Just like the previous film, Thor, I seem to be in the minority when I say this is an excellent film. Maybe 4 is generous and that it's more likely a 3.5 but everything just works for me here. With Joe Johnston applying the pulping feel of The Rocketeer to the early days of the Captain America mythos. The first act is fantastic, from learning who Steve Rogers is, to the unveiling of Rogers post-Super Soldier serum. Chris Evans is such a fantastic casting, in a role he would come to define for a decade.
Perhaps Act 2 slows things down a little. The film relies a little on a montage that feels overly CGI heavy and it lacks a big finish but it's the characters that really make this work for me. Particularly the relationship between Evans' Rogers and Atwell's Carter, which would be a centerpiece of the Infinity Saga, all the way to the end. I also really enjoyed the brief relationship between Rogers and Erskine (played by Stanley Tucci). Weaving is as always a great villain in The Red Skull. The script let's him down at times. We see his menace, and understand his desires but I don't think the film really shows the potential repercussions of his threats.
That aside, I really enjoyed Captain America: The First Avenger. It's a film that gets overlooked among some of the bigger and better films in the MCU, including the two beloved Captain America sequels that follow this. But it slots really well between Thor and The Avengers for me, and is a perfect launching pad for Chris Evans' Captain America, which would come to be a defining character for the next decade to come.
Review by TheLazyReviewerBlockedParent2024-03-24T11:23:56Z
Film 138 (Goal: 300) of 2024:
Just like the previous film, Thor, I seem to be in the minority when I say this is an excellent film. Maybe 4 is generous and that it's more likely a 3.5 but everything just works for me here. With Joe Johnston applying the pulping feel of The Rocketeer to the early days of the Captain America mythos. The first act is fantastic, from learning who Steve Rogers is, to the unveiling of Rogers post-Super Soldier serum. Chris Evans is such a fantastic casting, in a role he would come to define for a decade.
Perhaps Act 2 slows things down a little. The film relies a little on a montage that feels overly CGI heavy and it lacks a big finish but it's the characters that really make this work for me. Particularly the relationship between Evans' Rogers and Atwell's Carter, which would be a centerpiece of the Infinity Saga, all the way to the end. I also really enjoyed the brief relationship between Rogers and Erskine (played by Stanley Tucci). Weaving is as always a great villain in The Red Skull. The script let's him down at times. We see his menace, and understand his desires but I don't think the film really shows the potential repercussions of his threats.
That aside, I really enjoyed Captain America: The First Avenger. It's a film that gets overlooked among some of the bigger and better films in the MCU, including the two beloved Captain America sequels that follow this. But it slots really well between Thor and The Avengers for me, and is a perfect launching pad for Chris Evans' Captain America, which would come to be a defining character for the next decade to come.