Re-imagining a retro icon

Rating: 7/10 (10 May 2016)

This is the story of the first avenger, Cpt America. This film chronicles how Steve Rogers went from weedy wimpy kid from the Bronx to joining the army in 1942, and how he went through a super-soldier experiment to become the USA's greatest weapon during the second world war. Recruited by Dr Erskine to go through 'Project Rebirth' when nobody else thought he was able to make a difference for the war effort, we see a physical and emotional change in young Steve. Once he's turned into a weapon, the film shows how the army didn't know what to do with him, leaving him to make up his own mind to stand for truth, justice and freedom in a fight against a rogue Nazi villain, Johann Schmidt, a.k.a. The Red Skull. This is an origin story meant to show new audiences what Cpt. America is all about so threat not if you haven't read any comics, you can learn it all here.
Chris Evans plays his role as Cpt America brilliantly, I liked him as Johnny Storm in the Fantastic Four movies but I think in Cpt. America he has found something better here. Hugo Weaving is a great Red Skull, menacing vocal delivery as well as appearance. You can literally feel the evil oozing from him at times. Hayley Atwell makes a brilliant Peggy Carter, so much so that she got a spin off TV series which is one of the better Marvel TV series. Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes is believable, he lays a great foundation for future appearances yet to come. He's Steve Rogers best friend in the early days and always believes in him which is something that Rogers needs for strength. Tommy Lee Jones (Col. Phillips) should get a mention as he plays the hardened drill sergeant who doesn't want to get involved in super soldier experiments while at the same time secretly wanting it to succeed for the good of humanity. He plays both sides of that characteristic really well and believable. Dominic Cooper makes a suave Howard Stark, easily believable as Tony Stark's father in the already screened Iron Man films. While being full of his own self importance he also manages to be believable as a genius when his interests are peaked. The strength of his delivery made him a regular character in the Agent Carter TV series that Atwell stars in. Stanley Tucci (Dr Erskine) delivers a caring and hopeful performance as the father of the super soldier imitative. His demise (sorry for the spoiler) provides the motivation Steve Rogers needs to be more involved in fighting the bad guys. He's the conscience that Rogers can refer to throughout the film and his death feels almost like the passing of a real father. Toby Jones (Dr Arnim Zola) is creepy and threatening, I practically needed to have a shower after seeing how creepy he delivered his role. Neal McDonough (Dumb Dumb Dugan) plays true to the comic books as one of the Howling Commando's who fight alongside Cpt America, loud, brash and confident. All the cast actually deliver authentic performances and I can't single out a weak casting in this film.
While the film isn't a direct reflection of the comic books I didn't find that distracting, like the many multi-verses I just tell myself this is yet another re-imagining of the Marvel characters, in that sense it works. If you went into this expecting it to be exactly how the origin story worked in comic books then you may be disappointed. There are good mix between action and drama with a few giggles thrown in for good measure. The film is not too CGI heavy and has a certain look and feel which makes it come across as a great film. I really enjoyed this despite Cpt. America being one of my least favourite characters. I'm going to give this 7 out of 10.