REVIEW: Captian America: The First Avenger

In terms of rewatchability, the Captain America films are easily top of my list. As far as I'm concerned, the trilogy is the strongest in the MCU, giving audiences the most satisfying character arc and development, as well as some of the most interesting plot lines, plot twists and supporting characters. And after re-watching it this week, it only reaffirmed that belief: "Captain America" has has aged like a fine wine.

"Captain America: The First Avenger" was the 5th movie to be released in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2011, and by that point, the MCU was really starting to be established. Some critics whined that this was largely a precursor to "The Avengers" movie of 2012 (and it is), but I think if you're going to build a shared universe, you have to set the board. And this movie does it splendidly. Like "Iron Man" and "Thor" before it, it starts with a scene that is actually further along in the timeline than the rest of the story. S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) discovers a large plane and subsequently Captain America's shield frozen in the ice in the Arctic, before we flash back to the beginning.

This is where the movie starts to get threaded into the origin stories that proceeded it, with a loose explanation that 'Norse Gods' (AKA Thor's father, Odin) entrusted a mysterious and magical artifact, a glowing blue cube called the Tessaract (this and future MCU films' MacGuffin) to a man in German-occupied Norway. That proves to be a bad idea, as it is scooped up by Nazi commander Johann Schmidt (Hugo Weaving), who wants to harness is untold powers to produce weaponry and take over the world.

Over in America, a scrawny kid from Brooklyn named Steve Rogers is desperately trying to enlist in the army to help in the war effort, despite being a 98-pound weakling with multiple health issues. Chris Evans is spot-on emotionally as Steve Rogers (and emotionally and physically spot-on as Captain America), but filmmakers had to digitally alter Evans' physique to match Rogers' pre-Super Soldier Serum body. Some of the initial shots are kinda-sorta believable, but there are times when the proportions of his head to his body and his whole body to other people are just laughable. I think this was Marvel's first foray into that kind of tech, and it has improved since this film (Nick Fury's de-aging in "Captain Marvel" was hardly noticeable), so I'm willing to give them a bit of a pass on this one.

Unlike Thor and Iron Man, Steve Rogers is a character to root for from the get-go. There's something infectious and refreshing about his earnest good nature and his willingness to stick up for the little guy, no matter the cost. He could have easily come off as an annoying Boy Scout, but Evans imbues the scrawny wimp-turned-super-soldier with an irresistible, optimistic charm. His chemistry with best friend James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes (Sebastian Stan) is believable and rooted in reality. The two trade barbs laced with brutal honesty that could only come

from years of friendship, but it's all in good spirit. The two are like brothers, with Bucky, who is bigger, stronger and actually got into the army, looking out for Steve. We get some nice call backs to lines from early in the film later on, when their roles are suddenly reversed. While the two are at the Stark Expo, featuring a younger Howard Stark (a charming Dominic Cooper), scientist Abraham Erskine (Stanley Tucci) overhears Steve's patriotic spiel of wanting to do everything he can to stop bullies (AKA Nazis in this context), and Steve finally gets the chance to be a part of a top-secret military program.

The supporting cast in this film is truly outstanding. Tommy Lee Jones was born to play the role of barking military commander Chester Phillips. Tucci is a sweet and wise mentor to Steve, who can see Steve's sense of duty and self-sacrifice immediately. He also perfectly summarizes why Steve Rogers/Captain America is the kind of character we can fall in love with and root for: "The strong man, who has known power all his life, may lose respect for that power. But a weak man knows the value of strength, and knows compassion."

Haley Atwell is perfect as Agent Peggy Carter, Steve's eventual love interest. Unlike many of the female characters before her, Peggy feels more well-rounded as a character, immediately showing she can throw a punch at anyone who questions her place because of her gender, and taking no shit from the 'boys club' boys. She's not just there to be 'the Girl,' although she fits that bill too. It feels like she and Steve have a genuine connection too -- both have spent their lives being pushed down by others, only to get back up to prove them wrong. Their

relationship, however short-lived, is based on mutual respect that is so characteristic of the time period. Agent Carter is still a woman, and can't resist noticing Steve's souped-up body after he gets injected with Erskine's serum. Her little pec pat was supposedly improvised -- and let's be honest -- I would do the same thing if I were her.

The newly buff Steve quickly chases down a Hydra (Nazi science division overseen by Schmidt) spy, who had killed Erskine, and becomes an overnight
media sensation. The sub that the Hydra spy tried to escape in (as well as some of the other Hydra tech) seems too high-tech for the 1940s, but Marvel leans into the use of the Tessract as an other-worldly force that can fix any kind of plot holes. Aside from that though, the muted color palette for this movie really fits, hearkening back to old photos and bad newspaper ink.

Rather than send a strong, pretty much invincible guy into battle, the military decides to put the newly named Captain America on a song-and-dance tour to drum up support for the troops and sell war bonds. The song is schmaltzy, catchy and oh-so-amusing to watch. It also fits stylistically into this period piece. For some reason, they also send Steve overseas for a tour stop in front of ... troops (who is booking this tour?!) There, he learns Bucky's unit has been captured and presumed dead -- and goes charging in to save the day, with the help of Peggy and Stark.

In Schmidt's lair, it seems he admits defeat too easily, and rather than surrender, chooses to blow up all his work, much to the dismay of his assistant researcher Arnim Zola (Toby Jones). It gives us a great extended action sequence, as well as the reveal of Hugo Weaving's hideous, noseless Red Skull alter ego (a side-effect of the unperfected super soldier serum). The absurdity of the villain might not have worked, had "Thor" not proceeded this movie, and gotten audiences used to the idea of superhero myth and magic. Rather than giving us more extended battles, the movie gives us a montage, similar to the 1940s WWII newsreels, of Captain America and his rag-tag team of rescued soldiers, the Howling Commandos, toppling Hydra base after Hydra base.

Cap and the team suffer an emotional setback when (spoiler alert) Bucky (presumably) falls to his death as they storm a train and capture Zola. It's the motivation they need to avenge him (see what I did there?) and confront Red Skull directly. There are moments that are cringe-worthy in this battle sequence, including some parts that were clearly filmed in front of a green screen, but on the whole, it works. The sexual tension finally gets cut when Peggy takes charge, and grabs Steve for a kiss. It also gives us a classic moment as Steve then looks at Tommy Lee Jones, who quickly quips, "I'm not kissin' ya!"

Cap quickly dispatches the Hydra forces aboard a plane filled with bombs they plan to unleash on cities around the world, before becoming entangled in a zero-gravity fight with Red Skull as the plane takes a nose-dive. The Tessaract gets smashed out of its protective casing, and it appears to blast Red Skull into a wormhole of some kind when he tries to grab it. The cube falls out of the plane, and Steve is forced to sacrifice himself to spare innocent lives. The final radio conversation between him and Peggy is tender and heart-wrenching at the same time. Howard Stark goes looking for the Tessaract and Steve, but only finds the former (for now).

Flash forward to Steve waking up in what appears to be a 1940s-style hospital room. Somehow, he quickly deduces it's not right, based on the baseball game on the radio and the date given to him by the 'nurse.' Unless that serum also enhanced his memory, I don't believe any normal person could recall exact dates and baseball scores that well, but sports ain't exactly my thing, so we move on. Cap bursts out and, once again, goes running through the streets of New York. When Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) shows up and explains that he was a frozen Cap-sicle for 70 years, his first thought immediately goes to Peggy and the date they arranged as he was crashing into the arctic, which hits you right in the feels.

Overall, the movie does lean into some superhero tropes, but unlike some of the other origin stories, it also develops its characters, notably exploring the protagonist's motives and war-torn psyche, and delving into exactly what it means to be a hero. It also gives audiences one of its strongest supporting casts, introduces us to one of the most bad-ass women in the MCU, sticks to a consistent tone, and sets the stage for "The Avengers."

RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐.5  / ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐