We Interrupt Your Regularly Scheduled Process Blog For A Movie Review
We’re trying to stay a little bit more current here at the Last Chance Salon, but with Luke on vacay, we’ll be way, way more than fashionably late to the Winter Soldier Party if I don’t jump on it.
Hence, a review. And only a little more than a week after the movie was released! HUZZAH!
*Will try to avoid major spoilers, may have some little stuff*
(images via IMDB and comingsoon.net)
The short version: Winter Soldier is amazeballs.
The longer, expositional version:
I’ll start with my very few nit picks to get them out of the way. None of them are sufficiently irksome to disincline me from seeing the movie again, but bitching is fun:
- Robert Redford could have been replaced by a featureless, expressionless android and it wouldn’t change the film at all. Or maybe he was replaced by a featureless, expressionless android and that was the problem. Either way, his was the flattest villain affect I’ve ever seen and it was just this side of the tension-killing line. Villains certainly don’t have to rub their hands together and cackle to signal their evil intentions, but a sneer or glare would have been nice. A head tilt even.
- *NOTE: the following is NOT body bashing. It is a costuming critique. Please read as such.* Was Scar Jo wearing a corset or ass padding? I get the inclusion of the T&A (I don’t like it or condone it as such but I get it) and there was definitely some turnabout. Can they at least give people a semi-possible human shape to ogle, however? A good kick should have snapped that waist.
- Samuel L. should be contractually obligated to say “motherfucker” at least once per film. I know they were going for PG13 and I do realize that Disney now owns Marvel, but come on. He’s Samuel L.
- My usual medical peeve: if someone is in asystole, you don’t defibrillate them. You can’t. A defibrillator stops a person’s heart in the hopes it will restart on its own and self-correct whatever the issue is. Hearts can’t be stopped if they’ve already… er, stopped.
Now, prepare for the gushing:
- I liked both plot lines (Hydra and Cap coming to terms with the modern world. Though it was really hard not to bust out in the giggles every time someone said “Hail, Hydra.”). The story melded together nicely, neither of them was a over-the-head-beating club, each got appropriate screen time. The pacing was fantastic — none of that Avenger lull — and I was shocked that two hours had gone by when the final Easter egg rolled (ah! I totally missed that when I first wrote it. Go, me). Making each of the characters, including the previously impervious Fury, vulnerable brought the Marvel universe back to the human realm with just the right amount of comic fantasy-ness. Well played Christopher Marcus and Stephen McFeely. Also, no puny groaners. Yay for that.
- Chris Evans does have facial expressions other than constipated! I won’t name him actor of the century, but he played the straight man to Anthony Mackie’s Falcon and Scar Jo’s Black Widow pretty perfectly. We even got touches of humor (“The one with the pierced lip? I’m not ready for that.”). He managed to express “conflicted” effectively and variously. Honestly, I think he’s a great Cap, certainly a better Cap than he was a Johnny Storm (which is probably, mostly, someone else’s fault). I loved the idea of a super hero walking around in public being recognized as well. Trying to live some sort of normal life while carrying on his career as Super Soldier. Great humanizing touch. The scene with Peggy almost made me cry.
- Anthony Mackie. Awesome. Bring on the Falcon solo movie. He is exactly what this franchise needed to be successful what with the comic timing and the soulful eyes, and the commitment to Cap and country that does not, at any point, become slavish devotion. This may be the type of character I was hoping Coulson would turn out to be in Agents of Shield. Maybe. And I loved what they did with his flying apparatus. Actual logic, if not a firm place in reality. Though I am sort of curious re: why Falcon is the only character who curses the entire movie.
- Scar Jo was good. While I question some costuming (see above), I think she has finally hit her stride as Black Widow. Her internal conflict is a welcome change from the perpetually arched eyebrow. Though the arched eyebrow was perfect when she was mouthing off to Congress. The nod to her whatever-it-is was Hawkeye in the form of the arrow necklace she was wearing was adorable and sweet. Black Widow needs a little softness to her, lest she devolve into a stereotype. Also, she cried when she thought Fury was dead. In front of people. No hysteria, just appropriate tears. Because women can be badasses and still be people. Who knew.
- Even Nick Fury had a few vulnerable moments. I love that, when he needed backup, he called Maria Hill. First: no qualms about a woman saving his ass. Second: no qualms about a woman saving his ass. Third: even the great Director needs someone to trust. Again with the humanizing.
- Maria Hill, it is always good to see you. I like Cobie Smulders as Nick Fury’s second and she was allowed to have a little more personality this go around. I’m hoping that part gets bigger and more integral in each successive entry to the world.
- Cast rapport: at lest in character, was amazing. With the exception of robot Redford. No miscues or missteps. Humor was perfectly timed, running gags (BW trying to set Cap up while in midst of fight e.g.) were at perfect mass, nothing too cutsey.
- Did the cast do some parkour training? It looks like they did and it also looks incredible. Despite knowing everyone was in wires, it was a really slick fighting style and the choreography was spectacular. There was a fight in an elevator worthy of John Woo. Also, there was scene with everyone pointing guns at one another. Also worthy of John Woo despite the absence of doves.
- The helicarriers had an actual purpose. Grant you, that purpose could probably have been fulfilled just as efficiently with satellites, but hey, go big or go home, right? Besides, the SHIELD tower crash was pretty spectacular…
- But NOT as spectacular as Fury’s car crash. That was a thing of beauty. As were most of the other effects. The Winter Soldier’s prosthetic arm was super cool, though I spent the whole movie itching to pull his hair back — would totally have been in his mouth once he dispensed with the mask.
- It was nice to see Cap get his ass handed to him. Not that I like to see people get hurt. I don’t. But Captain America can drift into boring the same way Superman does when he’s invincible. Winter Soldier went another way a couple of times, especially in the climax fight and it was a good call. Tough but not invincible is a good balance for a hero like Cap.
- Some nasty shit has happened in the world the last few weeks. The real world, I mean. At the end of Winter Soldier, Cap’s faith in people, or at the very least in certain people, is restored. I needed that.
Obviously, I highly recommend heading to the theatre for this one. I’m sure the IMAX is spectacular. I went for the regular 2D because, at this point, the whole 3D thing is still relatively gimmicky but if you hit either of the fancier versions and you think it’s worth the extra dinero, let me know. I could definitely be convinced to see this one again.
Also: Full Days of Future Past trailer is bitchin’. And while the one for Guardians wasn’t anything I hadn’t seen, the full, large-screen effect added to the giggles and anticipation.
Happy watching, kids!
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