PHOTO COURTESY OF MARVEL.COM
This past weekend, “Captain America: Winter Soldier” stormed into theaters across the world. It set a new record for the most money made in an opening weekend in the month of April by a significant amount and left a wide age range of moviegoers satisfied with the experience and eagerly waiting for more.
In this power-packed sequel to the 2011 movie “Captain America: The First Avenger,” it becomes clear that Marvel has figured out exactly the correct ratio of explosions and slow-motion fight scenes to powerful dialogue to hold audiences completely enraptured for two hours. Despite the garish explosions, outrageously fit bodies and a slew of super-secret gadgets that continually present new and interesting escape options in the nick of time, “Winter Solder” gives audiences an enjoyable two-hour ride that leaves viewers begging for even more information on America’s super hero.
“Captain America: Winter Soldier” takes full advantage of the already established Marvel world by giving a brief introduction of new characters and then hits viewers right away with incredible action sequence after incredible action sequence. This leads to the ultimate question: Can anyone beat the Captain?
Of course the answer comes right on the heels of a victory in the form of the Winter Soldier, a mysterious mercenary with a record for assassinations that reaches back 50 years. Add to this the fact that he has a mechanical arm capable of stopping the Captain’s vibranium shield mid-flight and a set of martial arts skills that seem more reminiscent of a sith lord than a Marvel villain, and the question rapidly becomes: Can the Captain rally his forces to beat this newfound terror, or will a new world order arise?
The action sequences in the film, though at times showy and a little preposterous, are breathtaking. During some sequences, viewers find themselves trying not to blink to keep up with the rapid pace with which the Captain and the Winter Soldier move and instantly adapt to each other’s fighting styles.
“Winter Soldier” offers a number of genuinely good acting moments tucked away between the explosions and chase scenes. The performances from Chris Evens and Scarlett Johansson lack nothing in their normal dry comedic timing, and Anthony Mackie, the newest member of the Marvel team, turns in a good performance as a recovering war veteran who is called on by the Captain to serve again.
As an added bonus, “Winter Soldier” takes time to develop some of the secondary characters of the Marvel universe. This means screen greats Samuel L. Jackson and Robert Redford get a lot more screen time to develop their characters and show their acting chops.
Of course, the special effects for this film deserve an honorable mention. More than half of the film has some form of CGI in the shot, and it is carried off seamlessly. Giant, hovering battleships and heli-fighters aside, there is quite a bit of human animation that is done to make the ridiculously fit Chris Evans look scrawny and skinny for a part of the movie.
“Captain America: Winter Soldier” does exactly what it is supposed to do. It gives Marvel fans well-developed characters and puts them right in the middle of incredible situations in whichall they stand for can be tested and tried. In the end, viewers are left hanging and ready for the next installment of the ever-growing Marvel universe.
