If you're going to take anything away from this movie, I guess that would be suitable. The guy is massive, most likely impossibly so, but it plays well to the new found depiction of the Captain's displayed feats of strength throughout the film. That's not to say he didn't display some pretty impressive feats beforehand, but I feel as though it keeps intensifying every time he's on screen. In the sequel, The Winter Soldier, we get treated to the Captain blasting through walls and tearing down obstacles with ease, as well as taking care of regular villains with ease. We feel the weight, and the power, of The Winter Soldier himself, which makes his match up with Captain more significant. Yes, the action is incredible - as it should be - but there is much more to this movie.
Part of the issue of Captain America is that I frankly don't know much about him. Yes, I grew up collecting comic books but I never read the Captain, or any other of The Avengers. So Marvel's multi-phase rollout of an Avengers centric movie universe is two things: exciting and nerve-wracking. Exciting because it's new (to me), and nerve-wracking because I feel this tremendous guilt about not knowing enough about what's on screen, and that I'm going to miss out on little bits of fan service. I also get some people (who know my background with comics) asking for more information, but I really have none - although I will typically try and act like I know something, at least. However, there is the stigma around the Captain, in where he draws comparison to the negative traits of DC's All-American Superman: he's a goody two shoes, with incorruptible moral guidelines that put them both on the side of frustration, especially for today's modern darkly driven characters. This is beginning to shift, as we saw in last year's Man of Steel movie, and was tackled well enough during television's Smallville, where Clark's bridled morals were often put to the test. When done properly, it can create compelling story. And you'll notice that I don't have any Captain America examples to utilize; instead, all I can lean on is the general, mainstream pop-culture driven sentiment that many of my friends have expressed, which in general, is that Captain America is a boring, unbending muscle of American patriotism.
It would come as no surprise then - with this negatively skewed outlook on our hero - that we are all so pleasantly surprised to have actually enjoyed the Captain's foray into the film industry. I recall clearly not only the doubt and hesitation, but the questioning of how good a Captain America film could be. Then, we saw it. And we were incredibly impressed. Captain America: The First Avenger provided the origin of Steven Rogers becoming the super soldier during World War II. We weren't inundated with pro-America messages and morals: we were treated to a good character who wanted to fight the good fight in any way he could. It didn't matter who the villain was; Rogers wanted to fight for his friends who were dying, and to put down any bullies - a battle he was losing his entire life. When he is giving the opportunity, he takes it: injecting himself with a super-soldier serum of sorts, he takes on the role of protector. Not necessarily protecting his country, but protecting his fellow soldiers. What I liked about this film, and Captain America, was that they don't cover up some of the atrocities of war: he's a soldier, accepts that fatalities will happen, but does his best to prevent them while maintaining the integrity of the mission. That is to say, he's not going to get all emo when his best buds die in battle: they all know the risks. The movie also follows the classic underdog structure, which is difficult to not appreciate.
All that being said, it's easy in The First Avenger to do the good thing: Hitler and Red Skull are truly evil, and there are clear goals to go after. In The Winter Soldier, the situation becomes more clouded. The threat here isn't alien or foreign, it's our own government (well, the American government at least). Marvel really pulls something off here: he makes Captain America relatable, as both he and us are learning about surveillance, secret operations and what our government has planned for us for the first time (or at least, bringing those elements into the spotlight). The plot becomes incredibly relevant in light of all the leaks of classified documents, and the attempt of government to push aside privacy at the expense of "catching the terrorists" through complex bills. The world in The First Avenger was - for lack of a better word - simpler. The modern day, including the one depicted in The Winter Soldier, is rife with complexities that require some careful thinking and cautious treading. Captain American wants to do what's right, but he may have aligned himself with forces that operate in the grey. His moral compass is put to the test throughout, as he finds himself alone for the first time as he is being chased and unable to entirely trust anybody, including his allies.
With all the complexities and parallels drawn between current events and what goes down on film, The Winter Soldier doesn't fail to impress on a more basic, entertainment driven visceral level either. We get all the action and explosions you could ask for, with incredibly visual effects. According to IMDb trivia, the filmmakers tried to make as many practical effects as possible, which definitely show when Captain is driving his bodies through walls and tossing aside soldiers like oversized papercraft. It's all blended seamlessly into the grander scale things, like the new, gigantic helicarriers.
I have many people telling me that The Winter Soldier stands as their favourite Marvel movie, and I would tend to lean in that direction as well. It has a beautiful mix of polished characters, conflict, humour, effects and continuity that I don't believe we've seen in cinemas before. What they are doing with the Marvel Cinematic Universe is truly unique: they've perfected the formula but aren't skimping out on quality and giving care to every detail. While it may seem like we're getting too many movies, I would disagree: I look forward to the next installment every time.
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