CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER movie review. Evans is no Robert Downey, Jr., but he's the right guy for this part.
07/23/2011
by
Peter Dimako Source: Upcoming-Movies.com
Review of Captain America: The First Avenger
The bar for movies about Marvel superheroes is a high one, simply because "Iron Man" was so damn entertaining. Now, there's a huge difference between being good and being entertaining, and the adventures of Tony Stark are immensely popular because despite its flaws, it's tremendously entertaining. But Jon Favreau's direction is light and flashy, and Robert Downey Jr. is that perfect blend of charming rogue and world-saver. The latest "Avengers" prequel, Joe Johnston's "Captain America: The First Avenger," doesn't quite live up to "Iron Man," but it's nicely cast in the same mold. Chris Evans is one of those all-American types who is both funny and heroic, and the movie nicely sets the table for next year's full-on "Avengers" experience.
This, of course, is an origin story, which are inherently easier to tell. Regardless, Evans is Steve Rogers, a 98-pound weakling who can't get himself into the armed forces, even though the nation is in the thick of WWII and American men are fighting and dying overseas. His best friend and protector, Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) is about to ship out, which will leave Steve an easy target for the bullies that exist in the Marvel universe.
Enter Doctor Heinz Erskine (Stanley Tucci), a German ex-pat working for the U.S. government who sees the fire in Rogers' belly, which is exactly what he's looking for for his latest endeavor, SuperSoldier serum. Soon, Steve is working with him, with Colonel Chester Phillips (Tommy Lee Jones), and the foxy Agent Carter (Hayley Atwell). One series of injections later, he's a superman of sorts, and it isn't long before he's in Europe, kicking European ass.
But not strictly German ass, it should be said. You see, one of the mistakes Erskine was trying to make up for is Johann Schmidt, a German officer who forced him to test out his serum in earlier times. It gave him great strength, but also turned him into a red-headed carnival freak--and when I say red-head, I don't mean his hair. This, of course, is the Red Skull, Captain America's nemesis, who has created a military organization called Hydra and has grand designs to take over the world. Cue the fighting, gadgets, action sequences, and introductions to the guys who serve in Captain America's platoon.
Now, Evans is no Robert Downey, Jr., but he's the right guy for this part. The movie clocks in a little long and drags at times, but Evans makes it worth hanging around for. Atwell as Peggy Carter doesn't really do a whole lot, but Tommy Lee Jones steals ever single scene he's in, hitting all the right notes to turn his authoritarian into well-placed comic relief. Like all comic book films, this one suffers from foreseeable conclusions, but it doesn't suffer from the patriotic fervor I thought it might possess. If anything, it's self-referential enough to recognize that Captain America doesn't need to rally 'round the flag to make his point. Perhaps most importantly, it slots right into all of the "Avengers" films we've seen, even including Tony Stark's forebear in a younger form, Howard (Dominic Cooper, in a role that was played by John Slattery in "Iron Man 2"), and whets the appetite for Joss Whedon's "Avengers" movie.
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