I really, really like this movie. If you're in a rush to head out the door but wanted to know my thoughts before you left, there they are. Have a good day. If you have more time to kill, come join me as I break down why I didn't regret seeing this MCU film twice in a single day back when it was in theaters. I firmly believe that if it wasn't for the film's weaker final act, this could have a solid argument at being my favorite MCU film. So it breaks my heart to see this film get crapped on so much. It's the second lowest grossing film in the franchise both domestically and internationally, it has one of the lowest grades on IMDb of the MCU, and it's frequently overshadowed by its two sequels in online discussions (though to be fair, The Winter Soldier and Civil War are both amazing).
So I'm going to be putting up my shield for another installment for the MCU, but I'm definitely going to fight harder for The First Avenger's honor than I did for Iron Man 2. This is a sorely underappreciated film that rises above being a conventional superhero movie, and has all the makings of a classic Hollywood adventure film executed brilliantly.
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| Token gratuitous shirtless scene in an MCU movie: Check |
My favorite quality of this film is actually its screenplay. Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely just get Captain America/Steve Rogers. There are so many small character moments that make him stick out as one of the MCU's best heroes because we see that he is at his core just a good man. His strong moral center puts him at odds with the rest of the MCU heroes so far because he didn't need to go through a journey to find the responsibility in his powers. He was already a good man, as seen in the famous grenade scene where Steve jumps on the dummy without a moment's hesitation. He may be naive and physically weak, but he's not a quitter.
The movie builds him up so naturally with lines like "I don't want to kill anyone. I just don't like bullies" because they say so much about where he comes from. He doesn't enjoy killing people, but he is not afraid to do what needs to be done to save the weak. By living humbly, he could appreciate where his powers came from and what he could do with them. It's a fantastic counterpoint to the origins we've seen so far from Iron Man and Thor, and we will see again with Doctor Strange.
The screenplay also brilliantly tips its hat to Captain America's past, respecting his role as a real-life wartime hero by making nods to the comics and serials, which enhances the movie's narrative too. It adds a level of realism to this film; of course a real-life Captain America would have been used as a propaganda tool. It gives Steve another layer too by showing how far he's willing to go to help America's morale through the war, even though he desperately wants to be right there fighting on the front lines. Markus and McFeely simply knock their interpretation of Captain America out of the park, and I'm really glad Marvel Studios saw this and gave them the opportunity to return and explore the character even more in the sequels and, soon, Avengers: Infinity War.
Of course, it can't be overstated how much Chris Evans nails the role. Before this film, he was often typecast as the clueless jock in films like Not Another Teen Movie, Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World, and both Fantastic Four films. So needless to say he was an inspired choice for the role. However, Evans brought his own insecurities which he has talked about in the past and brought them here, and the result is a performance that may be remembered as one of his best. He turns the charm up to 11 here, one can absolutely buy that he's the ideal American hero. Not because the character is a Christian white man, but because he's just a good guy. Although Chris Evans spends the first 45 minutes of the movie either with his head superimposed onto another actor, or his body was digitally shrunk down, his performance is so strong that it carries through all of the cinematic trickery. There is just a level of sincerity that's hard to pin down in words in his performance, and although Iron Man may be my favorite MCU film, Chris Evans' Captain America may be my favorite MCU hero.
Other highlights of the film include a hilarious Tommy Lee Jones performance packed with some amazing lines ("I'm not kissing you!"), Hayley Atwell in what is still one of, if not the, the best lead female performances of the MCU (a performance so strong that she got her own one-shot and TV series), Hugo Weaving as the dastardly Johann Schmidt/Red Skull brought to life by an incredible makeup job, and subtle references to the rest of the MCU that aren't too distracting and actually boost this film's narrative (Howard Stark as a supporting character who fits in with the time period; the Tessaract having ties to Asgard adds to the mystique of the object). The soundtrack is also one of the strongest in the MCU, composed by the legendary Alan Silvestri. Finally, the movie's World War II setting is brought to life thanks to impressive green-screen work and extremely detailed production design.
That being said, the movie does falter pretty noticeably near the end of the film. After Cap's daring rescue of the captured soldiers, the movie honestly could have just ended there. That sequence was an emotional climax for this story, a culmination of Steve Rogers truly becoming Captain America and the hero he always was meant to be. It would not have bothered me if this was split into two parts at all, with the second part serving as a build up to Captain America being frozen in ice. Instead, the film just putters onward past the 75-minute mark, becoming a checklist of things to do to get Cap frozen. Red Skull's "death" is anti-climactic, Bucky's "death" is not given enough emotional impact, there is an cringe-worthy subplot where Agent Carter gets jealous over Steve that leads nowhere. Even the final act before he freezes is unconvincing; he had no real excuse to have to put the plane down so drastically. Finally, the reveal that Steve is in our time is extremely contrived and makes SHIELD look utterly incompetent (you couldn't have picked a radio broadcast from a game held AFTER he went missing?).
After such a strong two-thirds of the film, it is a real pity that this movie fell into the trap of becoming an Avengers lead-up. But man, those first two-thirds are so entertaining that it's easy to look past the flaws of the rest of the film, and even the last third still has its share of bright spots, namely dialogue and humor that remains strong. So in the end, it's far from a perfect MCU movie. But its deep understanding of its main character and a charismatic performance from its star, boosted by careful direction from Joe Johnston and a strong supporting cast, makes this one of my favorites in the franchise.
After the successful runs of Thor and Captain America: The First Avenger, and with the indefinite delay of Ant-Man, it was time for the big finale. This would be the event that would pay off everything that came before, while also marking a milestone in cinematic history. After four years and five movies of build-up, it was time to assemble the pieces together.
And holy crap, it worked.
Next time: The Avengers
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