Taking place in 1942, a young brave man named Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) wants to do his part in fighting the war against the Nazi conquest. However, he does not have the physical ability to be considered for military service. After having his paperwork faked, Rogers joins the military anyway, and under the supervision of a doctor by the name of Dr. Erskine (Stanley Tucci), Rogers undergoes a procedure that will increase his strength, size, speed, durability, and endurance, in other words, it will make him into a super soldier. When Rogers hears of the possible death of his best friend. He takes it upon himself to rescue him from the clutches of an organization called Hydra, which is ran by a megalomaniac by the name of the Red Skull (Hugo Weaving). -summary
Comic book fans, real comic book fans, can almost always tell who are the real fans and who aren't the real fans. They can tell who are the directors, producers, etc., that just glanced over a few comics, scribbled together a script, and created a flick just like that. In my personal view, I think director Joe Johnston could quite possibly be stuck somewhere in the middle, however, I'm leaning a little bit more towards the non fan. He seemed to get some of the things right when concerning the character of Captain America and some of his world, but the important part didn't translate well to film. In other words, it just didn't feel like the true Captain America film, instead, just another summer blockbuster to spend a few dollars on some popcorn.
Released in 2011, Captain America: The First Avenger, is an action film based on the character from Marvel Comics. It contains everything that will appeal to the senses of the average action fan; lots of explosions, fist fighting, cool scenes, and your average bad guy( the bad guy is a big problem for me). In addition, there's quite a bit of fan service that comic gurus will easily notice and is actually quite fun to pick out. There are a few homages thrown out there from normal Marvel continuity such as; "He Holds the Cosmic Cube", The Howling Commandos, Winter Solider, and even characters; Dum Dum Dugan, Peggy Carter (Haley Atwell), Arnim Zola, and even what appears to be the retconned Agent 13.
The film mainly deals with Cap's origin story, that takes place during World War II era. I found the character development in regards to Rogers to be well done. The story was told very well depicting the small man with the big heart, as the viewer gets to see what the frail weakling is made of. It's very easy to fall for Cap's character, and you will want him to become the super solider you know he can be. I was pretty moved by it, and his development would continue once he becomes the hero he was born to be. The viewer will come away understanding his sense of duty to his country, along with his sense of camaraderie and friendship. I also thought it was a plus putting his fighting skills on full display. One thing about Captain America that always stood out was his superior fighting skills, and there's more than enough of that to go around.
The side characters fulfilled their roles rather well, but for some reason they came off more as average filler. I enjoyed the acting though, and Evans impressed me here, even though he didn't have much to really do. I didn't like him at all as the arrogant Human Torch in Fantastic Four. However, I bought into him almost right away as Captain America.
The plot is fairly entertaining, and the action scenes are nothing to look down on. I enjoyed the special effects and cool action scenes. The Red Skull's facial design looks a lot creepier in live action than in comic book form. The only real issue I had with the production values is within the music score. At times, it gave off the right feel, but it felt a little too average.
Although I enjoyed the movie, it's no secret what differentiates a good hero from a great one is his villain. And in regards to the Red Skull, he reminded me of Dr. Doom from the Fantastic Four movie, and this is not a good thing at all. He came off far more as your average cookie character bad guy seeking world domination, when he's far more than that. This is the main area of the film that has me questioning Johnston's knowledge of the Captain America universe. During the first meeting and final encounter, I found myself incredibly detached from the interactions, because the drama was so off the mark. Red Skull is to Captain America, what the Joker is to Batman, and Green Goblin is to Spider-Man. I really didn't feel that chemistry here, like I did in both Nolan's Dark Knight or Raimi's Spider-Man. However, I did like the way Hydra was portrayed; "cut off an arm, and two more will grow to take its place".
Overall, Captain America is still a solid superhero movie. When looking pass the small issues concerning characterization in regards to the villain. It still does its job, and I think it sets the foundation rather well for the upcoming Avengers movie. I was never truly bored at any point, and the action scenes held my attention. This is something I can recommend taking a look at way before Michael Bay's Transformers: Dark of the Moon. The film has a 124 minute run time.
Pros:
Action and acting
Cons:
Main villain, hero vs. villain interactions, music score
Frank, I think Will Ferrell will direct a movie on my life as his debut LOL