Movie Review: CAPTAIN MARVEL

Ignore the naysayers--this Captain is Marvelous

When I think of deep, thought-provoking films, the 20 (so far) movies that make up the Marvel Cinematic Universe are nowhere near the top. Some have been lyrical like Thor, some tight and suspenseful like Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and some social groundbreakers like Black Panther. But thematically complex they've not been. Until now.

The long-awaited and controversial Captain Marvel bears messages of women's equality, friendship, war & peace, and betrayal. Surprisingly, contemporary politics make an appearance, as well, though thinly cloaked in science-fiction trappings. This is not the kind of stuff one usually sees in big-budget popcorn flicks, and I'm impressed with Marvel and Disney's head honchos for letting directors Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck ride with it.

Don't worry; Captain Marvel is not a heavy, morose cinematic tone poem like the films of the flailing DC Extended Universe. It's brisk and funny and glorious, with engaging characters, cool fight scenes, and eye candy galore. Granted, the plot is a bit complicated in the beginning, being that we start with a flashback before being dropped into an ongoing space war. But we get past that fairly quickly, and the fun begins.

Here's a brief, spoiler-free rundown of the plot. Tough blonde Vers (Brie Larson), pronounced "Veers," is an amnesiac soldier in the conflict between the Kree (who are apparently of different races, much like the Romans) and the Skrulls (green, pointy-eared shapeshifters). Vers is eager to use the mysterious power that apparently lies in her arms (which light up occasionally), but her mentor, Yon-Rogg (Jude Law), constantly advises against it. The pair, along with a team of others (including Djimon Hounsou and Gemma Chan) go on a rescue mission, during which Vers encounters the Skrulls, led by Talos (Ben Mendelsohn}, who seek an experimental energy-core that can be found on planet C-53, otherwise known as Earth.

The performances aren't extraordinary, though Mendelsohn is effective. It was nice to see Samuel L. Jackson as a younger, less cynical Nick Fury, Agent of Shield, carry many of the quips. There are missed opportunities: Clark Gregg as Agent Phil Coulson--in his first Marvel movie since 2012's The Avengers--is underutilized, and Lee Pace as the Kree Ronan (the villain of Guardians of the Galaxy) barely registers in his small role.

An amateur film critic on Twitter complained that Larson's performance wasn't "great," but I think he expected her to act vulnerable and weepy, as so many female roles call for. Vers/Carol Danvers is a battle-hardened warrior who doesn't even recall her past, so she doesn't know whom she can trust, and thus her defenses are up.

Plus she's a pretty tough cookie, just like every action-movie male lead. I didn't think her first big fight scene was extraordinary until I remembered this was a woman easily besting a group of men. It was a testament to the filmmakers and Larson's performance that I found the action so believable.

I should mention Captain Marvel is a prequel to most of the other MCU films and is set in the 1990s. The vibe is definitely of that decade, but it's not overwhelming. There are fun references and visuals, and the movie's marketers went with it by making the official website in a 90s style, which includes an amusing guestbook (right).

If there is anything to criticize here, it's not the fault of these filmmakers, but rather of Marvel Films. The downside of a huge, tightly knit shared cinematic universe is that stories are sometimes constrained by continuity, and that applies especially to this period-piece prequel. I could almost see the walls beyond which the narrative and characters could not stretch.

But it's still a fun, satisfying flick, and I highly recommend it. At the time of this writing, I can still hear the Garbage song "I'm Only Happy When It Rains" in my head.

Captain Marvel is rated PG-13 for sci-fi violence and action, and brief suggestive language.

#movies #comics