Review of Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) by Chris O — 24 Dec 2017

A different kind of Marvel film that focuses on the bona fide character that is Captain America.

Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) volunteers to participate in an experimental program that turns him into the Super Soldier known as Captain America. As Captain America, Rogers joins forces with Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) and Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) to wage war on the evil HYDRA organization, led by the villainous Red Skull (Hugo Weaving.).

Going back in time to watch some of the older Marvel films, I decided to start out with "Captain America: The First Avenger". While I didn't love this film, watching it another time actually makes me appreciate it even more. What I really would like to highlight is just how much of a likable character Captain America is. His morales, his personality, his humanity, all of that makes him the perfect superhero. He's relatable and easy to root for, making him a protagonist that we all want to support. It's not doubt that he's one of my favorite superheroes solely based on that alone. What's positive about that is that this film really shows all of that, making us love him even more.

One thing I love about this film is the setting. The setting takes place back in WWII, taking on a more grim and gritty color pallet. The film was shot in darker settings, making Captain America's symbol stand out even more. I think this film looked really great and it was shot well. I think all of the action was filmed really well and it's certainly a highlight for this film.

Another thing I also liked was the story. If you think about where this is placed in real history, it's pretty absurd. I mean if you look at this from a realistic perspective, we got a guy to run in around in a red & blue outfit taking out nazi replicates with a colored shield. Either way, I still think it's a pretty interesting origin story, one that certainly introduces his character well.

I think the thing that really hurt this film was the pacing. The film slowed down during parts that weren't as important, and sped through parts that may have had more impact. I felt like I wanted to see the relationship between Rogers and Carter develop more, but it never really progressed. I would've liked to see more of Bucky Barnes, but I guess we do get a lot more of him in later films. I also would've loved to explore more story of the Red Skull, but he joins the line of other non-memorable Marvel villains.

While this movie wasn't perfect, I actually thought it was made pretty well and it was better than I remembered. I think it's definitely one of the better films of Marvel Phase I, and I certainly enjoyed my time watching it.