2014 Movie Preview: #4 - Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Release date: April 4

Plot summary: “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” will pick-up where “Marvel’s The Avengers” left off, as Steve Rogers struggles to embrace his role in the modern world and teams up with Natasha Romanoff, aka Black Widow, to battle a powerful yet shadowy enemy in present-day Washington, D.C.

My take: Here's another example of a sequel of a film that I was not overly fond of. So what makes me so anticipated for this latest entry? Well the Avengers movie certainly helped improve the Captain America character in my eyes. I'm also familiar with the source material being used as the plot for this film and its a really good story. You then also have the luxury of adding great actors, like Robert Redford, to the cast. For those reasons I'm confident this won't be suffering from a sophomore slump.

Winter is coming

As we count down the days until the Thor sequel hits theaters, the first trailer for a sequel to a different Avenger has hit the Internet. Here's your first look at Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Red Skull out, Redford in??

From EW.com

The new Captain America film is probably the most unusual of the upcoming wave of Marvel sequels, since — thanks to the first film’s climactic time-jump forward — most of the original supporting cast probably won’t be returning. (Although since the movie is subtitled The Winter Soldier, there’s probably at least one supporting cast member returning, NO SPOILERS.) But the film could be adding a genuine film legend to its cast. EW has confirmed the news, initially reported by the Hollywood Reporter, that Robert Redford — Oscar winner, Sundance founder, Sundance Kid — is in negotiations to join the cast of the Star-Spangled Sequel.

It’s unclear at this point who Redford would be playing, though THR indicates that he’d be playing Nick Fury’s boss. (Combined with the Variety report that the film would prominently feature Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow and Cobie Smulders’ Maria Hill, Cap 2 is shaping up to be a stealth S.H.I.E.L.D. movie.) Presumably he’s not playing the President, unless there’s an election in the Marvelverse after Iron Man 3 (with President William Sadler.)

The Sum of All Cheers

With The Avengers blowing out box office records left and right, it may be a little pointless to do a review for the film now. But given that I haven't done a full movie review in a long time and the fact that everyone still wants to talk about this movie, I don't think anyone will mind.

There were certainly a lot of high expectations going into this film. You have the rabid fans of the comics, eager to see this super team on the big screen. But you also have all of the movie fans who have sat through several individual comic book movies that primarily served to set up this film. The good news is that despite those high expectations and the task of juggling such a large cast of characters, this film is a success
Credit to director Joss Whedon for taking on such a difficult task. He has shown though that he was more than capable of the job. He does a great job of not only giving each of the main characters sufficient screen time, but gives them individual opportunities to shine. Whedon's presence is also felt throughout the film as he peppers the script with several humorous one-liners and moments that are a trademark of his work. Despite a story that deals with the possible destruction of our planet, he finds plenty of chances to keep the feel of the film light and fun.

I will say that while this movie is a pure blockbuster thrill ride, it's not a perfect film. In many ways the creation of this film mirrors the path The Avengers take themselves to come together. The first half of the film feels a bit disjointed. Like the titular team, it consists of several individually great scenes that don't really build on each other. I began to get anxious waiting for something to happen and it felt like the plot was treading water - something I did not expect given how much time was spent with character development in the heroes' individual films.

However, things finally start to gel once we move into the final battle featuring the Avengers taking on Loki (brother of Thor) and the evil alien race that is set on destroying Earth in hopes of obtaining the Tesseract, the cosmic cube containing immense energy. This final act is just pure geek heaven as you watch each of these superheroes that you have come to love and enjoy team up and kick ass in a collective effort. Finally, we get the payoff that we've all waiting for and it delivers in spades.

Yes, this movie is all about being a team, but I would be remiss if I did not take time to point some indivually great performances in the film. Of course, Robert Downey Jr. is once again terrific as the brilliant, pompous, and sarcastic Tony Stark/Iron Man. He manages to be a star without upstaging anybody else in the movie, which is no easy feat. However, the true MVP of this film may be Mark Ruffalo, who steps in to play the Hulk/Bruce Banner. In the past, Marvel has failed at trying to find someone to play the green giant, but they finally got it right here. Ruffalo gives a nuanced performance as Banner and Whedon and co. do the rest in making the Hulk the awesome, destructive force that fans want him to be. Some of the best moments in The Avengers come from watching "Hulk Smash".

Again, no one is waiting on my recommendation to see this film, but I heartily endorse it nonetheless. This is what the summer movie season is all about. This film manages to blend humor and action seemlessly and create a movie that anyone can enjoy, despite the fact that it features a guy in a metal suit, a giant green monster, and the God of Thunder. So if you're the one guy on this planet who hasn't seen it yet, go out and do so. And for the rest of you, check it out again and catch the things you may have missed (especially the two post-credit scenes - one which happens after the main credits and the other which comes after all of the credits. Each are interesting in their own unique way). Just as the Avengers assemble here united in a common goal, we too can put aside our differences and unite in support of such an enjoyable film. Grade: B+

A thing to Marvel

I'm in nerd-vana over here checking out this latest trailer for The Avengers. If you haven't had a chance to check it out yet, do so now below.

RBR: What's Your Number

I really like Anna Faris and think she's talented, which makes it so frustrating to see her get attached to one crummy movie after the next. If only she could have a Bridesmaides-esque in which she could truly shine. What's Your Number is yet another familiar rom-com that makes the viewers go through one emotional hoop after another until it finally reaches its obvious conclusion. This time is centers around Ally, (Faris) who puts way too much stock in a magazine article which makes the claim that women who sleep with more than 20 men never find one to marry. Nearing the number herself, Ally begins revisiting past lovers in hopes of finding her perfect match. Credit the casting department for bringing on some funny guys like Joel McHale, Andy Samberg, and Thomas Lennon as some of her beaus, but their comedic talents are wasted here. Oddly enough, a lot of their best scenes were seen in the advertising for the film, yet not included in the film itself. Helping her in her quest is her lothario neighbor Colin (Chris Evans). Evans offers zero on-screen charisma despite the fact that the film attempts to present him as the perfect guy for her. The film offers a few chuckles but is largely a disappointment given the number of funny people here in this movie. Let's just hope for Anna Faris' sake that it will take less than 20 terrible films before she finds the one that will make her a star. Rating: **

Blasting Cap

If you're having a sense of comic book fatigure, you're not alone. This summer has been filled with superheroes debuting on the big screen, eager to tell the origin of their story. The latest of which is Captain America: The First Avenger. Set during World War II, we see how Steve Rogers from a scrawny nothing into the red, white, and blue hero we know today. The story of this transformation though is one that doesn't quite have the same dramatic heft to it as some of his fellow Avenger heroes.

Early on, we learn that Rogers (plays by Chris Evans) is eager to fight in the war but is deemed on multiple occasions to be physically unfit for battle. Enter Dr. Abraham Erskine, played by the wonderful Stanley Tucci, who recruits him to be the first guinea pig for a serum aimed to create super soldiers. He, along with Howard Stark (the father of Tony Stark aka Iron Man) are successful at turning Steve into the chiseled specimen they wanted. However, the key to why Steve was chosen in the first place is not for the dramatic visual transformation, but that he had the integrity that would be prevent him from abusing his newly acquire physical attributes.

This moral code which is established in the first half of the movie gets somewhat abandoned in the second half of the film when the focus turns, like it does in each of these movies, towards the showdown against the big villain. In this case, that's Red Skull, (Hugo Weaving), a Nazi soldier, who after obtaining a mystical, powerful cube, aims to establish world domination for himself. What he plans to do if he succeeds is never really established, though. Red Skull is a visually impressive character, but not as menacing of a villain as I would have liked. He just comes off as more crazy than evil.

The film boasts an impressive cast, although not all of the actors give equal performances. Tommy Lee Jones, playing a crusty colonel, is reliable as always to throw in one-liners and look tough. I also liked Toby Jones, who played Red Skull's right-hand man, Dr. Zola. On the other hand, Hayley Atwell, who plays Peggy Carter, a potential love interest for Cap, is nice to look at but has a dull as dishwater personality and fails to create any sort of chemisty in her performance. Likewise, the actor who plays Cap's best friend, 'Bucky' Barnes doesn't do much to establish that relationship, despite the significance it supposedly has in the story.

All of the key players needed for one of these origin stories are here but that merely makes the film competent, not fresh. For every archetype that should be included in a comic book movie, there has been a film that has come out before Captain America and offered the same thing in a more interesting manner. You feel like you're watching the film out of duty rather than enjoyment. The payoff doesn't come until we get Cap together with the rest of the Avengers team, which won't happen until next year.

It's hard to say whether or not the character would have been appreciated and understood in the Avengers movie had this film not first come out. That judgment won't be made until then, but for now, it seems like this movie did not have to be made. About the only interesting story element that felt novel here is the idea of our country using the newly created Captain America more as a propaganda tool rather than a fighting soldier. That could have provided some interesting commentary, but of course you can make social commentary in 3D, so that aspect gets abandoned in favor of scenes involving fights on trains and tanks getting blown up.

There's nothing to actively hate about this film, but it's timing is poor. In a summer filled with comic book movies, this one failed to find a way to stand out from the pack. Instead of feeling like there was an appreciation for this character and a desire to tell his story, the movie evokes a sense that this was merely a cog in the machine necessary to make the eventual Avengers movie possible. That sort of corporate greed is disheartening, but it's also what all of the captains of America today seem to represent. Grade: B-