Review - Captain America

Marvel recently unleashed their latest Avenger movie, Captain America, and I have to admit it's actually rather good.

I'm not a comic officionado, and wasn't a big comic reader when I waz younger, so my take on the films is purely stand-alone; with nothing to reference to.

That doesn't mean I don't 'get' the series of Avengers, having already had Iron Man and Thor, the Hulk and Spiderman.

It was good to see Howard Stark; the father of the aforementioned Tony Stark alter-ego Iron Man.

Back to the story.  Here's the synopsis from IMDb

It is 1942, America has entered World War II, and sickly but determined Steve Rogers is frustrated at being rejected yet again for military service. Everything changes when Dr. Erksine recruits him for the secret Project Rebirth. Proving his extraordinary courage, wits and conscience, Rogers undergoes the experiment and his weak body is suddenly enhanced into the maximum human potential. When Dr. Erksine is then immediately assassinated by an agent of Nazi Germany's head of its secret HYDRA research department, Johann Schmidt aka the Red Skull, Rogers is left as a unique man who is initially misused as a propaganda mascot. However, when his comrades need him, Rogers goes on a successful adventure that truly makes him Captain America and his war against Schmidt begins..  

It's totally comicbook, the action sequences are fantastic, as are the performances by Tommy Lee Jones as the colonel, and Chris Evans as our hero.  The effect that makes Evans look smaller and weaker before his transformation is well done; in one scene he looks like a doll, next to Peggy Carter, played by Hayley Atwell.

Indeed, there are some other big names, with Dominic Cooper as Howard Stark and Hugo Weaving as the 'baddie' Johann Schmidt (Red Skull).

Samuel L Jackson reprises his role as Nick Fury (from S.H.I.E.L.D); towards the end of the film.

We saw it in 3D, and I've written before about my feelings about 3D films.  However, as with  Harry Potter, I was pleasantly surprised, as it served to show the film, rather than be used as a gimmick.  I do think that film-makers and studios need to find a way to make the picture brighter.

Should you see it?  For pure entertainment value, it is certainly worth it.