by Joseph Rossi
Captain America: The Winter Solider is a fun, action heavy, well put together piece of pop entertainment that opens up the realm of the Marvel universe even further then before.
The first time around we were in the 1940’s, following the noble and good natured Steve Rogers as he went from being a meek and scrawny army recruit to a genetically enhanced super solider. That film was a pleasant throwback to the corny and patriotic comics of the past. This new film, while not as nostalgic for that place and time in history, is a high tech look into the treachery and deceit that is found in high-level organizations. This films overall theme is that of how government, while there for stability and security, can use their resources and trust of the public to build a system that uses fear to keep terror at bay. This of course goes against the freedoms that people like Captain America fight for. This isn’t your everyday comic book movie. These are some heavy themes that play well for an adult movie going audience. But of course the aim are the young folk and comic fans that buy the books and lord over there toy collections so the producers add the subplot of the Winter Solider, a mercenary capable of great violence and an important villain in the Captain America canon.
Chris Evans really is the Captain. His square jaw and all American good looks are almost surreal and it looks like he jumped up from the panels. Samuel L. Jackson and Scarlett Johansson are back as Shield chief Nick Fury and the Black Widow. Robert Redford is also here, taking time off from Utah, and doing a really good job as a high level operative named Alexander Pierce. The action scenes are inventive and brisk. The script is smart, humorous and at points, deathly serious. First time action directors Joe and Anthony Russo do a wonderful job here. They just signed on for a third time out and I can’t wait. Go and watch this. This is big budget movie making where we can actually see where the budget went. It’s fantastic.
