Movie Review – Captain America: The First Avenger
*Spoiler Fee (If you know anything about Captain America) Review*
The year is 1987, and NASA launches the last of America’s deep space probes. In a freak mishap, RANGER 3 and its pilot Captain William “Buck” Rogers are blown out of their trajectory into an orbit which freezes his life support systems, and returns Buck Rogers to Earth, 500 years later…
…what? Captain Steve Rogers? Are you sure? That’s not in my notes. He still gets frozen right?
At the height of WWII, Hydra, the Nazi weapons division uncovers the mystical power of Odin, giving its leader Red Skull unheard of power. In a desperate attempt to balance the scales, scrawny Steve Rogers is turned into a super soldier, becoming Captain America. That’s it in a nutshell, but the movie is so much more than its synopsis.
Joe Johnston has always been a competent Action director, making good if not outstanding films, but here he has crafted a fun, popcorn flick which in some ways is the strongest of the Marvel superhero films, possibly the best since the original “Iron Man”. The movie feels a bit like Johnston’s other WWII effort, “The Rocketeer”, (another film I liked, BTW) and has dashes of G.I. Joe thrown in for good measure. Early in the pic, there’s even a nice “Raiders Of The Lost Ark” reference. A nostalgia filled trip through World War II, the movie reflects what was very right with America at the time. (It’s very pro America, but given the time frame it’s set, that’s acceptable.)
For the hard core fan boys, yes there are some minor modifications to the Captain America lore, (which I will be honest and admit I know next to nothing about. I’m the guy that goes to see the comic book movies without much frame of reference, so I tend to be more lenient on them than some of my truly geek friends) but nothing to get riled about.
Chris Evans is totally the right choice to play Cap, balancing the hero aspects of Steve Rogers with the cartoony comic book Captain America ones, and doing a fine job coming up as both. The supporting cast is great from top to bottom, but particularly Tommy Lee Jones as Col. Chester Phillips. He steals every scene he’s in with wit and charm, and honestly, deserves an Academy Award nod for supporting actor. (He won’t get one of course, this is a comic book movie). Also enjoyable was Hugo Weaving as Red Skull, but Hugo is brilliant in everything he does, so my lavishing more praise on him is redundant.
As a stand alone adventure, the movie works, but of course the REAL reason to go see it is this is all set up for next years “The Avengers”. (Be SURE to stay after the credits, as with most Marvel movies, there is a sneak peak scene!)
CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER – A