A Great Superhero Origin Story With Nicely Filmed Action

Rating: 9/10 (12 May 2016)

Captain America: The First Avenger is directed by Joe Johnston and stars Chris Evans as scrawny Brooklyn kid Steve Rogers, who has a passion for joining the military and serving in World War II. However, he has a long list of health issues that prevent this, so he signs up for a super soldier program. This program involves him being testing upon so that he can be stronger, faster, and all around better at physical tasks. But, when a Nazi organization called Hydra, led by a man named Johann Schmidt, better known as the notorious Red Skull, comes in contact with a powerful object called the Tesseract, Steve Rogers, now called Captain America, must put his skills to good use.
Captain America: The First Avenger is actually a really good movie. Not many people expected much from this movie, but it was, overall, great. There were some issues with it, but not many, and the many positive aspects of the film highly outweighed the negative ones. The acting, direction, action, and script combine to make a respectable film that is Captain America: The First Avenger.
There's an old saying that applies to film that goes: "a movie is only as good as its villain." This is true in almost every single film, including the first Captain America. Hugo Weaving as Red Skull was a perfect casting choice, and an immensely overlooked villain of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The character is understandable, and well rounded, which add for a great character altogether. Hugo Weaving does great as Red Skull, as expected, and put a newer spin on this older character.
Hugo Weaving isn't the only capable actor in this movie, however. Chris Evans, as Steve Rogers/Captain America is not only a great casting choice, but he lives up to the hype of his abilities. His large character arc is expressed in depth all throughout this film, and Cap is a great protagonist to follow. Hayley Atwell also does substantial in her role as Agent Peggy Carter. Her two sided bitter/sweet character was displayed amazingly by Atwell, and her performance stood out as one of the best. Other smaller role actors such as Tommy Lee Jones, Sebastian Stan, Stanley Tucci, Dominic Cooper, and Toby Jones all do fine as well.
The way that Joe Johnston directed the action is really good. Each action scene is cleanly cut, with no shaky cam present at all. Wide shots of snow permeated forests are very nice to look at, so props to Johnston and the cinematographer, Shelly Johnson. The score, by Alan Silvestri, is pretty nice as well. The main theme ("Captain America Main Titles") stands out to me the most as superior to the rest, however opinionated that may be. Despite my having a favorite, all of the themes are great, and add a whole lot to Cap's origin story.
Now, my biggest (and only) issue with Captain America: The First Avenger is actually a big one. Once Steve Rogers becomes Captain America, the film quickly montages over many of his cool moments, and it was quite disappointing. After the audience patiently waits to see Cap in action, the film practically skips over a ton of cool scenes, and wasted a lot of potential. Parts of the film that could've been really cool turned into a massive let down. However, once the film picks up, it picks up fast, and partially makes up for its montage sequence.
Besides that, I didn't have any major issues with Captain America: The First Avenger. Overall, it was a great film, and I enjoyed almost everything about it. I'd recommend Captain America: The First Avenger to anyone who likes superheroes and well filmed action.