Marvel continues its saga with the latest instalment Captain Marvel (2019, Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck). Set in the 90s, and pre-dating the first MCU movie Iron Man (2008, Jon Favreau), the movie follows a Kree Soldier who falls to Earth and slowly discovers that she used to be human, whilst also dealing with an invasion of shape-shifting aliens called the Skrulls. This movie is the first Solo movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe that features a female lead and acts as the set-up for the character appearing in Avengers: Endgame (2019, Joe & Anthony Russo). So there are some high expectations for this movie. After Wonder Woman (2017, Patty Jenkins) proved how successful a female-lead Superhero movie can be, and the fact that it benefits from a highly loved cinematic franchise, hopefully, this movie can live up to those expectations.
First Thoughts
Yeah, this a good movie. It's fun to watch and introduces audiences to an interesting new hero. However, compared to other movies within the MCU it doesn't really hold up. It feels like a simpler movie compared to the latest Marvel Movies which have seemed much bigger in scale. I would recommend watching this movie just because it is fun
Brie Larson/Captain Marvel/Carol Danvers
Overall, I liked Carol Danvers (Brie Larson). She doesn't exactly live up to other Marvel heroes like Thor (Chris Hemsworth) or Iron Man (Rober Downey Jr) in terms of likeability but she is interesting. And I imagine further movies will help to flesh out her character. Brie Larson does a decent job as Captain Marvel. Particularly in the more serious and emotional scenes she really does shine. However, I do have problems with her performance. The main being that most of her jokes fall flat. Brie Larson says her lines with such deadpan delivery that sometimes it works but most of the time it doesn't. I also didn't like how easy it was for her to grasp her powers. She rarely sweats in this movie, which I felt kinda takes away from her character. I like it when the protagonist isn't always in control of the situation and has to struggle to get to the top. But Carol doesn't do that. She's usually in control and makes everything look effortless that it's difficult to relate to her. But, overall, I did end up liking Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel despite her flaws, which I think can be fixed in later movies, similar to how Captain Amerca evolved over his movies. No one was a big fan of his first movie but over the course of his trilogy fans grew to like him. And I believe the same can happen for Captain Marvel.
Samuel L. Jackson/Nick Fury
Samuel L. Jackson (Pulp Fiction, Django Unchained) is in good form in this movie. Playing a younger and very different version of Nick Fury. Jackson brings a lot of charisma to the movie, particularly his interactions with Carol, which were quite fun to watch. They really off each other very well. Although, I was a little disappointed that the film didn't try to set up Nick Fury as the character we know from The Avengers (2012, Joss Whedon) and The Winter Soldier (2014, Joe & Anthony Russo) where he's quite mistrusting and sceptical of those around him. He ends the movie the same as he started. So I felt that was a missed opportunity. For instance, at the end of the movie, we get a reveal that was very disappointing. The filmmakers had a good opportunity for a character-defining moment that would set up the Nick Fury that we know from previous movies, and they threw it away for a joke. So Samuel L. Jackson did a very good job in this movie and had great chemistry with Brie Larson, but I felt the writing really let the character down. Also, I will say that the CG work to make him look younger was incredible, it looks so organic that you barely notice it! Very good work there!
Ben Mendehlson/Talos
I'll be honest, I was not expecting much when it comes to the Skrulls. From the stills and ads for this movie they looked like generic green aliens from a Sci-Fi TV show and not from a high-budget movie. And I still hold that belief! But Ben Mendehlson (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, The Dark Knight Rises) did such a good job in this movie that I grew to like the Skrulls. Mendehlson's Talos is such an interesting and fun character. From his motivations to his mannerisms. Ben Mendehlson has always been quite a charismatic actor and he brings that to this role. That being said, there are several changes made to the Skrulls in this movie that I wonder how hardcore Marvel Comic fans will react to it. There are some big changes that make them very different from how they're portrayed in the comics. Personally, I'm interested to see if the MCU will explore this more in future movies but I can see fans of the comics taking issue with it.
Goose The Cat
I have mixed feelings on the cat. Sometimes his scenes worked and sometimes they didn't. Although his moments in the final act were very fun to watch. This is a good movie if you're a cat person.
Action
The action in this movie is kinda bland and generic. There's no real style to it. Compared to Guardians Of The Galaxy (2014, James Gunn) which has very stylised action sequences and Captain America: Civil War (2016, Joe & Anthony Russo) that had some of the best fight scenes in the MCU, the action in this movie doesn't really live up. Now, there are some good scenes. Arguably my favourite scene in the whole movie is when Captain Marvel is trapped on a Skrull ship and unable to break out of her shackles to use her powers. It's the most vulnerable the character gets and does have some laughs that work. But, other than that, the rest of the action in this movie isn't really that well done. However, I can't say that the action isn't enjoyable. It's not extraordinary but I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy watching it. I just wish that the filmmakers had tried to add some flare to them to make them truly stand out.
Visuals
Much like the action, the visuals in this movie aren't properly realised either. I'd say the most visually interesting thing in this movie is the Kree Planet, Hala. Which looks incredible when we see it at the start of the movie. But all of the other sets and style aren't really that eye-catching. Some of them look more like sets for a TV show, like Star Trek. Not really something you expect to see for a high-budget movie. And even a Marvel movie too, which are usually really good at creating out-of-this-world visuals for their movies.
Stan Lee Tribute
Captain Marvel does feature a Stan Lee tribute at the beginning which is very heartfelt and was great to see. Reflecting on all of his movie cameos in the introduction which was quite touching. But it goes even further. The Stan Lee cameo in this movie was surprisingly quite nice. I won't say what it is, as it's better to experience it. But it was a very lovely moment between him and Captain Marvel. And I think Brie Larson did a lot to boost that moment too with her acting. It's subtle but it's very effective.
Credit Scenes
Captain Marvel has a Mid-Credit scene and an end credit scene. The Mid-Credit scene is a good follow up to Avengers: Endgame teasing Captain Marvel's role in the fight against Thanos. Whilst the End-Credit scene is just a laugh. You can honestly just skip it. Unless you want to see it just for the laughs.
Conclusion
This is a flawed movie with a bland style, particularly for a Marvel movie. However, there is a lot to like here. Particularly the character interactions and the action, whilst not extraordinary is enjoyable at best. There are some standout performances from Jackson and Mendehlson and, as for Brie Larson, the goal of the movie was to present a strong female character and I believe, to an extent, that the movie succeeds in doing that. I think Larson's portrayal of Captain Marvel is off to a rocky start. But she does have some pretty good moments, mainly when she's more serious and emotional, that I see a lot of potential for her in future movies and I'm interested to see where she takes Carol Danvers in Avengers: Endgame and future Captain Marvel movies.
So that's my review of Captain Marvel. What did you think of the movie? Do you agree or disagree with any of my points? Please leave a comment down below and we can discuss it. And, if you liked this review then you can follow this blog for more content. Thank you for reading!
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