Movies: Captain America - The First Avenger

Score: ***1/2 out of *****

Long Story Short: Captain America: The First Avenger is a fun summer blockbuster; yes, it's another comic book movie, but it's a worthy addition, not a cash-in. The main strength of the film lies in its ensemble of heroes, from the very likable Steve (ie: Captain America), to love interest Peggy, to skeptical Col. Philips. Sadly, the villains aren't nearly as interesting, but it all comes together nicely in a throwback adventure with a good sense of humor - and a surprisingly good ending.

Yet another superhero movie! I like the genre quite a bit, but I must admit I had started to grow a little bit weary of them this summer (I've seen two of the others, and skipped the dreadfully-reviewed Green Lantern). However, this film looked pretty entertaining from the trailers, and seemed different enough to be interesting - fortunately, I was correct on both. So, Captain America: The First Avenger - a title which refers to, if you aren't already familiar, a group of superheroes called the Avengers (including Iron Man, Hulk, etc.) who will have their own movie next summer - was directed by Joe Johnston (Jumanji, Jurassic Park III). Let's get to it.

After a mysterious opener in present time, the movie quickly reverts to the central time period - 1940s - where a team of Nazis, led by officer Schmidt, invade a Norwegian town searching for an artifact. Back in the States, we meet a pair of friends: Steve, a short, scrawny guy desperate to enlist, and Sgt. "Bucky", who is already set to be deployed. During one of Steve's failed attempts to enlist he is noticed, however, by Dr. Erskine, who recruits Steve for to try out for a special operations unit. At the training facility, he meets the skeptical (to put it mildly) Col. Philips and the lovely but tough Peggy. Admiring Steve for his strength of character over body, Erskine selects him to be the subject of a radical experiment to transform him into a super soldier. However, an assassin from Schmidt's Nazi division - known as HYDRA - kills Erskine, and ends his own life when Steve finally catches him.

With Dr. Erskine gone, the skeptical Col. Philips puts Steve to work - as an actor in the States selling war bonds to fund the military. When Steve comes to attempt to give moral support to troops in the field, Peggy prods him that he was destined to do more for the war effort. Thus, Steve goes on a daring mission to rescue some POWs - including his friend Bucky - and meets Schmidt along the way. After his spectacular success, Col. Philips changes his plans and the war soon intensifies as Schmidt puts his evil plans into action. (No need for me to go further than that in specifics).

One of the reasons that I give this film a better score than Thor is the cast. There are a number of excellent casting choices, and they really do a nice job. This starts with Steve, played by Chris Evans (a superhero veteran from the Fantastic Four series), who is a classic young man of the era, eager to, in his words, "stop the bullies." He isn't as charismatic as Thor - and isn't supposed to be - but his heart, humility, and sense of humor quickly win you over (particularly pre-transformation). In short he is a perfect Captain for America in WWII. Hayley Atwell plays team member - and Steve's love interest - Peggy Carter. She displays her character's imperfections as effectively as her intriguing yet natural combination of loveliness and toughness. Tommy Lee Jones as Col. Philips is perfect; maybe I just haven't seen him in anything for a while, but his dry humor combined with his commanding presence steals just about every scene he is in. Finally, Hugo Weaving also seems a perfect choice as the brutal and insane Nazi officer Schmidt; but I think the script let him down. Weaving, as shown with Agent Smith in The Matrix, is perfectly capable of incredibly creepy menace, yet he doesn't get the screen time nor the right scenes to properly convey this. A disappointing missed opportunity.

The supporting cast also has some stand outs. Stanley Tucci plays Dr. Erskine, who sadly doesn't last long, with such a warmth that you can practically feel it - a perfect yet brief mentor for the discouraged pre-transformation Steve. Toby Jones (Karl Rove from W.) also does a nice job as Schmidt's assistant, a timid little guy with unexpected humor. In an interesting but unintrusive cross-pollination, Howard Stark (Iron Man's dad) is basically Q for Col. Philips' division, and Dominic Cooper gives it some spice. Steve's friend Bucky is pretty uninteresting, however; he mostly just provides a nice plot device.

Obviously, Captain America is pretty much an adventure movie. Thus, even if it's not the most important thing, the action sequences and special effects need to be pretty good to keep pace with the film's numerous competitors. I'd say this film does alright in those areas, but perhaps nothing to write home about (oops, I guess I'm writing about it in my blog). It doesn't help that the villains are pretty generic - and I was a little disappointed to find that the enemy foot soldiers were not Nazis but Schmidt's own special troops (perhaps there were political reasons). Still, it's pretty fun to watch Steve kick some butt as Captain America. And his abilities are not so over the top as his name might suggest, which is refreshing; he relies on creative use of his neat shield mostly. Sometimes (particularly when Steve pursues Erskine's assassin) the action seems deliberately '40s propaganda-esque, a unique touch. As I've mentioned before, there is some great humor in here, that fits the less ambiguous, good-guy-vs.-bad-guy feel (ie: not Nolan's Batman) of the film. One of the best examples of this is Steve's brief stint working for USO to sell war bonds. Everyone contributes to this humor (well, except Schmidt - another flaw of his character), particularly Steve and Col. Philips.

***

Captain America is far from a flawless film. The last third arguably dips somewhat in quality as the fun character interactions subside. Schmidt and his evil organization are perhaps a little too dull and cliche. However, the film has more than enough strengths to make up for these and create an overall enjoyable summer escape. There aren't necessarily a lot of original concepts here, but most of the pieces fit together nicely. It's a feel-good film that really gets you rooting for Steve, who was once picked on mercilessly, couldn't get a girl to even look at him, and couldn't even fight for his country. But Steve is not self-pitying, and so when he starts reaping the rewards of his hard work, you feel happy for him. As Captain America, he doesn't zap guys from a distance, he beats them up with his natural weapons - hands and feet - or uses his trademark tool, a shield, which is of course defensive in nature. Hence, the old-fashioned feel. So if you don't see it this summer, then I would recommend it as a rental/Netflix in the dark days of winter when some good fun adventure is just what you need. (A final note: I was very pleased by the ending, one I certainly was not expecting given its genre brethren, and gives the film a little more emotional weight and finality than it might otherwise have had).