Captain America!

[thalaw2]

I ain't seen it yet, but I'm dying to know you guys' opinions.  What did you see and how did you like it?  Let's test these boards with some good ol fashion discussion!

[BentonGrey]

We're going to see it Thursday night.  I cannot wait!

[stumpy]

I want to see it, too, but it may be a couple weeks for me. I notice that, while not all the reviews were exactly glowing, they were generally positive. Even Ebert liked it and he ended his review with the note that "If Marvel is wise, it will take this and 'Iron Man' as its templates."

[BentonGrey]

Alright ladies and gentlemen, I finally got to see Captain America last night, and in a word, it was fantastic.  This really was a great movie, and while I'm not sure if it is better than Iron Man, it was certainly close.  I have to say, I was extremely impressed.  It wasn't exactly flawless, and there are a few things I would have liked to see done differently, but all in all, this was a really great adventure flick.  I'm including a longer review below for anybody interested.

Ohh, and for the record, there is a shot of Thor with his cloak (still no freaking helmet) at the end of the Avengers trailer.  It looks like he's just minus the cloak in one scene with the team.  I don't think it's actually the Ultimate look.

Beware of Spoilers:











The movie itself was incredibly well put together, and it was infused, as all of the new Marvel movies have been, with a respect and a love for the source material.  The story itself could almost have been drawn from the classic comics.  In fact, there were elements of the story lifted wholesale from Cap's origin story.  Take the location of "Project Rebirth" and even the old woman guarding it, for example.  That's one of the things that I really enjoyed about this movie, it was so obviously infused with elements from Cap's history.  They managed to really capture everything good about the character, his strength of heart, his refusal to give in despite the worst of circumstances, and his innate goodness.  I think that is, perhaps, the thing I loved most about this movie.  There was no attempt to make Steve the type of character that small, petty people like JJ's reviewer friend want to see.  He was a hero, a true hero, with his heroism based on the true measure of the same, selflessness. 

The actual plot was great fun, full of action and adventure, but also infused with a surprising number of good and sometimes even great character moments.  What was so impressive to me was that the origin of Cap was utterly engaging.  You really came to love the scrappy little Steve Rogers, and by the time the experiment has actually happened, you really understand just why he was chosen.  I also loved Dr. Erskine.  They took what could have been a very simple, minor character, and really got at something important through him.

Now, I was extremely critical of the choice of Chris Evans as Cap at first, but after how well Marvel did in the last few years, I had decided to give them the benefit of the doubt.  Once again they have earned my trust, because Evans did a fantastic job.  He was utterly believable as the scrawny Rogers, and he somehow portrayed the transformation into the powerful, competent, and driven Cap both quickly and subtly.  On top of that, the guy LOOKED like Cap.  He was HUGE for this film, and he moved with the right type of grace and power, especially early on.

I actually really loved seeing something pretty close to the classic Cap costume, even if only in the USO shows.  I'll be darned if Evans didn't almost look like he'd stepped out of the pages of a comic for a moment or two.  However, that made me really wish we could have seen a more comic-accurate costume for his actual combat uniform.  I have to say, that thing is still pretty darn ugly.  That helmet/mask thing is pretty stupid looking, and those random gray straps break up the lines of the design in an unappealing way.  I still say that some scale-mail type of armor would have looked better and seemed less bulky. 

That being said, my complaints about the costume are pretty minor because they managed to make Cap fight like Cap, and that is darned impressive.  My buddy and I were talking about this as we left the theater.  He was saying how he had been pretty sure they couldn't have Cap use his shield like he's supposed to and NOT make it look super cheesy, but that they had pulled it off.  I had a similar concern, although I was more afraid that they'd shy away from the challenge.  However, they didn't, and they totally pulled it off.  Cap is throwing his shield, bouncing it off of bad guys, diving into enemies shield first, and generally fighting just like Cap from the comics.  It was awesome. 

Well, Chris Evans surprised me with how good he was, but the cast was stellar all the way around.  I was really surprised at the guy they had playing Dum-Dum, the former Buck Compton from Band of Brothers.  I'd have never thought of him for that role, but he did a nice job.  I tend to like the guy anyway, so it was cool to see him in this.  However, unquestionably, the star of this movie was Hugo Weaving.  He is one scary dude.  That man totally stole the scene several times, and he created an insane, intimidating, and utterly pitch-perfect Red Skull.  A hero is only as good as his villain, and Weaving gave us a fantastic villain.  I am a little sad, though.  With him playing the Skull, we will likely never see him as Namor now, and that's a shame, because that man looks just like the Submariner...

I like how they are tying all of these movies together, especially with the elements from the Thor mythos and history.  The Thule society meets real life Norse gods...that's pretty cool. 

I loved the ending of this movie, and the direction that Marvel is taking with all of these characters, one, may I say, that has been very nearly lost in modern comics.  I'm speaking of the realization evident in Thor, Captain America, and even in Iron Man, that heroism isn't about saving the world, it isn't about punching bad guys, and it isn't even about being a bad-a...it's about sacrifice and selflessness.  It's something that is at the core of who Steve Rogers is, and it is a lesson that both Iron Man and Thor had to learn in their films.  I love that.  It is a message that we can certainly use in our exceedingly self-absorbed and selfish culture.  The actions of our protagonist throughout this film always point back to this idea, and his final moments aboard the plane are really wonderful, as is the quiet sadness in that last line, "I had a date." 

Ahh.  To put it simply, I loved this movie.  It was great, and I'm going back to see it again as soon as I can manage.

[B A D]

Saw it, absolutely loved it. Took the whole family the second time not one complaint. They got  the 40's version of brooklyn down pat, and more importantly, they got the essence of who Steve Rogers is, and it showed on screen. Great cast, great movie.

[thalaw2]

Saw it.  Liked it!  I really thought it would be corny and it wasn't at all.  Is it up there with Iron Man....IMO yes!  In fact I like it more than I liked Iron Man.

[Kommando]

Its interesting. Lately I have not have had a lot of reason to be a fan of the US. But that's politics and neither here nor there. I have not seen many Marvel movies lately but the truth is I like Captain America. Despite the world situation, Cap has always been a hero that really turns the tables for me. He represents an America  that should be and that could be. I guess what it boils down to is I like patriotic heroes, and I really do want to watch this. Hopefully I can see it with friends as I don't like to go to the theater alone. I've heard nothing but good things about this movie.

[BentonGrey]

Definitely go see it.  It's fantastic.

[B A D]

 If you are worried about over the top "AMERICA!!! #@$#@$@ YEAH!!!" , don't be.

Its done very well, with a focus on Steve Rogers the man, not the  flag on his chest. The Allies are represented well and even the Germans(!) have a few sympathetic moments, especially with Stanley Tucci playing Dr. Erskine.

[John Jr.]

The movie manages to get what makes Cap great, his idealism, his courage and it's a great old fashioned action movie. Maybe the best Marvel movie to date.

[Tomato]

I'm going to sum up this entire discussion in one simple statement:

If you are a comic book fan, and you have not at least seen this film... you need to get off your tucas and go NOW.

[BentonGrey]

I'm going to sum up this entire discussion in one simple statement:

If you are a comic book fan, and you have not at least seen this film... you need to get off your tucas and go NOW.

If you aren't a comic book fan, but you like a good adventure flick, the same goes for you.

[Cyber Burn]

I will admit to being one of the Chris Evans haters (Really cheesey in "Not Another Teen Movie"), but I'm very happy to have been proven wrong. His performance was everything that I could have hoped for. He brought to life the iconic Captain America of my youth, which made me one happy Comic Geek.

My only beef, and it's not a big one, was that Hydra as a whole was nearly unrecognizable. I would have liked to have seen some sort of resemblance to the comics version.

One thing that did really get my geek on, was the nod to the Jim Hammond Human Torch. Very nice easter egg, especially with Evans previous portrayal as the FF Human Torch.

[Panther_Gunn]

My only beef, and it's not a big one, was that Hydra as a whole was nearly unrecognizable. I would have liked to have seen some sort of resemblance to the comics version.

One thing that did really get my geek on, was the nod to the Jim Hammond Human Torch. Very nice easter egg, especially with Evans previous portrayal as the FF Human Torch.

With as many retcons as Marvel has put them through, who's to say what they actually looked like during the war.  If they make an appearance in Avengers, or any possible future solo Cap movie, I would like to hope they'd appear a bit more like we're used to seeing them.

I liked the Torch reference, but I didn't like that it was so brief as to be easily missed.  I barely caught it, myself.

[JeyNyce]

Hydra look didn't bother me.  I rather have the black & silver uniforms than the green & yellow ones. 

[Courtnall6]

Hydra look didn't bother me.  I rather have the black & silver uniforms than the green & yellow ones.

The look didn't bother me too much either...but I would have gone with a dark green and gold.

[Panther_Gunn]

Hydra look didn't bother me.  I rather have the black & silver uniforms than the green & yellow ones.

The look didn't bother me too much either...but I would have gone with a dark green and gold.

And that, sir, is why you are awesome.   

[style]

They were green i'm confused!

[BentonGrey]

In the comics they were, but not in the movie:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HYDRA

[JeyNyce]

Ok, let just say they were a dark green in the movie.  They way the lighting was setup, they will still would have looked black.  Maybe in the outdoor areas you would have noticed, but inside it would be to dark to tell.