Avengers: Endgame — a Cautionary Tale of Technological Innovation (No spoilers!)
Underneath the spectacle, Avengers: Endgame challenges us to think about the use of powerful technologies in the real world
When my publisher suggested I go with an alternative title for my recent book, my wife was aghast. “You can’t call it that” she exclaimed, “no-one will buy it!”
The offending word was “morality.” And she had a point. I was writing about technology innovation and sci-fi films, and she intuited that if there was ever a word to sour the expectations of a journey through emerging technologies and blockbuster movies, this was it.
Yet as Avengers: Endgame is poised to become one of the highest-grossing films of all time, its message is clear: morality at the movies is “in.” And because of this, I can’t help but feel a warm glow of vindication.
Avengers: Endgame and its prequel are, of course, vastly more than modern-day tales of techno-morality. In fact, if I’m honest, there isn’t that much overt technological self-reflection in Endgame. And yet, this is a movie about moral choices. And it’s the culmination of a story arc beginning with the original Iron Man back in 2008 that is driven by the tension between technologically-enhanced…
