In 2008, Marvel Studios released Iron Man, kickstarting the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The MCU is a massive franchise that helped to redefine the genre of superhero movies, and ended up becoming the highest-grossing film franchise of all time. Avengers: Endgame acts as the resolution to everything the movies have been building up to in the last 11 years and does so absolutely beautifully.

Endgame acts as a direct follow-up to last year’s Avengers: Infinity War. The film revolves around the heroes who survived the previous movie as they try to find a way to reverse villain Thanos’s erasure of half of all sentient life in the universe. While I cannot reveal too much about the plot without spoiling anything, I can say that there are unexpected twists and turns throughout the film that help to make it a firmly enjoyable and surprising experience throughout.

People online have been talking about how emotional and sad the movie was–I can say that they are absolutely correct. Endgame consistently keeps the idea that the heroes have to succeed, and there is something to be lost. Many people felt the ultimate outcome would be predictable, but I can attest to the fact that you will forget all about that in the heat of the moment. While some previous MCU movies have been criticized for having comedy at the wrong times and downplaying the emotional moments, Endgame features comedy at just the right moments while still staying dramatic.

Of course, drama does not work without great actors. This includes actors whose characters are CGI, like Josh Brolin as Thanos, and actors who are not known for dramatic roles, like Paul Rudd as Ant-Man. These actors do an exceptional job, always feeling like they are going through what the characters are. The characters are also all written remarkably well, especially Thanos, who continues to be a sympathetic, yet intimidating villain. Though, if there is one complaint I have about the film, it’s that there are a lot of characters, and it can be hard to keep track of all of them, especially by the end.

The special effects, as usual, are impressive. Most notably, like in Infinity War, Thanos looks like he is actually there, despite being a motion capture creation. But unlike Infinity War, there were no major instances of effects not looking good. It was breathtaking from beginning to end.

Then, of course, there is the most important part of a movie like this–how it holds up to what came before it. That is truly where Endgame shines. Without spoiling anything, all of the original six Avengers get some sort of conclusion to their overall story arc. The film also calls back to previous MCU movies quite a bit, and respects them all the same. Even though Endgame is not technically the last MCU movie, it is the conclusion to the overarching story that has existed since the beginning, and is the best possible way something like that could be done.

Overall, Endgame is a phenomenal film. If you are a fan of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, or of superheroes in general, I highly recommend you see this movie as soon as possible.