The Cap is finally cool

Rating: 7/10 (4 September 2014)

Before the monster success of Guardian's of the Galaxy Marvel had one other 2014 release; the second installment in the Captain America franchise, The Winter Soldier. This time, we're out of the 1940's and into present day, allegedly two years after the events of 2012's The Avengers. The Captain is still trying to adjust to 21st century life, a task that becomes a lot more difficult when S.H.I.E.L.D. commander in chief Nick Fury comes to tell him that the agency in charge of organizing and peacekeeping with these superheroes, is compromised and that there's a great big shitstorm headed in the direction of Cap, Black Widow, Fury, and the rest of the "good guys." Then, to make matters worse, Cap's world is rocked when he encounters the film's sub-titular (assuming that's a word) character, an incredibly dangerous assassin known only as The Winter Soldier.
I really have to give Marvel kudos for what they are able to do with their wide span of stories and characters. With such a wide array they are able to make each of their films vastly different in tone and genre. In the span of a few months the studio was able to release a political espionage thriller and a tongue-in-cheek sci-fi space opera all part of the same wonderfully vast universe. I love that they are able to do this so effectively, and I have unending admiration for their ability to have each of their films feel like a breath of fresh air, never rehashing the same superhero narrative.
In the same way that Guardians of the Galaxy succeeded greatly at being a sci-fi epic with a comic book backdrop Winter Soldier works equally well as a political spy thriller with a comic book backdrop. It might not have the depth of films like Three Days of the Condor or All the Presidents Men, but it certainly succeeds at matching tone and style, and then injecting itself with a healthy dose of Marvel Studios explodey action set pieces. These two elements go together surprisingly well, albeit the superhero presence certainly helps.
The Winter Soldier is an unabashed action packed spectacle that never lets up on the explosions or gunfire for too long. This is a Marvel film that packs a punch and it's proud of that. The film, for better or worse, takes itself more seriously than previous Marvel flicks. The usual cheeseball sense of humor that Marvel movies has is far more subtle in Winter Soldier, with high stakes action and emotional weight attempting to take its place. On one hand the film's grave tone is a downfall because you can only take a movie about a a guy in blue following around a one-eyed Sam Jackson so seriously. On the other hand, it's nice to see a Marvel film geared towards a slightly older and more mature crowd, contrasting Guardians of the Galaxy's younger target demographic, a demographic that I guess I still fit into. Regardless, I still stand by my breath of fresh air comment.
Now I want to take a second to talk about the film's titular character, because some serious improvements were made here. The first installment of Cap's franchise didn't get me too worked up and I think the biggest reason was that I couldn't connect to Captain America's do-goody boy scout character devoid of any internal or personal conflict. Cap is the same golden boy as he was in the first film, but he's learning and coping with how you can't trust just anybody in a society full of deception and hidden agendas, and watching Steve Rogers as a man just trying to deal with this harsh reality is far more interesting to me than the do-no-wrong Captain of the first film.
Also, the Cap is just more badass in Winter Soldier. On top of being a more engaging character, he kicks literal ass. The fight choreography is wicked thrilling, and Cap's extensive use of his iconic shield makes him so much more memorable than he's been in his previous appearances. I think Winter Soldier finally made this superhero cool, and no longer just some pretty boy goody-goody.
The Winter Soldier may not be the deepest story with the best acting and the best script, but when we're talking superhero films it's still pretty damn good. It suffers from on-the-nose dialogue and unnecessarily lengthy exposition, reminding us that this is a Hollywood franchise film, but still manages to be another Marvel success. Even if The Winter Soldier isn't the greatest movie in the world the studio should be immensely grateful to directors Joe and Anthony Russo who took the only Avengers member I hadn't yet warmed up to and finally making him a true American badass.