Captain America - The First Avenger (Spoilers)

How would you rate Captain America: The First Avenger?


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DIrishB

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Saw the midnight showing last night.

This is probably Marvel Studios best movie so far.

First off, Chris Evans does a great job of carrying the movie. Very charming and likeable, both as skinny Steve and jacked Cap. Definitely a good choice for the role. Could other actors have done it better? Maybe, but Evans is Cap in my opinion.

Secondly, Hayley Atwell's Peggy Carter was great: strong, confident, capable, and intelligent. I rather enjoyed the subdued love story between Cap and Peggy...most of the time the shoe-horned in love stories in Super Hero films come off as forced and unbelievable, but not so here.

Tommy Lee Jones is awesome. That is all.

Loved the evolution of the costume in the movie too, from the goofy USO costume to the one seen in the trailers.

There were a lot of cool little nods to Cap's history from the comics. Cap punching "Hitler" in the USO show, a close up shot of Armin Zola staring through a retro-TV screen as a nod to his TV face in his stomach from the comics.

A really great summer popcorn film, simply put.
 
Re: Captain America - The First Avenger

Really better than IRON MAN and THOR?

Personally, I liked it better than Iron Man, and even a bit more than Thor. It just had a certain appeal I can't really put my finger on. I'm definitely motivated to see it again while its in theaters, and neither Thor or Iron Man got me back into the theater a second time, I could stand to wait for the DVD on those.

I don't know, I just really enjoyed it. There was just an overwhelming sense of likeability to just about every aspect of the movie for me.

Granted, other people might disagree, and understandably so, but Captain America was a lot of fun.
 
Re: Captain America - The First Avenger

Personally, I liked it better than Iron Man, and even a bit more than Thor. It just had a certain appeal I can't really put my finger on. I'm definitely motivated to see it again while its in theaters, and neither Thor or Iron Man got me back into the theater a second time, I could stand to wait for the DVD on those.

I don't know, I just really enjoyed it. There was just an overwhelming sense of likeability to just about every aspect of the movie for me.

Granted, other people might disagree, and understandably so, but Captain America was a lot of fun.

Cool. Looking forward to it!
 
Right up there with the first Iron Man for best Marvel based film ever. Personally, it's in my top 4 favorite comic book films with Batman Begins, Iron Man and The Dark Knight. This really is one of the best times I've had at the movies. This made Thor it's *****.

I honestly can't think of anything to criticize. If I had to pick one thing, it's that I would have LOVED the opportunity to see more WWII era adventures of Captain America. That said, I'm very interested to see where the go with sequels set in the modern day. I've always taken to fish out of water stories.

I really don't have a lot to add to what DIrishB said. Evans is great. And this movie actually has a really strong love story which works. I don't know if I can say that about any other superhero films. I was shocked at just how moved I was by the last scene of the film. 5 out of 5 stars.
 
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I don't understand how people are saying this is better than Iron Man and Thor. It was cliche, the effects were pretty sloppy, Bucky's death wasn't handled very well, the Red Skull really wasn't given enough focus, and a lot of the lines were really cheesy. Don't get me wrong, it was a good movie, but it could have been a lot better.
 
My only real issue was Bucky's death. Which puts it behind Iron Man, but ahead of Thor. May elaborate later; am really very drunk right now, and it is a trial to keep up a coherent sentence, much less spelling.
 
That said, I'm very interested to see where the go with sequels set in the modern day. I've always taken to fish out of water stories.

While the sequels will be mostly set in modern day, the writers of the first movie left plenty of space for flashbacks to WWII in future sequels, with all the jumps in time during Captain America.


...speaking of which, the Marvel Cinematic Universe Timeline will be posted later today.


I don't understand how people are saying this is better than Iron Man and Thor. It was cliche, the effects were pretty sloppy, Bucky's death wasn't handled very well, the Red Skull really wasn't given enough focus, and a lot of the lines were really cheesy. Don't get me wrong, it was a good movie, but it could have been a lot better.

Of course it could have been better, but that doesn't detract from the things that made it great. It had a certain amount of heart to it neither Thor or Iron Man had.



As for the Bucky thing, I expect him to come back in sequels as Winter Soldier. I have a feeling that lab table/hospital bed thing he was on when Cap rescued him was a clue to Red Skull trying to replicate Erskine's formula, possibly using Bucky as a lab rat. His "death" was left kind of open. After all, when there isn't a body...
 
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I don't understand how people are saying this is better than Iron Man and Thor. It was cliche, the effects were pretty sloppy, Bucky's death wasn't handled very well, the Red Skull really wasn't given enough focus, and a lot of the lines were really cheesy. Don't get me wrong, it was a good movie, but it could have been a lot better.

Sure some of it was a bit cliche and cheesy, but it worked for the time period and setting. I was honestly really impressed with the effects. The only minor criticism I would have is that skinny Steve Rogers looked a bit off in a few scenes, particularly where his face meets the rest of his body. As for Bucky's death...I'm not really a fan of the character so I didn't care. Red Skull was given just as much focus as any other Marvel movie villain. You can't have him taking up too much screen time from Captain America.

I'll agree with what others have said, this movie just had a heart to it that a lot of comic book films don't.

As for the Bucky thing, I expect him to come back in sequels as Winter Soldier. I have a feeling that lab table/hospital bed thing he was on when Cap rescued him was a clue to Red Skull trying to replicate Erskine's formula, possibly using Bucky as a lab rat. His "death" was left kind of open. After all, when there isn't a body...

Yeah, that's what I was thinking.
 
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Of course it could have been better, but that doesn't detract from the things that made it great. It had a certain amount of heart to it neither Thor or Iron Man had.

It was formulaic and predictable and all of the emotion felt set up except for towards the end. The part where Steve is in boot camp and dives for the grenade is one of the most ridiculously cliche moments I've ever seen in a film. Yes, Captain America is a person who would do anything for his country and his fellow man, but there are good ways to handle that and there are bad ways to handle it.

Sure some of it was a bit cliche and cheesy, but it worked for the time period and setting. I was honestly really impressed with the effects. The only minor criticism I would have is that skinny Steve Rogers looked a bit off in a few scenes, particularly where his face meets the rest of his body. As for Bucky's death...I'm not really a fan of the character so I didn't care. Red Skull was given just as much focus as any other Marvel movie villain. You can't have him taking up too much screen time from Captain America.

The stuff that worked for the time period and setting aren't what I'm complaining about. It's the way they set up Steve as his unfailing, optimistic self. It's a bunch of other stuff I'm not even trying to remember. But the point is, it's the way all of those aspects were directed. And the special effects were probably the worst of the Marvel Studios movies. Everything was so visibly fake, from Captain America's running to his shield-throwing.

I'm not even a fan of Bucky period. I'm not saying that the way his death was handled hurt just the character, it also hurt the flow of the movie. His death didn't feel right at that moment in time. As for Red Skull, he didn't have enough interaction with Captain America, and he just wasn't that interesting overall.
 
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It was formulaic and predictable and all of the emotion felt set up except for towards the end. The part where Steve is in boot camp and dives for the grenade is one of the most ridiculously cliche moments I've ever seen in a film. Yes, Captain America is a person who would do anything for his country and his fellow man, but there are good ways to handle that and there are bad ways to handle it.

I thought that was a great example of characterization, but to each their own. I wouldn't call jumping on a grenade a cliche, even in a war film, but again, to each their own.



I'm not even a fan of Bucky period. I'm not saying that the way his death was handled hurt just the character, it also hurt the flow of the movie. His death didn't feel right at that moment in time. As for Red Skull, he didn't have enough interaction with Captain America, and he just wasn't that interesting overall.

I do agree the Red Skull fell a bit flat, but then again, so did Stane in Iron Man, and even worse, Whiplash in IM2. The only Marvel villain so far that seems a credible threat is Loki, at least as far as these things go.
 
Saw it this afternoon and loved it. I don't quite agree that it's better than Thor or Iron Man (I think Thor is probably my favorite of the bunch) but it definitely matches them both in terms of fun and entertainment. Chris Evans did a very admirable job and the supporting parts were phenomenally well cast, Tommy Lee Jones in particular. And Hugo Weaving, who was seemingly born to play an evil Nazi.

I do agree that this had a certain heart to it that the other films didn't have as much of, it was one of my favorite things about it. I was wondering how they would handle the balance between respecting history and fulfilling people's desire to see Cap busting Nazis, and I loved the emphasis they put on his qualities as a person: he's not a hero because he's a big guy running around punching Hitler, he's a hero because he's brave and good hearted and cares most about helping people.

I think my one complaint is the way the ending was handled. The Nick Fury scene at the end felt out of place and I wished they'd saved it for The Avengers, or for the after credits scene. (Speaking of which, what did people think of the teaser??) Only a minor complaint though. It was just really fun. Marvel Studios has definitely mastered this kind of fun, summer superhero movie.
 
It was formulaic and predictable and all of the emotion felt set up except for towards the end. The part where Steve is in boot camp and dives for the grenade is one of the most ridiculously cliche moments I've ever seen in a film. Yes, Captain America is a person who would do anything for his country and his fellow man, but there are good ways to handle that and there are bad ways to handle it.

Tell that to my grampa, he saved his squad in Korea (and got the second of his two purple hearts) by diving on a land mine. I'm sure he'd appreciate it and point out how awesome it is to **** into a colostomy bag in your 20's.



I really enjoyed this, but I think mostly because of how well the director handled the 40's. I'm a huge fan of The Rocketeer, and I think he was able to express both the realities of a patriotic time without it sinking into mindless nepotism. I have to agree with Moonie, the Fury scene felt a bit out of place. I kinda wished they'd elaborated on the Tesseract more, I found myself explaining the Cosmic Cube to the friends I went with.

I have to agree with most everyone here, Cap had a LOT of heart, and I'm hoping Winter Soldier is covered in the sequels. Plus, I'd love to see Skull reappear during the Avengers.
 
I loved it. I didn't like his voice at first. It didn't match up with his sickly body. His voice sounded too healthy. Regardless, it still worked well and the progression from there was near flawless. Tucci was great and his comedic timing was impeccable, same as Jones. Tommy Lee Jones was probably my favorite actor in this film. His performance reminded me alot of US Marshalls, which I loved. The action was great. The Howling Commandos was a nice touch.


Favorite Line: "I ain't kissing ya."
 
Tell that to my grampa, he saved his squad in Korea (and got the second of his two purple hearts) by diving on a land mine. I'm sure he'd appreciate it and point out how awesome it is to **** into a colostomy bag in your 20's.

Like I said, it's not the fact that Steve Rogers dived for the grenade, it's the WAY IT WAS HANDLED.
 
I really enjoyed this, but I think mostly because of how well the director handled the 40's. I'm a huge fan of The Rocketeer, and I think he was able to express both the realities of a patriotic time without it sinking into mindless nepotism. I have to agree with Moonie, the Fury scene felt a bit out of place. I kinda wished they'd elaborated on the Tesseract more, I found myself explaining the Cosmic Cube to the friends I went with.

In case you didn't already know; Joe Johnston, directed both CAP and THE ROCKETEER.
 
Like I said, it's not the fact that Steve Rogers dived for the grenade, it's the WAY IT WAS HANDLED.

Then how would you have handled it? You haven't elaborated on what exactly was handled poorly about it yet.

I agree with what you said about Bucky's death; it was sudden, came without any leadup, and just felt awkward. But the rest of the movie? Great. Definitely my second-favourite Marvel Studios movie, and as no super hero movie has been able to supplant Iron Man from the top of my list, that's pretty high praise.
 

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