Into the MCU: "Captain American: The First Avenger" (2011)

One of Hollywood's biggest phenomena over the years has been the creation of the Marvel Cinematic Universe- a shared universe of superhero movies spanning a total of 11 years, and 23 films. In this series, I will be covering these films in chronological order- starting with 2011's "Captain America: The First Avenger"...

It is World War Two, and the allies are facing a threat that could result in the Nazis gaining world domination. To combat the research of Johann Schmidt and his advanced weaponry, the United States creates S.H.I.E.L.D, and begins a super soldier program.

This results in Steve Rogers becoming Captain America... and the Allies only hope for victory...

Of the 23 MCU films created so far, I have to say that "Captain America: The First Avenger" is in my top five favourites. The story is engaging and fun, while also allowing for some actual development of the character. The story reflects fairly well the type of superhero origins that we would've found during the Second World War. It had the same straight faced approach to things, will having fun with how silly the concept really was. It incorporated the same style of escapist propaganda storytelling that comics had during the war. Loved it.

The characters were great as well- both the main ones, and the supporting ones. Steve, Peggy Carter, "Bucky", Colonel Phillips, Howard Stark, Schmidt. All of them were interesting, unique, and human, bringing an enjoyable depth and humour to the story. This was only enhanced by the acting of Chris Evans, Hayley Atwell, Sebastian Stan, Tommy Lee Jones, Dominic Cooper, and Hugo Weaving. They brought a lot of energy and chemistry to their roles. They all pulled me along on a roller coaster of action, humour, and drama. Just all around fun.

I really loved the look and feel of "Captain America: The First Avenger" as well. It blended more modern film sensibilities and techniques, with classic war time cinema, and even comic book framing. The action sequences were beautiful to watch, as were the quieter character moment. The CGI elements blended in perfectly with the more practical effects, while the camera work moved you smoothly from one heartbeat to the next.

All in all, "Captain America: The First Avenger" is one of the strongest of the MCU films, and sits in my top five. It absolutely gets a "Good" from me!

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