Captain America: The Winter Soldier: 8.4

Rating: 8/10 (25 April 2018)

Although not as good as the first, Captain America: The Winter Soldier is on the same level as the first. From a Wartime Adventure in the first movie, this sequel jumps to the spy thriller genre. An excellent choice for a modern day Cap film, but it still has a sliver of that Wartime American pride to it. The action is ramped up in this movie to a fast moving, hard hitting punch fest that reminds you just how dangerous Captain America really is. The bar is set high in the beginning, and throughout the film that bar is either reached or passed with every new action sequence. One of the best sequences involves just Nick Fury on his own, and it contains some of the best action in the Marvel Universe. Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury has never been more badass. From his action scenes to his awesome one liners this film squeezes all they can out of Nick Fury and it's never worked better. Unlike many other Marvel Movies, The Winter Soldier is a really good and lethal villain. He can go toe to toe with Cap and even make you question if he's better. You get the sense that his metal arm is something to avoid at all costs. The other side villains also earn their part in the film well. What also is very enjoyable to watch is how Steve Rogers lives in this new world, and how he struggles to face the fact that line between good and bad isn't as clear as it used to be. It's a very well done challenge that he has to face. Black Widow is back and she's even more entertaining then she was in The Avengers. Along with Steve her presence is elevated to new levels of lethality, and she's works great as one of Cap's companions. The other companion being The Falcon, who works as a fun new sidekick for Steve Rogers. The film succeeds on every aspect with only few head scratching moments to make the rest of the story work, but those few scenes that lack sense lead to story threads that make up for it entirely. Overall, this cold, hard, and intense spy thriller serves the character of Steve Rogers well, while also giving new levels of depth to returning characters and adding memorable new characters around him. So I give it an 8.4