Review of Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) by Filipeneto — 02 Mar 2021

A few years ago, superhero or comic book films were the worst imaginable. That changed with Marvel films and the quality CGI show the studio has been able to offer to fans of its superheroes.

This film tells the story of Steve Rogers, an aspiring soldier: he was eager to fight in World War II, but his short stature and physical weakness prevented him from enlisting. When he finally succeeded, he found himself participating in a special military program to create "super soldiers". Thus, Captain America was born. And his first mission could not be more demanding: to face the sinister Hydra, a secret SS branch specialized in the occult and the research of super weapons.

I confess that I never felt any empathy for the figure of Captain America. For me, even as a cartoon character, it is a piece of propaganda. And although this opinion has not changed with this film, I liked what I saw: in addition to being a visual spectacle, the film has a clear script, a well-structured story, well-built characters and the historical consultancy worked very well, allowing the film to be satisfactorily accurate in recreating the period. Joe Johnston, the director, is worthy of our praise.

The cast is full of familiar faces and does a pretty good job. Chris Evans is a good protagonist, and he seemed very committed to the character. Hayley Atwell also did well, and gave the film a feminine touch, a pleasant presence and good lines. The chemistry she built with Evans seemed convincing enough. Hugo Weaving is a threatening villain and has given his character a certain amount of raw and gratuitous cruelty and unpredictability. At first, Tommy Lee Jones seemed aged to me, limited himself on recycling the attitude and lines he used in "MIB" movies, but I think he ended up fitting the big picture, even though it is not a very good job. Sebastian Stan is competent, but I felt that he had little screen time and his character was unimportant to the plot. Although not as relevant to the story, Toby Jones had more presence than him, and that was something that Jones knew how to take advantage of, giving the audience a job well done.

Technically, it is an impeccable film, worthy of the millionaire budget it had. Cinematography is enviable: the colors are just right, the play of light, shadow, contrast and movement was well accomplished and the footage is clear and sharp, even in the most intense and fast scenes. As I have already mentioned, the effort to recreate history was very successful, so the uniforms, costumes, weapons, vehicles, props and sets were exquisitely executed. The special, visual and CGI effects are great, and they do things that seem impossible, like Chris Evans’s apparent reduction in height and muscle mass. The soundtrack also seemed quite adequate, although it is not memorable.