to the school is extremely uncomfortable as we see Toomes slowly piece together the truth about Peter, leading to the incredibly intense conclusion with Vulture threatening to kill him and everyone he loves. The quality of villains really grew with Phase Three, and Michael Keaton’s performance as the Vulture is a true highlight of the series, here’s hoping he makes a reappearance in Spider-Man 3!

Thor: Ragnarok (2017) – “What Were You the God of Again?”

The first two ‘Thors’ are solid, if unspectacular films, but there’s never been too much love for them, and I feel the character of Thor struggled to be embraced the same way Captain America and Iron Man were by audiences. That was until the great, Taika Waititi stepped in to direct the third film of the series, Ragnarok. Waititi has a strong comedy background with his films What We Do In the Shadows (2014), and Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016), and he brought some of that unique comedy style to the MCU with this latest Thor tale. Rewriting Thor and essentially turning him in to a comedy character wasn’t to everyone’s taste but with Chris Hemsworth’s natural comic talent I feel it really helped reinvent the character in a positive way. The film isn’t all comedy however, as we also lean more into the God of Thunder’s incredible power set, especially during this scene in the film’s final act. Thor,seemingly overpowered by his evil sister, Hela (Cate Blanchett), sees his father, Odin, in a vision and tells him he does not have the strength to beat her without his hammer. Odin gives his son an almighty pep talk and Thor returns with Palpatine levels of unlimited power, to take his sister and her undead army down, accompanied by Led Zeppelin’s ‘Immigrant Song’ playing over the action. It’s an epic sequence and it’s the God of Thunder at his best!

Thanks for reading Part One of my Best Scenes from the MCU Phase Three, I’d love to know what you think of my choices and if you’d pick any other moments. Keep an eye out for Part Two where I’ll be covering the finest scenes from Black Panther, Ant-Man & The Wasp and several other Marvel films!

The Best Scene in Every MCU Movie – Phase Two

Hello again folks! I hope you enjoyed my previous list which looked back at the best moments of each movie from Phase One of the MCU. As expected, there was plenty of dispute and disagreement over my choices but I encourage that, it’d be boring if we all thought the same! Well, the time has come to now look at the next phase of Marvel movies as I decide what, in my opinion, is the best scene in each film from Phase Two of the MCU. As always, let me know what you think of my choices and tell me what you would have chosen instead if you disagree, let’s get into this!

Iron Man 3 (2013) – House Party Protocol

Anyone who knows me personally, will know my thoughts on Iron Man 3, it’s easily my least liked MCU film, but that’s not to say it’s a complete dud, and it definitely has its moments. One such moment is in the film’s finale when Tony activates the House Party Protocol, leading to dozens of his suits to appear to support Rhodey (Don Cheadle) and himself in the final battle against the film’s antagonist Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) and his Extremis soldiers. Seeing so many iconic suits from the comic books arrive and witnessing them even the odds is a thrilling experience which I feel makes up for a lot of the missteps earlier in the film. I actually remember Kevin Feige saying before the release of Iron Man 3 that the finale here would be one of the biggest and best they had done yet, he wasn’t lying!

Thor: The Dark World (2013) – Frigga’s Funeral

Thor: The Dark World, much like The Incredible Hulk receives a lot of hate and is viewed as one of the weakest films of the series, but again, it is a film I have a lot of time for and actually quite enjoy. There are some real problems such as a really crappy villain and a fairly dull plot, but there are some parts here which are real highlights of the series, such as Thor and Loki’s complicated relationship. The scene I’ve decided to highlight is Frigga’s (Rene Russo) funeral, which still stands out as one of the saddest sequences in the entire MCU. After being killed by Kurse (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), Thor’s mother is given a traditional Norse funeral, in a scene accompanied by some stunning visuals and a beautiful score. The camera pauses to focus on a number of different character’s reactions, but the most difficult to watch is when Loki is given the news of his mother’s passing and takes a moment for himself, only to then react with a small display of rage. Truly heartbreaking.

Captain America: The Winter Solider (2014) – Elevator Fight Scene

This is the film that really upped the stakes in the MCU and showed that these films could be more than just fun, popcorn flicks, it also helped to make Captain America a ‘cool’ character! With a more serious tone, and a plot revolving around shady government goings on,  but still containing plenty of super hero action, The Winter Soldier was an almost perfect film, and is still widely regarded as one of the best in the series. The scene which stands out in particular in this great film is the fight scene between Cap and a dozen SHIELD/HYDRA agents in a crowded, glass elevator. The choreography and camera work is so good, especially considering the confined space they’re working in! The scene starts so well with the tension building as more and more agents enter the elevator, Cap quickly realises what’s about to happen, and begins proceedings by asking “Before we get started, does anyone want to get out?” and what follows is Cap overcoming the seemingly insurmountable odds with minimal fuss. His fighting ability is really showcased in this scene, and by the time he finishes them all off and stamps on his shield to ricochet it back onto his arm, we’ve been left speechless. 

Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) – “We are Groot”

Writer/director James Gunn really smashed it out of the park with Guardians of the Galaxy, crafting a fun, hilarious and at times, truly emotional film. On paper, a film featuring a talking raccoon and a talking tree as two of its main protagonists really should not work so well, but credit to the filmmaker and the voice actors for pulling it off, as Rocket (Bradley Cooper) and Groot (Vin Diesel) really are the heart of this film. There are a number of standout moments to choose from in Guardians of the Galaxy, in fact I was super tempted to pick the opening credits sequence which has Star Lord (Chris Pratt) dancing along to Redbone’s “Come and Get Your Love” as it is such a fantastic way to introduce the hero and begin the film. The scene I’ve chosen instead is Groot’s sacrifice to protect his new friends/family in the film’s 3rd act. Another Marvel scene enhanced by a beautiful accompanying score, we see Groot form a barrier to protect his fellow Guardians and sacrifice himself in a truly selfless act, as he wipes Rocket’s tears away and proceeds to say “We are Groot” we are all left wishing we had a Groot nearby to help wipe our own tears away.

Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) – Vision Defeats Ultron

For a film so full of huge action sequences and CGI heavy fights, I’m also a little bit surprised with myself for picking a quiet moment of dialogue between two characters, but it’s so perfectly written that the wannabe screenwriter in me couldn’t overlook it! The Hulk v Hulkbuster fight is one of the biggest and best moments in this underrated sequel and it was very close to being my pick but I just love the Vision (Paul Bettany) and Ultron (James Spader) confrontation for very different reasons. Ultron is all but defeated and trying to escape in his last standing body when Vision arrives to finally put an end to him, after Ultron declares that humans are “doomed”, Vision replies with one of my favourite lines of dialogue of the series, “Yes… But a thing isn’t beautiful because it lasts. It’s a privilege to be among them.” Vision had been a brilliant addition to the film since he entered proceedings, but this moment declared him as a true favourite of mine. It just goes to show that for all the badass action scenes and super powers, what makes us really fall in love with these characters is these smaller moments in which they show their humanity.

Ant-Man (2015)  – Ant-Man vs Yellowjacket

As many of you are probably aware, director, Edgar Wright (Hot Fuzz, Shaun of the Dead etc.) was originally on board to make this movie, before leaving the project over creative differences. His fingerprints are still visible over the final cut of the film as much of his original script was kept and used by incoming director Peyton Reed. The film’s final battle between Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) and Yellowjacket (Corey Stoll), takes place in Ant-Man’s daughter’s bedroom, and this is arguably one of the most creative final battles we’ve witnessed up to this point in the MCU. As the two rivals shrink in size, everything in sight suddenly becomes a new giant weapon to use against the other. With a small army of ants by his side, Ant-Man takes the fight to Yellowjacket and eventually they end up fighting on top of a train, well a toy train set. The visuals are superb and the train ‘crashing’ into Yellowjacket will always bring a smile to my face. As the fight goes on, we see more and more seemingly innocuous items change in size, most memorably a Thomas the Tank Engine toy which manages to destroy one side of the house! Additional to all this chaos is a giant runaway ant being called a “messed up looking dog” and Luis (Michael Peña) and the gang hilariously ‘backing it up’ away from the action. For creativity and hilarity alone, this is a wonderful final battle in another underrated MCU gem of a movie

Two Phases down now, one to go! Let me know what you thought of my choices, I’m sure there’s bound to be plenty who disagree with me. I’d also love to know what your favourite MCU Phase Two moments are so don’t be shy. See you back here soon hopefully, for my rundown of the best moments in every Phase Three MCU movie.