Captain America: The First Avenger Review

Captain America, 2011
Reviewed by: Dan S.
Directed By: Joe Johnston
Written By: Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely
Starring: Chris Evans, Hayley Atwell, Hugo Weaving, Stanley Tucci, and Tommy Lee Jones.
Language: English

The Plot: Vertically challenged patriot undergoes a risky experiment to join the war effort against the Nazis.

Smooth and glossy, Captain America has a dreamy nostalgic look with an effective mixture of subtle realistic CGI effects and obvious cheesy ones. The score sets the serial throwback mood with delicious heroic cheese. Set during one giant unbroken flashback, the film excels as a touching period drama and sincere low key romance. The athletic Evans brings vulnerability and sympathy to the title character while the warm Atwell steals the film with a convincing heart breaking performance that may just leave you in tears. Surprisingly, the movie completely fails as an action film during its rushed blur of a final act, struggling to produce any kind of suspense or sustained excitement. As the villian, Weaving spends most of his limited screen time grinning madly and reciting laughably over the top evil monologues with a crappy German accent; such a waste. The ancient Tommy Lee Jones gets some laughs with his usual grumpy old badass routine, and Stanley Tucci brings some real heart to his small role. This movie may be the very defintion of flawed masterpiece.

Rating: ***