Sunday, April 6, 2014

Review: Captain America:The Winter Soldier

Review: Captain America:The Winter Soldier
*Spoiler Alert
  Do NOT forget to rate this post when you finish.

Official 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' Poster.
      The last Phase Two Marvel movie that affects the events of 'Marvel's The Avengers 2' and Marvel's Cinematic Universe, 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' truly manages to hold itself and become one of the best superhero movie.
"Scarlett Johansson"
and "Chris Evans".
"Sebastian Stan".
      Two years after the events of 'Marvel'sThe Avengers', 'Steve Rogers/Captain America'(Chris Evans) is adjusting to the 21st century, trying to catch up on all that he has missed while being frozen in the arctic ice. He is also putting on his suit and armor, working for S.H.I.E.L.D in various missions; even though, he is becoming suspicious towards the secrecy of a global project named 'Project Insight'. However, when S.H.I.E.L.D director 'Nick Fury'(Samuel L. Jackson) gets attacked by heavily armed mercenaries led by the mysterious 'Winter Soldier', 'Steve' must set aside his beliefs and values and investigate this global threat. Alongside 'Natasha Romanoff/Back Widow'(Scarlett Johansson) and ex-paratrooper 'Sam Wilson/The Falcon'(Anthony Mackie), they must go undercover and deal with the deep secrets of the organization they work with and become fugatives. Other major characters include 'Steve''s old best friend 'Bucky Barnes'(Sebastian Stan), high-ranking S.H.I.E.L.D 'Maria Hill'(Cobie Smulders), senior leader within S.H.I.E.L.D 'Alexander Pierce'(Robert Redford), operative in S.T.R.I.K.E team 'Brock Rumlow'(Frank Grillo), undercover S.H.I.E.L.D agent 'Sharon Carter/Agent 13'(Emily Van Camp), 'Arnim Zola'(Toby Jones), mercenary master 'Georges Batroc'(Georges St. Pierre),  S.H.I.E.L.D agent 'Jasper Sitwell'(Maximiliano Hernandez), Senator 'Stern'(Garry Shandling) and 'Peggy Carter'(Hayley Atwell).
"Anthony Mackie".
"Robert Redford" and
"Samuel L. Jackson".
'CaptainAmerica' and 'The Avengers' movie. All of us know the ability of Marvel to create good movies that relate quite well to the whole Cinematic Universe it had built for itself. But none of us would have known that it would have done such a wonderful job in 'Captain America 2', who as a hero character isn't well known worldwide as 'Iron Man' or 'Thor'. But what they did is that they gave us a new type of character-hero in a political-action setting, that was able to rely on recent realistic world themes and incorporate them beautifully in a superhero movie without going through conventional means. This is the second time since 'The Dark Knight' back in 2008 where I have seen a superhero movie tackle current real subjects happening in our world, while being relevant and respect the cinematic world it exist in. After the World War II setting of the first 'Captain America', giving us a modern story was the right direction to go in. And once again Marvel knocks it out of the park and proves to all of its fans, as well as haters, how brilliant it is and will continue to be.
"Emily Van Camp".
"Sebastian Stan".
      Directors "Anthony Russo" and "Joe Russo", who are mostly known for 'You, Me and Dupree', did a phenomenal job all in all. None of the audience would have guessed that the "Russo" brothers have never done an action movie and are really that knowledgeable in that movie genre. But what they have done is give us spectacular action sequences one after another, while beautifully allowing both the story and its characters to have the freedom to develop. Their direction style truly amazed me, especially in the angles they chose to give us certain scenes. And after this movie, the demand to recruit these directors will surely intensify. Writer duo "Christopher Markus" and "Stephen McFeely"('The Chronicles of Narnia' film series) gave us a much modernized Marvel story. While at many times it felt as an 'Avenger'-sequel movie, it also remained a 'Captain America'-sequel story keeping always 'Steve Rogers''s story the central focus of the entire film. The visual effects were as usual awesome to watch, though the use of the green screen in few scenes was a bit of a letdown. Composer "Henry Jackman", known for his work on 'Captain Phillips' and 'X-Men: First Class', gave us a score that complimented the movie well and incorporated it well in many of the action sequences to give us the thrill and excitement of the fighting sequences, and at the same time allowing the dramatic scenes to show the emotions.
"Chris Evans".
"Anthony Mackie".
      'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' surprised me with the level of consistency that it was able to keep throughout the movie in terms of action sequences and thrilling twists, while still maintaining its emotional depth. The opening sequence was very consistent with Marvel's clever comedic moments that it usually put in its movies, which was maintained throughout the movie. The first action sequence on the boat really set the bar high on the remaining action sequences, which even with the lack of experience of the "Russo" brothers in this department, were really exhilarating and very well choreographed. The car chase scenes were also another highlight of the movie. These scenes were done to near perfection, which was important due to their huge impact on the whole story. As for the major and penultimate climax scene battle, which was teased in the trailers, was of course my favorite scene and surely one of my best climax sequence ever. The sheer scale of this scene, combined with the choreographed fighting and directing style that complemented the constant movement surely made the scene an enjoyable 20-30 minutes of pure fun. The ending as usual teased the sequel and made sure to make us remember the big effect this movie will have on 'The Avengers: Age of Ultron' and the future of The Marvel Cinematic Universe. Make sure to stick around for the mid-credits and post-credits scenes.
"Scarlett Johansson".
"Chris Evans".
      For another movie, Marvel proves that its casting decisions are always spot on. Same as the other movies, 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' includes one of the best cast. Moreover, the movie includes mostly characters that are inside S.H.I.E.L.D, which is important for the continuity of the Cinematic Universe. Finally, "Chris Evans" plays the 'Captain America' everyone has been waiting for, combining his intelligence, charm, light and strong in a beautiful performance, once again proving his ability to handle this series on his shoulders. "Scarlett Johansson" once again proves why she is a skilled actress, further developing an already established character. The nice unconventional chemistry between the two characters was one of the highlights of the movie, thanking the writers for not romantically involving them within the movie. This movie was the most "Samuel Jackson" had to do with 'Nick Fury', in terms of having a true involvement in the story, whether from an action point of view or a narrative point of view. "Anthony Mackie", the newcomer in the Marvel universe, was brilliant introducing us to 'The Falcon' in the most brilliant performance. Hopefully his inclusion in future movies will be soon, where his chemistry with the actors/actresses was authentic especially with "Chris Evans"'s character. It was really nice that "Cobie Smulders"'s character 'Maria Hill' was included in the movie seeing her importance in S.H.I.E.L.D, though I expected more involvement in the action scenes.
"Chris Evans" and
"Smauel L. Jackson"
      The return of "Sebastian Stan" as 'Bucky Barns' and more importantly as 'The Winter Soldier', was much appreciated. Still the only complaint I had was that his story wasn't the center of the movie as many first thought. Casting "Robert Redford" paid many dividends for the movie, whose high caliber performance really brought depth to his character as well as the problem surrounding the movie. "Frank Grillo" showed the strength and resilience that his character should bring, though the incarnation of his character same as the comics was not present. "Emily Van Camp"'s character was put to a good supporting use, yet were able to introduce us to her so that she might be able to be further developed in future movies. The return of "Hayley Atwell" as old 'Peggy Carter', where her scene with 'Captain America' was very emotional and important for the titular hero's character, was exciting. Also the return of "Toby Jones" character was vital to the story's continuation, where as many other characters paid tribute to their incarnation in the comic books. "Maximiliano Hernandez"'s inclusion cemented the link of the Marvel universe (with the TV series 'Marvel Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D’), and the remaining supporting actors/actresses provided a solid support to the main cast. A 'Doctor Strange' 3 sec cameo appearance was a joy to many fans, whose incarnation to the big screen is sure to come in few years.
      Overall, 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' will be considered as one of the better Marvel movies, whose story will sure affect 'The Avengers: Age of Ultron' and future movies to come(which I stressed on many times throughout the review).

Official 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' Poster.
-'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' Info:
-Starring: Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Sebastian Stan, Samuel L. Jackson, Anthony Mackie, Cobie Smulders, Frank Grillo, Emily Van Camp, Toby Jones, Georges St. Pierre, Maximiliano Hernandez, Garry Shandling, Hayley Atwell and Robert Redford.
-Based on: 'Captain America' by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby.
-Studio(s): Marvel Studios and Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.
-Directed by: Anthony Russo and Joe Russo.
-Written by: Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely.
-Music by: Henry Jackman.
-Running Time: 136 minutes.
-Budget: $ 170,000,000.
-Box Office: -Domestic(US): $ 259,766,572.
                    -Foreign: $ 454,317,000.
-Ratings: -IMdb: 8.3/10
              -Rotten Tomatoes: 89%.
              -Metacritic: 69%.

              -PERSONAL RATING: 8.5/10.

-'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' Trailer:


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