CAPTAIN AMERICA : THE FIRST AVENGER - archive from 10th August 2011

Saw 'CAPTAIN AMERICA' last night - the latest Marvel franchise offering. Directed by Joe Johnston for a production budget of US$140M this film grossed US$371M and did no harm in establishing the future story line of 'The Avengers' and in turn set up the 'Winter Soldier' sequel, and in turn 'Civil War' due for release in mid-2016. Here we have another Marvel all star cast with a storyline set largely during WWII, as various characters are set up in origin style that will continue the storyline and interwoven plots in subsequent films as the Marvel Universe is rolled out in future years.

Chris Evans plays the title role having shaken off his earlier 'Fantastic Four' mantle & here puts in a convincing turn as our unlikely hero. lifted out of the 40's eventually into the noughties! After an initial glimpse of the present day, Steve Rogers as the underweight, beanpole weakling tries to enlist for US military service but is rejected time after time because of his physical and health related issues. After eavesdropping on a conversation with his good friend Sergeant James 'Bucky' Barnes (remember this name for later[played by Sebastian Stan]) a scientist allows Rogers to be recruited into the WWII US Military Reserve as part of 'Super Soldier' experiment.

While this is going on in the good ol' war bashing USofA, back in war stricken Europe, Nazi Officer and megalomaniac in waiting Johann Schmidt (Hugo Weaving) is poised on the edge of world domination with the help of the 'Tesseract' which he has uncovered in the Norwegian town of Tonsberg. As we have come to know from successive Marvel films - the Tesseract has untold super powers. Back at base camp in the US Rogers is chosen to be the guinea pig for an experiment overseen by one Howard Stark (Dominic Cooper), and when the requisite level of power, super-serum and vita-rays is applied in a confined space, then voila, Captain America is born - six foot eight, pecs of steel, guns of iron and a determination to bring peace to the world. 

Schmidt meanwhile has now morphed into 'Red Skull' after a disfiguring accident in his scientific mountain lair, and with the Tesseract in his possession he believes he is on course for world domination, but of course hadn't counted on the new powers of Steve Rogers - newly crowned 'Captain America' thanks to the success of the earlier 'Super Soldier' experiment. Ultimately the Tesseract will be Red Skulls downfall, but result also in Captain America crashing into the Arctic ice where he will not be discovered until the present day.

All is good in the end as you would expect from the Marvelverse, and this new action hero sets up the story arc for the next outing which sees the film end with a current day scene in Times Square where our 'First Avenger' awakens after a 70 year sleep to be enlisted by Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) for a mission that could have far reaching implications on the world as we know it. For Steve Rogers though he is a 1940's soul in a 2000's world and there is a period of readjustment that has to be had . . . for any more however, you'll just have to tune into the successive films in the ever growing ever popular ever blockbusting Marvel Universe.

This origin story sets up the upcoming 'Avengers' offering and does so in fine style. Hugo Weaving is suitably menacing as the Nazi 'Red Skull' Hell bent on world destruction & Tommy Lee Jones leading the US Army charge as Colonel Chester Philips with Stanley Tucci, Toby Jones and Neal McDonagh entertaining & putting on a solid collective rendition of this more widely known popular comic book hero. In closing this sets the tone for Marvel and does it well. A convincing story from rich source material, solid performances, well rendered graphics and imagery, and a franchise in the making. Very entertaining all round.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-