Captain America: The First Avenger

♣♣♣♣/♣♣♣♣♣

Do not leave the cinema at once after the movie ends. They show a teaser for The Avengers after the closing credits roll.

All Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) ever wanted is to serve his country by enlisting in the army. However, his lanky frame and many illnesses serve as an obstacle for this goal to be realized. All this changes when in an argument with his best friend Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), he manages to impress eavesdropping scientist Abraham Erskine (Stanley Tucci), who works for the US government in a project aiming to enhance ordinary men into super soldiers. He is accepted to train under the watchful eye of Col. Chester Phillips (Tommy Lee Jones) and Officer Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell), who eventually becomes his love interest. After accepting the challenge to be the scientist’s guinea pig, Roger’s body reacts positively to the serum and becomes Captain America. Meanwhile, in Nazi Germany, ambitious Hydra leader Johann Schmidt (Hugo Weaving) discovers a mystical bright blue artifact, whose powers he intends to use for world domination. It is later revealed that he has also benefited from the serum in the past, and thus, becomes the Captain’s arch nemesis called Red Skull.

I know nothing about Captain America and his universe aside from him having a shield and serving as an unofficial mascot for American patriotism. You only have to know his screen name, see his shield, and look at his uniform if you do not believe this. It is redundancy cubed. This comes in handy since he is used by a senator as a propaganda tool in the movie. After doing some research, I found out that Captain America first came out in the early 40’s during World War II. That explains everything. You could not really blame the creators. War is a very depressing thing, and I could only imagine how this Marvel comics raised the spirits of every American during that time. Captain America served his purpose, and now he is one of Marvel’s cash cows.

The movie is enjoyable for me, perhaps because as mentioned, I did not have any idea of Captain America’s back-story. Another possible explanation is the setting of the movie in the 40’s. Most superhero movies are set in the modern times. The sets, costumes, and the abundance of sepia tones really help define the era in which the story is set, which is during the period of World War II. The occasional quips in the dialogue prevent the movie from becoming monotonous.

That Google searches for Hayley Atwell spiked after the film’s premiere should no longer have shocked anyone. The girl exudes classic Hollywood elegance. What’s more, the character is not the typical damsel in distress that you see in superhero movies. Peggy’s got balls, and is a sharp shooter to boot. I just feel sad for her and Steve, and the fact that I would not be seeing her in The Avengers, unless they have a time machine there. She instantly became my favorite Marvel leading lady.

Hugo Weaving was born to be intimidating. He gives justice to Red Skull, but this role does not hold a candle to his performance as Agent Smith (Anglicization of Schmidt, cool coincidence) in the Matrix or his turn as Elrond in the Lord of the Ring series. Tommy Lee Jones provides comic relief while still maintaining an air of authority. Stanley Tucci’s role is short but memorable. Chris Evans is okay, although his CGI skinny self really looks odd in some scenes, but convincing enough.

All in all this is a good prequel for The Avengers. This introduction to Captain America would suffice for most of the audience who are not aware of his story.