Captain America: The First Avenger

This stupid bullshit has better reviews than the brilliant Green Hornet? Poor taste rules the world :D… Captain America felt bland already from the trailers, so I didn’t bother going to the cinema – thanks God for that! It’s been long since an expensive Hollywood blockbuster made me suffer so much. I didn’t like the story, the visuals were very ugly; I really can’t find anything to praise. After the trailer for Avengers (that looks every bit as derivative as the Captain and the other origin stories), I’m now feeling almost certain that the Marvel Universe will not produce anything great. (24.10.2011)

I wanted to believe in it after the good trailers and mostly positive feedback. But Joe Johnston and I once again don’t see eye to eye. I don't mind the poetics of Captain America as such, I understand the time period and why the comic was created, and how it got moving according to Hollywood rules is appropriate to all of that. Yet the whole thing is so perfectly staged, it has a lot of visual frills, and it overflows with insight that is delivered by precisely cast actors, until in the last third I stopped enjoying it just because of how perfectly it copies the classic template. It's not the failure that Green Lantern was, and the king of the naive comic book films this year was Thor (and the film made do with half the bombast!). (26.11.2011)

Der Streifen kommt genauso dumpfbackig daher, wie er in den Trailern zu sein schien, ABER der Film ist sich dessen über sich selbst bewusst und vermag es mit gutem Timing ironisieren und die Dinge nicht todernst zu nehmen (insbesondere die Propaganda-Passage, in welcher der Captain Anleihen verkauft, ist eine großes Festessen). Das Problem besteht darin, dass Johnstons Film außer Selbstironie eben nicht so viel zu bieten hat. Es ist in der Tat eine reichhaltige Rückkehr in die 90er Jahre, als der Comic-Held zu 100% Form jedoch kein Inhalt war. Und leider fehlt es hier etwas am Regieherzblut, mit welchem Branagh seinem Kollegen Thor gerettet hat. Johnston vermag es, ein solides Trickspektakel zu kreieren, er ruft auch geschickt eine Retro-Atmosphäre auf (ich erinnerte mich da an die vergessene Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow), die Schauspieler passen gut und Tommy Lee Jones hat gute Sprüche drauf. Kein Wunder, dass das die Zeit wegläuft, aus einem Lächeln wird selten ein neckisches Grinden und der Captain schaff es mit Bravur, seine Mission hin zur Zeitachse der weiteren Avengers zu bringen. Meine Eindrücke sind irgendwo in der neutralen Zone stecken geblieben - keine Enttäuschung, keine Hammersache, lediglich ein solide behandeltes Produkt, welches lediglich meinen Eindruck bestätigt, dass The Avengers eben nicht gut ausgehen können, schon gar nicht mit einem solch verrückten Spektrum an Stilen und Stimmungen. P.S. Das Synchronsprechen hätte hier drakonische Strafen verdient. Ich vermute, drei jointrauchende Teenager haben hier alles Gesagte aufgenommen. (22.07.2011)

He came last, but when things get worse, be sure that he will be standing at the front line. Steve Rogers stayed somewhat on the sidelines throughout the Avengers journey, but in the end, to my great surprise, it is precisely him who got under my skin the most. His loyalty, bravery, and naivety in the most positive sense, combined with his style of fighting, are simply unrivaled. When the dark Red Skull or the self-sufficient Agent Carter join, there is nothing left but to applaud. Marvel won this war, and I gained a hero who has been appearing on several t-shirts to me for almost a decade since the filmed origin. (14.08.2011)

I think I'm going to hide in Asian cinema for a while after this crap. I don't know why America is trying to mix the impossible lately. Suddenly the cinemas are full of sci-fi westerns and war fantasy action flicks. I'm turned off by the red monster that disrupted the rather excellent retro atmosphere (kudos to Hayley Atwell's make up). The tiny and determined kid becomes a super-powered idol rolling out one badass line after another. But was the invincible and mostly cheesy shield really necessary? 2.5 stars. (17.08.2011)

I’ve been a big fan of this project from the very start, so you can always take one star off, if you like, but just I can’t help myself. The Cap’n is exactly how I wanted him to be. Maybe it’s a little short, on the other hand it doesn’t lose any tempo anywhere. The intro with the puny young Steve is just great. Watching his futile attempts at joining the army and the training is even more entertaining that the elimination of Schmidt’s bases (the fantastic Hugo Weaving) thanks to the balanced doses of humor and selfless courage. Chris Evans did an excellent job with his portrayal of Rogers. Thanks to him, Captain America shakes off the image of parroting clown and turns into a convincing hero. But Peggy Hayley Atwell is equally important. Thanks to her, the romantic storyline is the strongest element of the movie. Neither the action, nor inventions, nor the demonic psychopath with the red face, but the sad ending dialog is what will get to you. I had a date. The lead-up to the Avengers is very obvious in this movie and it basically touches on all of the other worlds we have seen so far. Fundamental to this is the microworld of Thor and Iron Man, the Hulk is a side-effect from development of the serum. This excellent lead-up is topped off by the post-credits scene/trailer. (19.08.2011)

Viel besser als alle Avenger zusammen. Eine tolle WWII-Atmosphäre, großartige Darsteller, vor allem Tommy Lee, und obwohl alles durchsichtig ist wie Americas Kostüm, habe ich absolut kein Problem damit. Der Zweite Weltkrieg war auch die einzige Zeit, in der man realistisch an Superhelden glauben konnte. Es lebe das goldene Zeitalter der Comics auf der Leinwand nach 2000. Und die Sprüche: "Arroganz ist vielleicht kein amerikanischer Charakterzug." oder der über die Wiener Sachertorte :D Und das wird bei Wiederholungen nur noch goldener. Ich reiche also Agent Carter die Hand. (03.09.2012)

It’s almost impossible to evaluate it objectively. It’s a film full of excellent lines, details, camera sweeps, several dialogue scenes, and a beautiful chemistry between the main characters. It’s slightly naive, and gradually turns into self-parody, but I couldn't help but feel a certain fragmentary and inconsistent mix of styles. Sometimes the it doesn't know what it wants to be, so it throws in everything just to be sure. A bit like combining Tomorrowland and Indiana Jones. I didn't enjoy the action and the visual effects were average, except for a few exceptions – I expected much more in this regard. Visually, the trailer was much more captivating, which is quite amusing in hindsight. But it's not all bad. Hayley Atwell is a first-class babe who will make a career out of this role, and the final scenes with the bomber are visually stunning - I haven't seen such mix colours in a long time. (14.08.2011)

Für Filme von Joe Johnston habe ich eine Schwäche. Warum? Schauen Sie sich Jumanji, Hidalgo - 3000 Meilen zum Ruhm und Jurassic Park III an. Dann werden Sie es wahrscheinlich verstehen… Dem Kerl macht das Filmen ausgesprochen Spaß. Er hat kein Problem damit, Action, Trickszenen aller Art und Humor zu kombinieren, was sein größter Vorzug ist. Deshalb rufe ich dreimal Hurra, dass gerade er bei Captain America: The First Avenger die Regie übernommen hat. Ich kann mir nicht vorstellen, dass ein anderer Regisseur (außer vielleicht Spielberg oder Sommers) in der Lage wäre, einen so lächerlichen Helden in der realen Welt so glaubhaft darzustellen. Im Großen und Ganzen hat dieser Comic-Film alles: Eine wunderschöne Retro-Stimmung im Stil von Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, sympathische Figuren (große, an der Spitze mit Chris Evans, sowie kleine, wie z. B. die Mitglieder vom Captain-Team), ultraböse Schufte, einen erstklassigen Soundtrack von Alan Silvestri, der wirklich spitze ist, Actionszenen wie aus einem Jungentraum (Was macht ein Soldat, wenn er keine Patronen in seinem normalen Gewehr mehr hat? Na klar, er schnappt sich ein Strahlengewehr vom toten Deutschen, schießt weiter und nimmt es dann mit!), einen Liebesplot, der zwar nicht besonders originell ist, in dem es aber um eine ungewöhnlich harte Frau geht, gelungene Tricks, die ähnlich wie in Indiana Jones und das Königreich des Kristallschädels auffällig digital gemacht wurden, und eine durchdachte Anknüpfung an die anderen Marvel-Filme (der große Raum für Stark Senior hat mir gefallen). Nachdem ich den Film in der Originalfassung gesehen habe, füge ich auch den fünften Stern hinzu.____PS: Im Abspann ist Jack Nicholson zu sehen (ich bestehe darauf, dass er es ist)! (11.08.2011)

Unterhaltsam, voller Ironie und mit einem ausgezeichneten Tommy Lee Jones, aber auch geradlinig und mit einer schrecklichen tschechischen Synchronisation obendrauf. Es funktioniert hauptsächlich als reine Einführung des Captains, die für die Avengers unerlässlich ist, daher ist der erste Teil ziemlich langwierig und der ganze Film hat den Charakter eines Prologs. Die Überbewaffnung der deutschen Rüstungsindustrie ist enorm. Aber das Warten auf den Teaser von The Avengers hat sich gelohnt. (23.07.2011)

Where else to start in catching up with the Marvel Universe than with the "First Avenger" that was Captain America. There's a noticeable difference compared to other Marvel movies in that it's set in the past, but that didn't hurt the film in any way because I personally love movies set in history, mostly for the atmosphere and the "old-school" vibe. And where else to set a war or political conflict than in the time of the Nazis and World War II. I'll probably never come around to the appeal of Chris Evans, but that's purely my subjective problem - on the other hand, it was balanced here by the involvement of Toby Jones and Hayley Atwell, whom I've found incredibly likable since The Duchess. The plot moves along, it's action-packed, we get a touch of that romance and a few plot twists, and there's a bit of a bittersweet ending. In short, a solid film, followed later by even better and more complex sequels. (27.06.2016)

The irony is that like most superheroes, Captain America is the materialized greasy dream of a nerd dreaming of a super body and muscles of steel that come in all sorts of ways, mainly so he doesn't have to do anything for it; Chris Evans and his superhuman musculature had to be digitally cleaned up in the first act of the film. Otherwise, most of the criticisms of Captain America (after all, I wouldn't go see it in 3D with dubbing) can equally be referred to the subject matter, which is even more awful. It's patriotic, ridiculous, silly, cliched. But again, say "Captain America" three times in a row and explain to me what you were expecting, or why you went to see it in the first place. Unlike the cinematic terrorism of Thor, this at least has action scenes and I feel like I'm watching a movie and not a color test on a monitor. Not that I wasn't expecting it, but I was also just annoyed that any intertextual winking was subsequently dispersed by the next shot, which then explains verbatim what was implied in the previous one. Oh well, let's just get the Avengers over with so we can finally see Iron Man sweep all these whiny schmucks under the rug and the most expensive campaign for a movie was over. Oh, and as the user Superpero wrote – this movie is really reminiscent of Return to Castle Wolfenstein -) (21.11.2011)

DC Comics has its Superman, and so the second largest comic company Marvel needed a strong hero who would embody all the values of that amazing and great American nation. Captain America became that hero. And why not, what could be more American than an American soldier fighting for his country, especially during World War II, where the USA showcased its power in full splendor. After all, it was the United States that, by getting involved in the conflict, hastened Hitler's end. The story takes place during World War II, with the only addition being Red Skull, Captain America's Nemesis. But it is clear that the parallel between Hitler and Red Skull is too narrow. And what about the film? Well, don't expect anything super great, it is simply a well-executed work where some of the other characters who are important to Captain America's world briefly appear. "Captain America: The First Avenger" is actually nothing more than a prequel to what came later - to the "Avengers". The ending clearly suggests that there is more to come, that we will meet Captain America in the present day, not just during the past of World War II. More: http://www.filmovy-denik.cz/2012/06/rockova-lod-cruise-diaz-shawshank.html (21.02.2013)

Such a necessary initial installment, in which the hero is introduced and immediately, of course, faced with a difficult task to conquer in order to save the world. I don't mind this concept in general, and with Iron Man I think it made the 1st installment is one of the best comic book adaptations ever. But with the first Captain there is a challenge as to the believability and credibility of the main character – I don't mean in terms of acting (Chris Evans is good casting), but in terms of the overall structure of the script and, in my opinion, the very simplistic portrayal of Steve Rogers' motivations. Otherwise, though, there's not much to fault, as the references to the full universe work and the craftsmanship is clean work at its best. If only someone had taken more care to keep Captain America from satirizing himself here, it would have taken the first Captain America to a whole new level. (11.07.2017)

Another hero this year who doesn’t measure up to the competition. The beginning is really poor, then better moments alternate with worse ones, but overall it doesn't get better than 60%. This year, Thor is at the top, Captain America is nowhere near as good, but when I compare it with Green Lantern (which is barely any competition at all), it lands somewhere in between, so I’ll settle for 3 stars. (10.01.2012)