Based on a long-running British television series, which has enjoyed more than one incarnation, The Avengers follows the adventures of Mister Steed and Missus Peel as they battle the menace of August DeWinter. Quite a few years ago, in 2012, many YouTube film reviewers latched onto The Avengers as a quick source of content, as the Marvel Studios version was due soon and provided handy clickbait. I quite enjoyed many of these videos, as they were predominantly American in origin, and there were many laughs to be had in the lack of understanding of the, very British, humour of The Avengers. Cries of "Is the joke that they're polite?" were met by my friends and I chuckling; "No, the joke is that they're British." And that's the trick to The Avengers, if there can be considered to be one, if you can't buy into the, very British, absurdities and behaviors, you'll never enjoy the film, as it's full to the brim of a bowler hat of the very same. So if jokes about tolerable additives to tea (lemon and honey, please mother) or umbrella etiquette aren't for you, maybe give this one a miss.
For me, a viewer of The New Avengers, Adam Adamant Lives! and The Prisoner, The Avengers does it for me very nicely thank you very much. It's honestly not as good as the classic programmes, but much easier to come by and watch when I need a quick fix. Ralph Fiennes and Uma Thurman perform admirably in the lead roles, but it is Sean Connery, yes, Sean fucking Connery, as August DeWinter, the camp, scenery-chewing evil mastermind, who steals the show. Seriously, Connery may be a somewhat "limited" actor in some respects, but he does what he does well, and his style lends itself well to the "No Sex Please, We're British" jokes and double ententes straight out of Are You Being Served?, I guess it's the great British pantomime tradition? Whilst I'm on a British cultural binge, the soundtrack features music from Skuggs, of Madness fame, and whilst it's not his best work, I'll take my Ska where I can get it. Fun fact, "Steed" and "Peel" were the PA callsigns for security at Coles Supermarkets when I worked there, that's how embedded The Avengers is in British/Colonial culture.
Like, The Avengers is kind of up there with Doctor Who with certain generations, even enjoying an extended run in Germany under the title "With Umbrella, Charm and Top Hat", which I think we can all agree, is a better name for the series. In all fairness, The Avengers is not the best version of itself, that would probably be the original television series, but it does get the general idea across and is all done in 90 minutes if you happen to be, just as example, showing your girlfriend because she didn't believe what you were describing was actually real. That was a fun night. She did not care for it. If you want to broaden your concept of what a super-spy organisation can be beyond the SHIELD model, then The Avengers is a good place to start, with plenty of gadgets, fun henchmen (played by Eddie Izzard!) and a bonkers plot to ransom the world with a weather control device. Crooked Dice and a few other miniature makers do Steed and Peel models, so I may have to grab a set to go with my Archer and Lana and 3rd Doctor and Sarah Jane.
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