Captain Marvel (2019)

Astonishingly, this is the twenty first MCU entry so far. It's almost too easy to dismiss Captain Marvel as uneventful or bland at this point in time. I do wonder if this is partly because we as the audience already know - thanks to Nick Fury's infamous page in the final moments of Infinity War - what's coming? That Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel is already set up to take on (and potentially destroy) Thanos in the Avenger's finale? Possibly. Arguably almost all of their 'origin' films give off the same arbitrary vibe though, just maybe with less of any can-we-just-get-this-out-of-the-way baggage that seems to be dogging CM. It's understandable still that audiences are bloated, unbuckling their belts at the dinner table and just waiting for End Game to wrap the last ten years of servings up. Not many are in the mood, after gorging on seconds and thirds, for FORTHS before the dessert. Regardless, just like the vegetables we refused to eat as a kid, Marvel have put it in front of us and said no dessert until the peas and carrots are had. In the film's defence of all that, Marvel have at least once again shown that it knows how to execute comic book hero and if you can put your apathy aside, the film is enjoyable, blockbuster entertainment with it's girl-power agenda subtly at the forefront.

One thing that is clear, intentional or not, the origin story that it is, is presented as a true prequel to The Avengers just as much as a stand alone entry. This is the second last Phase Three film, but given the timeline of events in the story and it lacking any revelations truly over the the top, it could have comfortably slotted in amongst the Phase One releases. That's not a negative thing but I have no doubt reactions may have been different if that was the case and perhaps Marvel left it to late to release such a thing in between their two behemoth finales. Regardless, and being set in 1995, such is the effort to give the audience a "90's wink" here (references and homages abound – to the point of distraction), that it actually feels refreshing a lot of the way and for my money, sits about in the middle of that self generated superhero origin sub-genre. Not on par with the best efforts (Ironman, Dr Strange), but more relevant and enjoyable than the lesser ones (Incredible Hulk, Ant-Man). The fairly minimal narrative is directed solidly and with competence, but even though it remains very easy to follow, the script is often less than water tight. A few plot holes are hard to ignore and moments of laziness may cause eye rolls, but they need to be accepted as par of the course in the genre no matter what bar the MCU has set itself. It still offers a few u-turns in the story that are a welcome surprise, however.

Music is fairly prominent throughout. The needle drops showcase the core of 90's commercial pop and are fairly unremarkable. Nobody really complained when Guardians of the Galaxy did it so effectively jarringly (at least it was factored into the story via Starlord's mixtape), but it worked/works even if it tries a little too hard. I do believe I would have been in the minority as I let a smile briefly appear as No Doubt’s 'I’m Just a Girl' backdrops our heroine's single handed beat down of several bad guys following her epiphany of in-destructiveness, however. A simple, grating song at the best of times it seems to be unfortunately perfect in a not so subtle ironic context here. That is one of a clutch of vigorous hand to hand combat set pieces, that while they become predictable (at no point do you feel Danver's will lose ANY fight) are still solid and come frequently enough to keep the pace tight and brisk. The film overall is a fast two hours, especially when compared to some other MCU plodders out there.

Not surprisingly our lead, Brie Larson, has had a solid supporting cast assembled around her. While Jude Law and Annette Bening do what they need to do, more screen time is given to Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury (Duh) and Ben Mendelsohn, the latter playing head Skrull Talos, chasing Carol across the universe. Both make the movie more enjoyable; a reverse aged Jackson inhabits an eye patch-less Fury with much less nonchalance and more humour than in previous films as, not surprisingly, he and S.H.I.E.L.D are currently blessed with the ignorance of the greater threats to come. He reminded me of Zeus, his character in Die Hard with a Vengeance, toned down a couple of notches - ironically that film was released in 1995. Mendo – his native accent flourishing, is given the chance to play more than just a villain as the story moves forward and anchors a lot of scenes unexpectedly with his gravitas.

I've seen criticism that our Hero is not a very interesting or complex character, or that Larson doesn't play her very well. Indeed, she doesn't feel heavily explored, but then she's lacking the internal conflict of a Bruce Banner, the unforgiving responsibility of power of a Dr Strange or the raw emotional frustration of a Steve Rogers for example. The way she's written, Carol Danvers doesn't feel like much of a stretch for the talented Brie Larson either. I didn't view it as a bad performance, more a fairly minimal, likeable one that's easily nuanced regardless of her talent or script depth she had to work with. There is a subtlety to her inhabiting just the right level of sass, intelligence and wit that all interesting woman possess. She is the girl next door. The one that exhibits a refreshing “I got this” swagger, has a strong emotional drive all of which manifests her stance as a woman as all powerful, and Marvel, knowing this is integral to such a film, it still operates knowing that it should be treated as a non-issue. There's feminism here, but it's not extreme or heavy handed, so I'll give Larson the benefit of the doubt.

Captain Marvel **is** subtle in the way it shows it's strength to it's young, female audience core via the type of female lead curated with Danvers. At the same time, it not overshadowing MCU's usual template for all it's Avengers that have been allocated an origin story, is possibly the film's greatest coup. Others may feel this was a missed opportunity and Marvel should have made it bigger or achieve more, but I strongly feel they got it right in the context of what they wanted. It was never going to be epic. She takes control, fears very little, makes you laugh, looks to help others and possibly most importantly, can CHOOSE to what extent her powers are executed. She is berated early on (by men) how her emotions need to be controlled in order to become the "best she can be" and as a young girl being told she can't succeed at something because of her gender. While this may be a oft-cliche and potentially confuse us on Marvel's intentions in the beginning, constantly being told your gender holds you back remains a highly relatable female-centric notion. The message is clear - women who can control the massive power they wield, are unstoppable. If that's not a positive thing for a young female audience then I don't know what is and no mistake, Danvers it is made clear, is peerless when going into battle, as every foe in her way is mostly obliterated without breaking a sweat.

As far as what both represent, they are similar, but CM has filled the void that DC's Wonder Woman left me with. While both film's feature strong female superhero leads, WW - despite Gal Gadot owning the role, almost tried too hard to procure a feminist warrior agenda into a comic book movie and ultimately undid itself by having Diana Prince shift focus with a love story angle. It was jarring, disappointing and even ludicrous. A story that should be overtly empowering for woman, shows a male still casting a considerable influence over our heroine. Perhaps they should have saved it for the sequel but Marvel doesn't slide off the rails in such a way with Danvers. The focus is empowering herself and helping others, her emotion generated from loss of identity and her bond with her best friend and daughter. Strength. Empowerment. The bonds of friendship. Are these not specifically great elements for young women to see in a role model? I feel they are and even if Captain Marvel possibly didn't live up to it's potential, at least my daughter now has an Avenger on screen who is a heroine that radiates these conceptions with no Prince Charming in sight to get in the way.

#review #mcu #captainmarvel #marvel #brielarson #theavengers