(spoiler free)
Opening over a year after the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s last solo film for a new superhero, ‘Black Panther’, their latest effort ‘Captain Marvel’ is the first film in the series to have a female lead. Appropriately receiving its release on International Women’s Day the film sees Academy Award winning actress Brie Larson take on the lead role in the final film before ‘Avengers: Endgame’ next month!
This installment opens with a truly touching tribute to the creator of Marvel Comics, Stan Lee. Fans have grown to love an anticipate his cameos in each new film and they will be eternally grateful for his creations and contribution to popular culture. The tribute crafted here will have theatres across the world erupting into applause for the man who made the MCU possible. Proceeding this ‘Captain Marvel’ quickly gets underway, and there’s a lot to take in. Remembering that this is a completely new character to many fans there’s plenty to learn and discover about her and the film throws a lot at audiences quite quickly. This makes it somewhat difficult to really settle into the narrative. Furthermore the early action sequences are far from impressive and don’t reach the standard that audiences have come to expect in the MCU. Thankfully this is an isolated issue as after this shaky start the film gains confidence in both its narrative and its action sequences delivering more of the quality that is associated with this series.
The MCU is no stranger to big named casts and ‘Captain Marvel’ is no different with a cast that exudes an unmistakable confidence across the whole ensemble. Larson is wonderful in the lead role, she’s instantly likeable and demonstrates all the qualities to become a fan favourite in no time. There’s a huge responsibility that comes with this role and Larson deals with it brilliantly. Her chemistry with the digitally de-aged Samuel L. Jackson is excellent, as is the de-aging, it’s quite possibly the most convincing example of this in cinema so far, it’s really impressively done. It’s fun to see Nick Fury (Jackson) in a more substantial role again as he provides much of the well worked humour that the screenplay features. The standout performer is Ben Mendelsohn though with his portrayal of the villainous shape-shifting leader of the alien race known as the Skrulls. Whilst covered up with a lot of practical make-up he still brings such a presence to the film through his voice and timing, despite some potential issues with the presentation of his character when viewed with a more critical eye for continuity.
With this help from a cast firing on all cylinders directors Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck have triumphantly welcomed ‘Captain Marvel’ into the MCU and perfectly set the scene for what is to come. Although it’s not just a movie to set up another, it’s its own installment and doesn’t feel like filler which the MCU has been guilty of before. With the narrative serving as both an origin story and a compelling mystery there’s plenty to enjoy, combined with the well used soundtrack and fantastic cast this is a great addition to Marvel’s cinematic canon and an important milestone not to be taken for granted.
Written by Hamish Calvert
Rating – 8/10
Question: Where does ‘Captain Marvel’ rank for you amongst the other MCU films?
(Leave your answers in the comments section below!)
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