Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

I am starting my reviews with Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), the latest in the Marvel series of Superhero films.   While you would gain more enjoyment if you have seen the Captain America: The First Avenger  (2011) and Avengers (2012), nothing prevents you from enjoying the movie if you have not seen any of the Marvel series of films. 


Movie: Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
Rating: PG-13

Starring: Chris Evans as Captain America/Steve Rogers, Samuel L Jackson as Nick Fury, Robert Redford as Alexander Pierce, and the always lovely Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff / Black Widow.
Score: 8 out of 10 stars
Family Friendly: 4/5 (Intense gun fighting, action violence and big screen explosions.  No Nudity/sex or Language issues)
Recommended:  Anyone who enjoys a good summer blockbuster which is as much as a Borne film as a superhero film and enjoys summer blockbusters films should see this.  

Plot Summery (No Spoilers)

Captain America faces off foes, both foreign and domestic as he finds out that SHIELD has been compromised from the inside, and must race to stop a plot to enslave the world.

Plot Summery (Spoilers)

Captain America, a washed out WW2 era infantryman turned into a Superhero to fight Nazi's was frozen and finds himself in today's world.   He works for a organization called SHIELD (think Homeland Security with Superheros) to keep the world a safe place.   The opening sequence is of Cap. America and a team of Special forces recapturing a ship and saving hostages.   However Black Widow has a side mission to download some data.  

Something is not right in the secret world of SHIELD, and soon Nick Fury, who is in charge of it, is attacked by assailants, is able to escape only to be killed before Captain America, before warning him to trust no-one and given the data that was obtained in the opening raid.

Captain America refuses to give all information to Fury's boss (Pierce, played by a masterful Robert Redford) and there is a attempt to arrest Captian America, who goes on the lamb to find out what really is going on.   Soon him and Black Widow are tracing down the data source while being hunted by SHIELD.  

Finding a deep underground bunker, Widow and Captain America find the data source, a old enemy long thought dead uploaded to a computer.   He informs the heroes that Hydra (A Nazi Organization) had secretly entered SHIELD and started a long term plan.   The plan being to use modern computers and all the data online to identify those who would stand up to them, and kill them with a new security system being set up.   On a nice added touch, the computer informs them that why it was telling the heroes this is to delay them for a drone strike. 

Captain America and Black Widow Survive the missile strike and assault, and meet with Sam Wilson, played by the underrated Anthony Mackie.   This forms the team (Sam Wilson has access to some high tech flying gear) and on the road it is time for a major action sequence, which is as good as any car chase and action sequence on this side of To Live and Die in LA (1985).  At this point they encounter guy who killed Fury in the first act, who turns out to be a reprogrammed and enhanced buddy of Captain America back in his WW2 days.  At the end of the action sequence it appears that our heroes are captured, but are rescued and find out Nick Fury is really alive (but wounded) and they hatch a plan to stop Hydra.  The plan is to go to the three air-gunships that are the basis of the security system that Hydra will use to attack people with and reprogram them with chips. 



The last act of the film is a large action set piece as the Heroes save the day in the nick of time.   This is a comic book movie not named Watchmen (2011) so this is how it will be.


My thoughts: This is a surprisingly good Superhero film.   It feels as much as a Borne or good Bond film at times then a superhero film.   Perhaps most surprisingly for me is the major underlining theme of to beware of a government that is all too willing to offer security in lieu of freedom, and what unchecked power to the state can do to its citizens.   This is all too real of a concern with the NSA spying issues and the disregard of some in government of the rule of law and the oversight and separation of powers in government.  

Also, Captain America in this incarnation is a great hero.   I am the first to say that I like deeply flawed or outright Anti-heroes, be it Tony Soprano or Walter White.   However it is deeply refreshing to have a hero that decides to do the hard, but right thing and it no way feels hokey since the character was born before World War Two.   It is also nice to see that his "Superpowers" are just being fit, a cool shield, and his ability to inspire others to do the right thing. 

It was also refreshing to see a lot of practical special effects instead of CGI, it too easy to make everything CGI, and when a filmmaker uses old fashioned slight of hand to make a practical effect, it makes it much more real. 

This has everything you would want out of a summer film.   It has great action sequences, Chris Evans for the girls, Scarlett Johansson for the guys, and a plot that has surprising relevance to today's world, while at the same time reminding us of the guiding principles that our political elites buried somewhere near Albany St NYC.