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Marvel Cinematic Universe: Darkest Movies Of The Infinity Saga, Ranked

Published

3 days ago

November 10, 2024

Christoph Rediske

Key Takeaways

MCU movies touch on deep, dark themes like loss and trauma, catering to a mature audience.
Each movie within the franchise offers a unique tone and genre to appeal to a wide audience.
Characters like Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor face grim challenges that add depth and darkness to their stories.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe, contains dozens of movies, each of which has unique characters and plot, as well as a personal tone. The franchise has not shied away from different genres in an attempt to attract as large of an audience as possible, ensuring that there is a wide range presented in the MCU movies. Some of them lean towards comedy, while others are rather dark in their story.

Despite the comedic elements that many Marvel movies incorporate, a lot of them center around incredibly deep and dark topics, such as loss, mass murder, destruction, and trauma. Many of those movies push their limits as they explore the darkest aspects of humanity, making them rather mature-oriented movies. These films allow people who enjoy darker, more serious stories to find their place in the fanbase.

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8 Iron Man 2

Dealing With Slow Fading

War Machine In The Marvel Cinematic Universe

Director: Jon Favreu
Release year: 2010
Runtime: 125 minutes

Iron Man 2 was the sequel to the movie that started the MCU. While it was not nearly as successful or acclaimed as its predecessor, it still showed crucial development for Tony Stark and his friends. The movie also introduced an entirely new hero, Rody Rhodes, aka War Machine, a battle partner to Stark.

The movie’s villain, Whiplash, has suffered a lot due to the action of Stark Industries and has been traumatized for life, making him seek revenge desperately and ruthlessly. Stark also has to deal with his heart slowly getting poisoned by the reactor, which leads him into a temporary depression, adding dark undertones to the movie.

7 Captain America: The First Avenger

A Tale Of War

Captain America The First Avenger Marvel Avengers

Director: Joe Johnson
Release year: 2011
Runtime: 124 minutes

First Avenger is the earliest chronological movie in the franchise, introducing Steve Rogers, the original Captain America, as an old superhero and a patriot. The movie hinges on American patriotism and opposition to the Nazis, most notably the secret organization of Hydra, which houses itself within the general Nazi hierarchy.

The movie has upbeat moments, but it still delves into realistically dark subjects like war and Nazism. It also has a bittersweet ending as Steve loses his best friend and accepts his death, only to reawaken decades later in a world he knows very little about.

6 Thor 2: The Dark World

Fighting A Cosmic Horror

Director: Alan Taylor
Release year: 2013
Runtime: 112 minutes

Thor 2 is a darker-toned sequel to the first Thor movie, dealing with the consequences of both that movie and The Avengers. Both Thor and Loki play big parts in this movie, which also shows a reunion between Thor and his beloved, Jane. It also introduces another infinity stone, an element that will be important later.

The antagonist is Malekith, a vengeful dark elf who seeks to annihilate the worlds of Asgard, Midgard, and others, making Thor and his allies on Earth allies once again. This monstrous villain adds a dark atmosphere to the movie, adding stakes and drama to the conflict.

5 Captain America: Winter Soldier

A Painful Reunion

Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier

Directors: Antony Russo, Joe Russo
Release year: 2014
Runtime: 136 minutes

The sequel to Captain America manages to follow directly from the previous movie, but takes it in a different direction. The movie is a thriller with a lot of detective work done by Steve, as he realizes that Hydra has overtaken S.H.I.E.L.D from the shadows and has become the enemy he needs to destroy.

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Another grim plot is that of Bucky Barnes, the newly-made Winter Solider. Though he was once Steve’s close friend, he has been brainwashed into becoming an agent of Hydra. This pits the two friends against each other, and despite some recognition, they are still unable to reconcile properly by the end of the movie.

4 Iron Man 3

The Downfall Of A Hero

A screenshot of Iron Man wearing his Mark 5 armor from Iron Man 2 in Marvel's Avengers.

Director: Shane Black
Release year: 2013
Runtime: 131 minutes

Iron Man 3 is the culmination of Tony Stark’s solo journey. It sees Iron Man transform into a more humble and wiser person. He faces the dangerous threat of a terrorist known as Mandarin, a villain who is willing to annihilate Tony’s home and harm all the people that he has ever cared for.

At the start of the movie, Tony feels at the peak of his power, with fame and countless suits at his disposal. However, the swift destruction of his home and possessions forces Iron Man to step down and hide, along with a young boy willing to provide him shelter. This makes for a movie focusing on the famed hero’s darker and more desperate traits.

3 Captain America: Civil War

A Team Broken

An Image of Captain America and some super-heroes running

Directors: Antony Russo and Joe Russo
Release year: 2016
Runtime: 147 minutes

The third movie of the Captain America trilogy is often considered to be closer to the Avengers series due to the number of characters it involves. The movie is an adaptation of the Civil War storyline from the comics, in which superheroes were divided into two camps led by Captain America and Iron Man, respectively.

The movie begins with a dark tone. It shows the destruction that the Avengers can cause during their battles, forcing the heroes to consider the consequences of their actions. The final sequence is especially tense, as Tony seeks to avenge his parents while Captain America is desperate to protect his friend Bucky.

2 Avengers: Endgame

Finishing The Battle

Directors: Antony Russo, Joe Russo
Release year: 2019
Runtime: 181 minutes

Avengers: Endgame is a cinematic event that will likely become historical. It is the culmination of almost two dozen superhero movies, bringing the Infinity Saga to its dramatic conclusion in the final battle against Thanos. The finale shows humanity’s victory against a much more powerful opponent.

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Despite the hopeful finale, the beginning of the movie is full of despair, leaving the Avengers in a broken, hopeless world where everyone has suffered some kind of loss. The deaths of heroes like Black Widow and Iron Man mark the end of an era and say goodbye to beloved characters, making for a very bittersweet story.

1 Avengers: Infinity War

Civilization’s Doom

Directors: Antony Russo, Joe Russo
Release year: 2018
Runtime: 149 minutes

If Endgame is bittersweet, Infinity War is a complete parade of despair. The movie sees the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy come together to fight Thanos, the villain that has been built up ever since the first Avengers movie. Now, he is on a rampage to collect all the Infinity Stones and destroy half of all life in the universe.

Multiple characters die during the movie, such as Gamora, Loki, and Vision, who all fall victim to Thanos’s onslaught and cruelty. The villain grows stronger as the movie goes along, which makes for a terrifying movie and a consistent dark, dooming tone for the movie in general. Ultimately, this makes it exciting and unforgettable.