Action-adventure adaptation of the Marvel comic series, set in 1942, directed by Joe Johnson (The Rocketeer, The Wolfman).
After being deemed unfit for military service in WWII, a scrawny Steve Rogers (Chris Evans from Fantastic Four) volunteers for a top secret science project that turns him into Captain America, a super-soldier dedicated to defending justice and democracy against the Nazis.
The Captain's strength, endurance, agility, speed, reflexes, durability and healing are at the highest limits of natural human potential. The WWII confrontations lead to the ultimate foe in Red Skull (Hugo Weaving, The Matrix), Hitler's treacherous head of advanced weaponry, whose own plan for world domination involves a magical object known as The Tesseract.
Like with Fox’s X-Men: First Class, there’s a buzz from seeing a superhero flick play out in a period setting. Marvel’s Captain America: The First Avenger reaches back to the early ‘40s, pitting the Captain against the Nazis. It’s all very Indiana Jones and director Joe Johnston reaches back to his days working on both Jones and 1991’s The Rocketeer to envisage bright, vivid retro-futurist design.
There are tie-ins to other Marvel properties, naturally. The Cosmic Cube links to Thor, while Iron Man’s dad, Howard Stark (a Downey Jr-ish Dominic Cooper), has plenty to do as an inventor/designer on the payroll of the US government. The film’s climax is, unfortunately a bit of a whimper, saving any loose ends for The Avengers film next year, where all established heroes will finally get to fight alongside each other.
It’s the unique moments in Captain America that leave an impression. A highlight is a sequence where the Captain, with nothing better to do, is suited up and sent around the country performing a song-and-dance routine in a stage show. It’s a meta-moment; kids are shown reading Captain America comic books as the man becomes a propaganda figurehead for the war effort.
It would have been ideal to have more moments like these in what is otherwise a fairly standard origin tale. Nonetheless, flawless effects – including making a pre-captain Chris Evans look like a twig – plus top performances from the likes of Stanley Tucci, Hugo Weaving and Tommy Lee Jones, ensure an old-fashioned quality to this appealing matinee-style adventure.
By Andrew Hedley, Flicks.co.nz
I'm sorry, but the directors could have done a LOT better then this. Terribly badly done- it had a good story going up until the guy got into a stupid outfit and then its as if the writers got over excited and everyone started creating these stupid unrealistic fighting scenes. Plus the villain looked like he'd dunked his head in a can of red paint. The story got lost somewhere in the middle. Waste of time.
It's too short, rushed, squeezed in to too tight a run time to please middle American audiences - but, it's undeniably fun. Pitched right in the family film market - Joe Johnston (director of the awful 'The Wolfman' and less awful 'Jurassic Park 3') delivers a film owing lots to his mate Spielberg's "Indiana Jones" - and aside from a dumb-ass villain (a red faced camp-as a row of tents Hugo Weaving)and titchy run time, it's great no-brainer fun. Chris Evans is good - and the special effects that make him titchy then hugey are cool and it's fun to see Tommy Lee Jones being, er, Tommy Lee Jones. And the ending? Okay - as a fan of THE AVENGERS graphic novels this left me and my 5 year old desperate for mid-2012! 3 stars - but 4 if the DVD adds a much needed 40 minutes :)
Hey he's a bit stronger and faster then me - i didn't fall alsleep
better than expected
Making this movie must have been quite a challenge. The movie makers had a character with a silly costume and a silly name and had to use it for a serious movie. However, they have pulled it off very well indeed. This movie has great design work with the flying wing and mini sub looking like 1940's Nazi hi tech. Steve Rogers tries to be a hero and finds out that he is only a propaganda weapon and there is more to being a hero than having big muscles.
For the most part, it manages to balance laughs, genuinely rousing moments, and a fully packed agenda into something fleet enough to keep running under the weight of its rich ambitions.
It goes without saying it's preposterous. But it has the texture and takes the care to be a full-blown film.
If you like your comicbook action pulpy and sweetly old-fashioned (our hero has never been kissed so don't expect much raunch) this may keep you entertained until the next superhero flick rolls along. Which should be any second now.
Charming, handsome and full of pep – all 70 year-old Cap lacks is a knockout blow. Still, Johnston should be saluted for old-fashioned heart in a cynical age, while Marvel should be confined to barracks for cynical marketing.
Sticking to its simplistic, patriotic origins, where a muscular red, white and blue GI slugging Adolf Hitler in the jaw is all that's required, Captain America trafficks in red-blooded heroes, dastardly villains, classy dames and war-weary military officers.
We've been told the NZ release date for this flick is Thursday, 28th Jul 2011.
Release date: July 28th 2011.
We haven't received times for this movie in this location yet. However these are updated as cinemas announce them, so check back soon. Hopefully the lovely cinemas in your location will choose to play it shortly. ~Ed.
