Captain America: The First Avenger has a strong opening hour, a noble achievement. Unfortunately it can’t sustain that standard of quality, devolving into hackneyed melodrama in the final hour. This is a shame, because a world-beating Captain America film could have created unassailable momentum for The Avengers. Alas, it’s not to be. What we have here is a slightly below average movie, doomed by choppy editing and cringe-worthy characterizations. So it goes.
After the iconic Marvel Studios logo we’re greeted by distant headlights in the snow. Orchestral strings pace the opening moments, faceless men emerging from the shadows to have a look at what appears to be a spaceship. What is it that’s sticking out of the snow? And what does the futuristic-looking craft contain? Whoooosh, we’re whisked back to Norway in 1942, World War 2, at the outset of the Nazi occupation. Hugo Weaving is Johann Schmidt, but he’s doing his best Christoph Waltz impression, and he’s desperately looking for something. Something powerful. This mysterious power source eludes him, and it’s the final piece to his HYDRA puzzle. HYDRA is the super secret science-based weaponry unit that Hitler has funded, and Schmidt is the evil fellow who is tasked with evil project management. Believe it or not, HYDRA is WORSE than the Nazis, at least according to the mythology of Captain America.
Now I know what you’re thinking. “Umm, sure, but when does Captain America his own self enter the picture?” Next! He’s up next, and he stands about 5’4?, 130lbs at the outset of his introduction. He’s small, but scrappy, and he positively HATES bullies. Extra credit if you surmise that attribute might come up again. Anyway, he’s trying to join the army, but he’s striking out, because he’s too sickly. We’ve all been there. His best pal tells him to get over it, soon he’ll be the only eligible bachelor in a town with millions of single girls. The entire “smallification of Chris Evans” effect is handled with the help of Benjamin Button technology, and it’s effective enough to be jarring. Your mind knows real-life Chris Evans is yoked, but your eyes keep demanding that he’s wee. You’re certain that eventually a transformation will happen. But how, and more importantly, when?
At this point, we can all agree, based on the trailers and posters, that Captain America does join the fight. So we’ll leave the rest for your viewing enjoyment. As mentioned prior, the first half of the film comes off relatively well, Tommy Lee Jones plays a hard-nosed general who underestimates Steve Rogers’ abilities. Hayley Atwell (as Peggy Carter) is the love interest, she’s worried and charmed by the Captain’s transformation into an elite fighting machine. Finally, Stanley Tucci is the mad scientist on the American side of the equation, the natural counterbalance to HYDRA’s nefarious plots.
The real problems for Captain America: The First Avenger come when the momentum of the piece is undone by absolutely brutal editing and dialogue. Examples abound, but one good example is when Captain America is scheduled to receive an award … which he doesn’t show up to receive. They call his name, they’ve set up the podium, and the audience looks on expectantly. But Captain America is off doing his thing, or at least that’s the inference. But didn’t anyone think to check if he was actually there before they went up to the mic to introduce him? Did he RSVP? Little items like that kept adding up until they became a much bigger issue. Another example occurs when a gal throws herself at The Captain, he attempts to parry her physical advances, which of course leads to his actual love interest walking in to “catch them in the act,” all so we can have a 15-minute misunderstanding. It’s focus group character management at its worse. But as you’ve come this far, I’ll give you three more rapid fire moments of murderous interaction. In one scene Captain America has done something particularly gallant … to which one of his team members shouts, “Let’s hear it for Captain America!” Cue applause. Another primary character can be heard saying, “You don’t give up, do you?” and “Fire again, kill him!” in the thick of a battle. I get that the film glances wistfully back to a simpler and gentler time but the writing itself pales in comparison to modern hero narratives. No chances were taken, and nothing new was attempted. The film is a composite of what a superhero film should look like.
The film that Captain America: The First Avenger most homages? Pearl Harbor, a prime example of ham-fisted and forced relationships cribbing any sense of authenticity. Captain America punches and kicks his way through the Nazis (and worse), but the movie itself can’t find a foothold. Yes, in the final moments they manage to logically pivot to The Avengers, a film one can’t help but look forward to, but where lasting impact is concerned Captain America: The First Avenger comes up far short.
Grade: C-
