Stars and Stripes for...a couple of hours
Went to see Captain America last night, a somewhat late showing, and in a small- to mid-sized theater, since we opted for the 2D showing. Still, we got there nearly 45 minutes early, and the best seats were already taken, and the theater was completely full by the time the movie started, so I guess that's good news for Marvel.
On the whole, I enjoyed it a great deal; it was equal to Thor from earlier in the summer. To me, getting the character right, as compared to the comics, is always the most important factor, and the Cap I saw here was easily the same as the character written by Gruenwald, Englehart, and Waid -- a patriot, certainly, but a real "hero's hero," someone that the other heroes of the Marvel Universe aspire to be. It's tough to write about a character like that, someone who's a complete straight arrow all the time, but I think the 1940s setting helped a lot with that; such a character is more believable against the backdrop of World War II. Most important to me is that this isn't the "Ultimate" version of Cap, unlike Robert Downey Jr.'s Iron Man, who's definitely the "Ultimate" variation -- this is the regular Cap, created back in the 1940s. Chris Evans does a fantastic job here, playing the character just as straight as he played the Human Torch cocky and arrogant. I would never have known it was the same actor in both roles if I hadn't been told...I guess that's why they call it "acting."
All of the performances were strong in this one, I thought. Hugo Weaving is an excellent Red Skull, although I think he does better with his own face than with the mask. Tommy Lee Jones is admittedly playing an "easy" character as the grumpy old military guy, but he's perfect for that kind of role. Hayley Atwell also does a great job as Peggy Carter; it's tricky playing a strong woman in a 1940s period movie. And Stanley Tucci really stands out as Professor Erskine; you get to really like the guy and understand his affection for Steve, which is very effective considering his role in the plot.
The movie does fall into a lot of the superhero movie traps, but weathers them OK. Yes, a large chunk of the movie is origin story, and yes, they did tie the hero's origin to the villain's, but that's done in a minor way, enough that I could ignore it. If you're going to do the origin story, it helps to have a compelling one, and Cap's is pretty compelling, so it works. Perhaps the knowledge that the whole movie serves as a prequel to the Avengers caused me to cut it some slack; I'm not sure.
Speaking of the wider Marvel universe, most of the Avengers-related films from the past few years haven't been shy about throwing in stuff for the fanboys, but this one went beyond all the others. There's big things (the Howling Commandos) and little things that are just there for a second (watch out for Professor Horton's greatest creation). It never struck me as intrusive or awkwardly wedged in, but I'm an acknowledged fanboy; I'd be curious to know what a non-fan thought.
I do have a couple of reservations: one is the pacing in the second half of the movie. Once you've gotten through the origin and had Cap define his purpose, there's sort of a nebulous period of "and then Cap fought Nazis for a while." Could be a few days, could be months. We don't really see a lot of that period, and while I recognize that the creators were saving space for future movies, or more likely flashbacks in future movies, it's pretty clear that the characters skip over an undefined time, and then suddenly it's clear that you're at the final conflict. The other problem is that Cap doesn't get much time in the second half to really show off his abilities. The sequence early on, where he's chasing the Hydra agent through the streets of Brooklyn, is fantastic, but in the rest of the movie, he's pretty ordinary. I think part of the problem is that Cap is pretty low-scale, as Marvel heroes go; he's nowhere near as flashy as Thor, the Hulk, or Iron Man. The trick to making Cap exciting, in the comics, is lots of acrobatics and dynamic movement, and the second half of the movie didn't really have enough of that. There's an emphasis on his determination, intelligence, and morality, all of which are very heroic qualities, but in a superhero movie, it's good to see the hero doing something super.
Also, parental note: As with Thor, I'm not really sure why this is PG-13. Yes, there are scenes of warfare, and lots of grunts do get killed, but that mostly happens in the background, and isn't particularly gruesome or bloody. There's zero adult content (unless you want to count a fumbled double-entendre), and remarkably little swearing for a war movie. And one other thing I noted, because I was specifically looking for it -- nobody smokes. At all. Which is downright bizarre, given that it's set in the 40s. Even the Red Skull, who's often depicted in comics with the standard-issue villain-style long black cigarette-holder (so you know he's a Nazi), doesn't light up. I have no problem with Sparky seeing this movie, and I'll probably take him soon.
Bottom line: it's somewhat lower-key and more straightforward than other Marvel movies, but that fits with the character. It's perfectly enjoyable for what it does, and it sets up the next movie nicely. Worth your time to see.
On the whole, I enjoyed it a great deal; it was equal to Thor from earlier in the summer. To me, getting the character right, as compared to the comics, is always the most important factor, and the Cap I saw here was easily the same as the character written by Gruenwald, Englehart, and Waid -- a patriot, certainly, but a real "hero's hero," someone that the other heroes of the Marvel Universe aspire to be. It's tough to write about a character like that, someone who's a complete straight arrow all the time, but I think the 1940s setting helped a lot with that; such a character is more believable against the backdrop of World War II. Most important to me is that this isn't the "Ultimate" version of Cap, unlike Robert Downey Jr.'s Iron Man, who's definitely the "Ultimate" variation -- this is the regular Cap, created back in the 1940s. Chris Evans does a fantastic job here, playing the character just as straight as he played the Human Torch cocky and arrogant. I would never have known it was the same actor in both roles if I hadn't been told...I guess that's why they call it "acting."
All of the performances were strong in this one, I thought. Hugo Weaving is an excellent Red Skull, although I think he does better with his own face than with the mask. Tommy Lee Jones is admittedly playing an "easy" character as the grumpy old military guy, but he's perfect for that kind of role. Hayley Atwell also does a great job as Peggy Carter; it's tricky playing a strong woman in a 1940s period movie. And Stanley Tucci really stands out as Professor Erskine; you get to really like the guy and understand his affection for Steve, which is very effective considering his role in the plot.
The movie does fall into a lot of the superhero movie traps, but weathers them OK. Yes, a large chunk of the movie is origin story, and yes, they did tie the hero's origin to the villain's, but that's done in a minor way, enough that I could ignore it. If you're going to do the origin story, it helps to have a compelling one, and Cap's is pretty compelling, so it works. Perhaps the knowledge that the whole movie serves as a prequel to the Avengers caused me to cut it some slack; I'm not sure.
Speaking of the wider Marvel universe, most of the Avengers-related films from the past few years haven't been shy about throwing in stuff for the fanboys, but this one went beyond all the others. There's big things (the Howling Commandos) and little things that are just there for a second (watch out for Professor Horton's greatest creation). It never struck me as intrusive or awkwardly wedged in, but I'm an acknowledged fanboy; I'd be curious to know what a non-fan thought.
I do have a couple of reservations: one is the pacing in the second half of the movie. Once you've gotten through the origin and had Cap define his purpose, there's sort of a nebulous period of "and then Cap fought Nazis for a while." Could be a few days, could be months. We don't really see a lot of that period, and while I recognize that the creators were saving space for future movies, or more likely flashbacks in future movies, it's pretty clear that the characters skip over an undefined time, and then suddenly it's clear that you're at the final conflict. The other problem is that Cap doesn't get much time in the second half to really show off his abilities. The sequence early on, where he's chasing the Hydra agent through the streets of Brooklyn, is fantastic, but in the rest of the movie, he's pretty ordinary. I think part of the problem is that Cap is pretty low-scale, as Marvel heroes go; he's nowhere near as flashy as Thor, the Hulk, or Iron Man. The trick to making Cap exciting, in the comics, is lots of acrobatics and dynamic movement, and the second half of the movie didn't really have enough of that. There's an emphasis on his determination, intelligence, and morality, all of which are very heroic qualities, but in a superhero movie, it's good to see the hero doing something super.
Also, parental note: As with Thor, I'm not really sure why this is PG-13. Yes, there are scenes of warfare, and lots of grunts do get killed, but that mostly happens in the background, and isn't particularly gruesome or bloody. There's zero adult content (unless you want to count a fumbled double-entendre), and remarkably little swearing for a war movie. And one other thing I noted, because I was specifically looking for it -- nobody smokes. At all. Which is downright bizarre, given that it's set in the 40s. Even the Red Skull, who's often depicted in comics with the standard-issue villain-style long black cigarette-holder (so you know he's a Nazi), doesn't light up. I have no problem with Sparky seeing this movie, and I'll probably take him soon.
Bottom line: it's somewhat lower-key and more straightforward than other Marvel movies, but that fits with the character. It's perfectly enjoyable for what it does, and it sets up the next movie nicely. Worth your time to see.