'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' Review
Recollection- Captain America The Winter Soldier Review
Reflection- My opinion of this film have only gotten stronger in the last two years as prior to seeing Captain America: Civil War, this was my favorite Marvel Cinematic Universe film to date. I love it more and more each time I watch it and I'm sure that may raise my Film Assessment score from what it was previously.
Review- Captain America: The Winter Soldier is the second installment in the Captain America Trilogy and ninth Marvel film that changed the landscape of the Marvel Cinematic Universe forever. The film picks up two years after The Avengers and explores Steve Rogers adjusting to the 21st Century. Joe Johnston chose not to return for Cap's second outing so Marvel decided to implement the Russo Brothers, Joe and Anthony Russo, who had previously primarily only worked in television. The Russo Brothers decided to kick things up a notch and introduce a subgenera of a 1970's political spy thriller in a modern setting incorporating contemporary themes that would allow the audience to see a conflicted Rogers who must choose between security oversight or personal freedoms. I loved the Russo Brothers' direction as they build suspense masterfully and perfectly capture phenomenal fight choreography, some of the best fight choreography I've ever seen in any superhero film. All of the action is incredible with authentic amazing visual effects, including a S.H.I.E.L.D. infiltration of a hijacked ship, a ballistic car chase, a claustrophobic intense elevator brawl, an insane highway fight, and the emotional fueled third act finale. The writers Stephen McFeely and Christopher Markus return and are at the top of their game really delving into Captain America's ideology and some of his personal relationships with close friends (I'll delve into this more when I get to the performance section of the review). Another thing I think is done exceptionally well in the film is the blend of dark emotionally grounded tones, and fun fantastical humor. The performances are top notch in this installment as well with a bigger ensemble cast this time around. Chris Evans is back as Captain America and at this point had really begun to settle and become comfortable with the character of Steve Rogers. Evans showcases some more of his emotional acting chops in a few focal scenes integral to the story. One of which being when he visits an older Peggy Carter, a digitally aged Hayley Atwell that looks incredibly believable. Amidst their touching reunion she suffers from Alzheimer's and after coughing quite a bit, turns around and completely forgotten the conversation and looking at Steve as though it was their first reunion since he went into the Arctic. He meets her with a glass of water and says that He "couldn't leave his best girl". It's a tragic heartbreaking scene that's incredibly well executed that makes tear up a bit every time I watch. Rogers also deals with a few other complex issues, including the revelations that his best friend Bucky has been brainwashed into a renowned assassin among the intelligence community and that Hydra has been a parasite within S.H.I.E.L.D., an organization that had become his home and career after the event of The Avengers. This changed the entire landscape of the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the organization that brought the Avengers together initially had fallen and was no more (Although on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., it's currently operating in secret). Scarlett Johansson returns as the shifty double agent and fellow Avenger, Black Widow. She and Steve made for a unique pairing as protagonists given their different moral structure and I like that the creative team didn't shoehorn them as a couple, but rather naturally made them close friends. Anthony Mackie is introduced as veteran Sam Wilson aka Falcon in this film and I felt his introduction feel natural and fluid with he and Steve bonding over having given their service to their country. I loved the look of Falcon's wings and how they were modernized as a jet-pack of sorts and thought he made for a great addition to the action sequences. Samuel L. Jackson is Nick Fury once again and is terrific as always. Jackson has a great car chase scene that will leave you on the edge of your seat and has some great scenes opposite Evans. Emily VanCamp has a relatively small role as Agent 13/Sharon Carter, Peggy Carter's niece, and is serviceable in the capacity used here with great promise for the future. Robert Redford emerges into the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Alexander Pierce, the head of the World Security Council, and I won't delve too far into his role but he's certainly a grandiose villainous presence. Redford carries around quite a bit of gravitas about him yet strays away from overshadowing the rest of the cast and never steps on anyone's toes. Sebastian Stan makes for one of Marvel's greatest villains to date as the Winter Soldier or, as many of you may know him to be, Captain America's best friend, Bucky Barnes. Stan makes for a great villain (or anti-hero rather) in the sense that this is a villain emotionally tied to our protagonist, like Loki in the Thor movies. He's an elite Soviet assassin working for Hydra that WILL complete his mission (regardless of how far he must go). Stan may not get the opportunity to deliver significant dialogue but I am continually impressed by how much he was able to convey purely emoting with facial expressions. The final fight between him and Captain America is so emotionally fueled with huge stakes, both worldly and smaller scale in terms of their friendship. My favorite portion of this fight is when Steve decides that to get through to Bucky, and counter all the brainwashing Bucky's undergone, he's not going to fight his friend and allows him to pound on him punch after punch, even dropping his shield in the Potomac River. An earlier flashback between the two in the 1940's shows Bucky tell Steve he's with him till the end of the line and the ultimate payoff comes when a call back is made to that very line as Rogers recites it to Bucky and the Hellicarrier falls apart with Cap falling into the river. I'm sure this will sound somewhat pathetic but it speaks to how terrific the film is as this scene makes tears stream down my face almost every time I watch it. The scene is only amplified even more by the phenomenal performances of both actors and the tremendous musical score accompanying the scene. The musical score is composed by Henry Jackman this time around and I LOVE his score, even going as far to declare it as one of my favorite Marvel film scores as of yet. In conclusion, this was my favorite Marvel Cinematic Universe film that I highly recommend as a very entertaining film that can help prepare you for Captain America: Civil War.
No comments:
Post a Comment