"This isn't freedom - this is fear"

Rating: 9/10 (28 April 2014)

So in short, this is what happens when you get Ed Brubaker to write the story (If not the script in full) to a Marvel movie, especially one he started on - you get the finest story and plot for a Marvel Avengers movie yet.
You may notice I don't say best; I'll get to my nitpicks later. In this story, we get one of those pleasurable superhero comic book movies that is so enjoyable and engaging because it's ABOUT something, and in this case it's the Captain America movie for our times. Where the first film was a good old flag waving salute to world war two, and perhaps would be best seen in that context, Winter Soldier is for the America of Wikileaks and Edward Snowden, a time when secrets are being unveiled left and right and the NSA is probably everywhere and reading as I type out this review right now. And as a story I preferred only the first half of the first avenger more for its socio-political context before it became a two dimensional portrait of heroism - but here socio-political is the name of the game.
What happens in the film is fairly complex to go into spoilers which... ah screw it, its Hydra. they're back, they're really the "I was the one-armed man all along" sort of thing, and the conflict, what really gets the story to be so impactful, is the large scope of trust. Who do you trust, who do you become paranoid of (especially when there is already suspicion, following what happened with New York), and what happens when the Good American super soldier has to be surrounded by complete uncertainty ? And more than that, what if a certain winter soldier who appears to be a super assassin (his equal in fighting prowess and cleverly is designed and costumed like the dark side version of Cap all in black with dirty black hair and guns), is someone else entirely as well. Stakes stakes stakes.
That's all I hope to get in the substance of these movies, and I've gotten it more often than not in these marvel studios movies (even last year in the somewhat maligned iron man 3 we got a wickedly funny look at media manipulation). On top of this is clever casting - Also spoiler, Robert Redford is not who he appears either, and its using him in such a role that makes the film enjoyable as well. Here is a guy who is an icon of 70s politic thrillers, ie days of the condor And the candidate and all the presidents men - and his image is upsided but just perfect for a movie ABOUT America in uncertain times.
Its surprising for me too as I didn't think I cared too much about Sap after the first film, where he was the least interesting of the Avengers bunch; Steve Rogers seemed before to work best in the context of others, interacting with the other Avengers and the 'straight' guy. here that contrast gets amplified in a very compelling way, even against a character like Natasha Romanoff, who knows where she stands and tries to stay human - let's make a joke about a kiss at least - amid the chaos.
Another good thing as a side note, though it's a Captain America movie, it's also a Nick fury movie in some part and there it's also successful as you're never sure about this man in charge. What secrets does he hide, who is he protecting? needless to say as the audience you can't ever totally trust your own eyes. A question posed online recently was it this is the Best Marvel Movie Yet (in caps, pun intended). to answer this, if I still don't rank it completely on par with the two gold standard movies as far as just being great entertainments - the first Iron Man and the Avengers - it's some of the action from the Russo brothers that irked me.
Not ALL of it, and they're not as egregious as some of the offenders of quick cut/closely shot films. but as a personal preference I just didn't care for some of the fights and action set pieces (again, not all of them, I would love to watch the nick fury car chase/shootout in the streets of DC as it is intense and decent to follow (and even to compare to the slightly similar chase in the dark knight). In some scenes and shots at times I just couldn't tell what was going on as say a winter soldier and other gunmen attack the heroes.
But I can easily look past that enough to say this is a winner, a film that has something to say about the world we are currently living in, how times have really changed in 70 years and what happens when a man of total conviction as Steve Rogers is up against it (as well as some old revived villains). Its almost close to being a work, if one can see it as such, that could make people look twice and go 'maybe things should change when it comes to our government'. Oh, and it's a fun goddamn kick ads spy movie thriller as well where the story points feel organic and there's even pathos near the end for characters we haven't seen too much time together with but enough for it to count.
And Garry shandling as a senator!!