Movie Monday - Captain America: the Winter Soldier

 I know I usually only review films relating to DC Comics, but honestly, how can I NOT talk about Captain America: The Winter Soldier? It’s made nearly $300 million worldwide since it opened on Thursday. If you’re into comics, you’re seeing this movie. So let’s get to the low down on Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

WARNING!! THERE WILL BE SPOILERS BELOW THE TAG!!!

 

Director: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo

Writer: Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely, (Ed Brubaker)

Starring: Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Redford, Anthony Mackie, Sebastian Stan, Cobie Smulders

Release: 2014

Following the events of The Avengers, Steve Rogers is still trying to find his place in the world. Working for S.H.I.E.L.D. under Nick Fury, Captain America has been teamed with Black Widow and tasked in protecting the safety of the world from all threats. But things are not as they seem and the secrets that Fury has been keeping do not sit well with Steve’s world view. The world of espionage has too much paranoia and too many lies. When Nick Fury discovers something amiss with S.H.I.E.L.D.’s new helicarrier project, he is targeted for an attack – as are any loyal to him. Steve Rogers finds himself thrown into the middle of a conflict where he won’t know who he can trust – and a face from the past is hunting him down.

THE SQUEE

•           There’s so much to mention that I’ll just list some key points, like the awesome bromance between Captain America and Black Widow. They’re pals that don’t always understand or agree with each other, but will always have the other’s back. Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson have great chemistry, which usually leads to a romance, but Chris Evans has chemistry with EVERYTHING.
•           Anthony Mackie as Falcon! Falcon’s a superhero that wouldn’t normally work on screen, mainly due to the costume, but they make it work with an upgrade to what amounts to an awesome jetpack. Mackie is fantastic and hits all the right parts to bring a slightly lighter tone in the right scenes, but still maintains his role as a badass.
•           The Winter Soldier! There’s a great theme running through the film of returned soldiers not knowing where they fit in (I assume this is the Brubaker influence), and Bucky as the Winter Soldier is the perfect metaphor for this. He’s someone who has been kept alive far past his time, forgotten all he knew of a life before this one, and trained only to kill. If Bucky is the warrior who cannot stop fighting, Steve Rogers is the newly returned soldier, with Falcon as the former soldier who has been able to reassimilate into society. There’s more there to unpack but I don’t want to get bogged down.
•           SAMUEL L. JACKSON! Never change, Sam, never change. It’s almost as though they just decided that being Nick Fury was a demotion. I’m pretty sure at one point he had a lightsaber. And even better, the epitaph on his tombstone reads “The path of the righteous man – Ezekiel 25:17”! PULP FICTION REFERENCE BECAUSE WHY NOT?
•           All the other little bits! Emily VanCamp as the gorgeous doe-eyed Agent 13! Batroc the Leaper made believable and not an utter joke! The parts that totally (finally) explain what’s been going on in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D! Callan Mulvey!

o   Actually, that one might need a bit of explanation for Americans and other aliens. You see, back in the early 90s, there was a movie called The Heartbreak Kid, about an inner city school and a teacher/student relationship. It was incredibly popular in Australia and spawned a teen soap opera called Heartbreak High, which was set in Melbourne Sydney and featured lots of Greek Italian white kids. The cast changed a lot – you’ve probably seen some of them in things like The Matrix. Anyway, about the time I was really watching it, it was awesome and one of the best and most memorable characters was Drazic, played by Callan Mulvey. Seriously, just say ‘Drazic’ to an Australian who is around 30 and see their eyes light up. Callan Mulvey has matured since then, but he really is an outstanding actor, so it’s great to see him in giant Hollywood action movies.

•           Truly EPIC battles and sequences that got me so excited for the Marvel Universe again – even Agents of M.E.H. I HAVE to see what happens after this movie. SO EXCITE!

There’s a lot more of course (the lack of fanservice directed purely at a male audience was refreshing), but there were some bad things too.

THE SUCK

•         OK, I know I said I loved the action sequences, and I do, but the shaky-cam just did not work for me. Everything just became a flurry of movement and I lost what was happening beyond ‘Some guy punched some other guy. Was it Steve? It might have been Steve. No wait, THAT’S Steve oh no he’s been shot.” It didn’t work for me in The Bourne Ultimatum, it doesn’t work here. For me, anyway.
•           Hydra and S.H.I.E.L.D. have nearly the EXACT SAME PLAN. The only difference is that Fury wants to kill the ‘bad’ people. It’s addressed a little bit at the beginning in Steve’s misgivings about Fury’s plan, but never brought up again. Sure, the threat is resolved and S.H.I.E.L.D. is dismantled (but the show will keep going and we can keep watching the adorable Chloe Bennet, yes?) but the fact that the plan to keep the world safe was pretty much the same as the one concocted by one of the most evil organisations to ever exist isn’t really a ringing endorsement for Fury’s ethical choices.
•           Underusing of Sharon Carter, given how important she was, both in the previous film and as a symbol of the ideals that S.H.I.E.L.D. was founded on. I’d have liked some closure please.

That’s really it. It was an AMAZING movie and definitely worth watching. Of course, there are extra scenes during (and after) the credits, but they’re only little hints about what’s to come, so if you’ve been keeping up with the news about Avengers: the Age of Ultron, you probably don’t need to see them. Unless you’re REALLY into Sebastian Stan’s intense stare.

So those are my thoughts. Feel free to comment too with what you thought of the movie!