How about this? Take a World War II movie, crank up the action with effects and CGI and then give the focal point of the movie some steroids. If you do all those things, you’ll end up with Captain America: The First Avenger.
While it is a fun movie, it lacks depth and that sense of deep, sophisticated storytelling that most of the Marvel movies have. That is not to say that it is too fast for one to understand what is going on, but in certain scenes that would require some emotion to grasp, the film sidesteps it.
However, the movie is still about one of America’s first superheroes. During the World War II era there were less shades of grey. America was at war, and the enemy was truly evil. To battle that, America needed ideals and heroes that were truly good. It is against that backdrop that the film is built around. There are good superheroes, and there are bad villains. And because of that setting, we can put our modern cynicism aside and appreciate goodness and heroism for what it really is.
Captain America’s (Steve Rogers) nemesis in the film is a Johann Schmidt, a Nazi better known as Red Skull. Contrasting the very good looking Captain Rogers, the ugly as sin Red Skull is a near perfect villain on the screen.
Of course with any other Marvel film there is plenty of humor to go around. The bulk of the jokes come from Tommy Lee Jones. Jones’ character, Colonel Chester Phillips makes most of the jokes in rapid-fire mode while pre-transformation Rogers is still the tiny little pipsqueak.
The special effects were good, but downplayed by a better storyline. Granted, Captain America is not as powerful as most superheroes, he did not require a ton of effects. That being said, Captain Rogers’ suit, or uniform, if you will, was spectacular. The outfit looks absolutely remarkable on screen. His shield is not too shabby, either.
Other than Captain America, the Red Skull spends a lot of time on screen. However, we really don’t know anything about him or what makes him tick. Really, we don’t really find anything out about any of the characters in the film. It was almost as if there is a video game on screen and not a movie.
Still though, the movie is about Captain America, not the Red Skull. The movie is about good versus evil, not flashy special effects and overactive 3D. In addition to those things, the movie is a superhero movie and a war movie coupled into one.
I’m not going to tell you to run out and see it, but if you’re headed to the movies because it’s 100 degrees in your living room, Captain America is a fine way to spend two summer hours.
Film GPA: 3.25 out of 4.0