Excellent: 9.5

Rating: 9/10 (29 July 2019)

I was not the biggest fan of the first Captain America film. It looked great, and featured some fine acting, but it lacked some of the energy that had characterized Marvel movies up to that point. Cap's second standalone film improves in almost every way. When there isn't action there's suspense, both of which are managed very efficiently. Though it's hard to talk about this movie without spoiling the plot, it can and must be said that it's hard for me to imagine any of Marvel's Phase 2 films having this much of an impact on the canon. Rather than being a straight-up actioner like its predecessors, The Winter Soldier is a successfully hybridized action-thriller, with mysteries and cold stares abound. All this adds up to what is arguably the best film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, possibly even beating The Avengers or Iron Man. Guardians of the Galaxy, along with every other MCU film between now and 2015, has some mighty big shoes to fill.