Film of the Week: Captain Marvel

With Avengers: Endgame looming just round the corner, Captain Marvel is introduced, adding a whole bunch of lore to the MCU. Where the space-stone (tesseract) went after Captain America: The First Avenger, and gives us knowledge we previously didn’t have before when we inevitably restart watching the MCU again either before Endgame and/or after – Captain Marvel had been in space the entire time.

This review isn’t going to be an over-analytical explanation on why she’s the strongest MCU character even when other characters have been in direct contact and have used the Infinity Stones, such as Dr. Strange with the time stone, Vision with the mind stone? I’m not going to attempt to break down who would win in a three-way fight between Dr. Strange, Vision, and Captain Marvel, because there are too many possible outcomes which could arise from such fight. Captain Marvel has shown just how powerful she can be, and the potential she has yet to unleash in this film, by destroying numerous enemy ships with ease during an epic fight in space, accompanied by a motivational, powerful score.

Captain Marvel has also brought back some characters I’d believed we never see again for various reasons, whether they’re dead, operating mainly behind the scenes, or simply no need for them to resurface to the forefront anymore. Ronan, who we saw in Guardians of the Galaxy, and in possession of the power stone, and was subsequently overpowered by said stone. Phi Coulson, who’s been roaming around in complete secrecy since the events of the first Avengers movie, a feat I somehow have yet to truly believe isn’t entirely possible without at least one of the Avengers finding out about him still being alive after 7 years, but again this isn’t an over-analytical article, but instead a simple review of the film, Captain Marvel. The technology used to de-age both Clark and Samuel L. Jackson was flawless. I couldn’t see any moments where the seams didn’t quite stay attached. The special effects team did more than just put a bunch of de-aging cream on the two characters though, they created the scale of what it would be like actually fighting in space, above Earth.

Watching the film in IMAX, during the climactic battle in space, there were a couple of moments where I was so engrossed with the film, there were a couple of moments were the camera points down to face Earth, and I actually felt genuinely a bit dizzy. I’ve never felt that effect during a film before – so the special effects team require a decent pat on the back for their incredible efforts throughout the film.

As for the actual writing and story – it isn’t a traditional origin story. We do learn how she attained her powers, and her backstory, but not in the usual linear way in most superhero stories. Through brief flashbacks – some of which were intentionally warped for the purpose of the story, a move not normally seen and therefore gave a unique viewing experience. We don’t see her acquire her powers until the beginning of the climactic battle of the film, via flashback, when most superheroes would gain their powers at the end of the first quarter. Although, it should be noted that those who went up to fight alongside Captain Marvel, only Nick Fury did something helpful, the other one only just stood around looking amazed, shocked, and ran away from danger. I can't remember her name, but at least she now has a good story to tell her daughter when returning home, so that's something useful - although her daughter can't really tell her friends what her mum did because she may be laughed at, but hey, this isn't an article where I over-analyse.

But mostly though, it is a classic MCU film. Filled with jokes, Easter eggs, and a Stan Lee cameo. The audience laughed at the right moments, the jokes weren’t over the top or too many, and the film answered a load of secondary questions, such as how Nick Fury lost his eye, how Coulson and Nick’s relationship grew to be as strong as it is today. With Endgame just round the corner, it’s nice to have a few things wrapped up before the era comes to an end. Captain Marvel serves as not only a look into the past, but also helping us fans move forward. It is a good, fun, entertaining film with an absolutely epic battle in space.

Thanks for reading

Antony Hudson

(TonyHadNouns)