attack HYDRA forces.
Like the superpatriot himself, Captain America the movie is big and beefy. Star Chris Evans does a solid job as runt-turned-muscle man, investing Steve Rogers with Gary Cooper-style modesty that went out of fashion decades ago.
[eventbug id="comic-con-2011"]He's a nice guy, and scrappy, but bland by contemporary standards. Taken as a World War II movie, Captain America comes nowhere near the dramatic tension generated by Inglorious Basterds or Band of Brothers.
But as a popcorn flick that rekindles the can-do spirit of Flash Gordon, Captain America: The First Avenger gets the job done. More importantly, the movie slides into place as the final piece of a plan for world domination equal to anything imagined by the film's HYDRA initiative: Namely, launching The Avengers.
Captain America functions as the third act in an ongoing saga that culminates next May when writer-director Joss Whedon unleashes his ensemble superherogasm based on the Marvel Comics franchise .
Captain America leaves plenty of breadcrumbs pointing to the next chapter: The father (Dominic Cooper) to Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark/Iron Man character invents the Captain's awesome shield.
HYDRA's crazier-than-the-Nazis boss Red Skull (Hugo Weaving) goes power mad after tapping into mystic energies harnessed by Odin, the Norse god who fathered Thor, played by Chris Hemsworth earlier this year.
And Samuel Jackson pops up toward the end of Captain America as Avengers boss Nick Fury, just as he did in Iron Man 2.
Using an entire movie to seed plot points and establish Steve Rogers' character as an aw-shucks straight-shooter, the Marvel braintrust primes the pump for next summer's ensemble adventure: What's going to happen when Rogers gets thrown into the superhero bullpen next to Downey Jr.s Tony Stark?
Images courtesy Paramount Pictures and Marvel Entertainment
WIRED Jaw-dropping transformation scene; production designer Rick Heinrichs's brilliant retro-scientific gadgetry; British actress Haley Atwell's performance as plucky officer Peggy Carter adds all-American punch.
TIRED Pedestrian dialog prevents Hugo Weaving's Johann Schmidt/Red Skull villain from sounding as wicked as he looks.
Rating:
Read Underwire's movie ratings guide.
See Also:- Exclusive First Look: Captain America Propaganda Posters From Mondo
