A whole atmosphere of espionage, action thriller, a sense of constant threat that grows and unfolds over time

Rating: 9/10 (2 March 2020)

Even in the comics, the Captain was always closer to reality. In the first film, he was fighting Nazis. In the aftermath, current controversial topics like drone bombings, illegal espionage by the NSA and WikiLeaks, the publics temptation to surrender their civil liberties in exchange for a sense of security. At one point in the film, for someone who trusts in human potential, Steve Rogers decision to wear his classic uniform again at a defining moment represents a man who faces a corrupt present with ideological weapons from the past, aiming to create a better future.
With just over two hours of projection, there is time to develop Captain America/Steve Rogers. This man's honor is even more evident and put to the test with today's conflicts. In fact, it is interesting to see the Captain, who slept for decades, still looking for an adaptation to today's world, of new inventions, technology and the behavior of society in general. And let's face it, two years is a short time for those who have lost decades of humanity. Steve's notebook in which he writes down tips of things he has lost in the past few decades and should update himself is a great example of this. This conflict of the past adapting to today's world was an expected theme.
Other important aspects that place Rogers in his current emotional state at the beginning of the film, is Steve's melancholic reunion with his aging girlfriend Peggy (Hayley Atwell). The hero's quest to locate himself in a world whose morals are portrayed in increasingly gray tones is his main conflict. Has the good man now been relegated to a simple museum piece In fact, Steve's visit to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History exhibit does not have an egotistical character, but it does show an individual recalling the values for which he fought and bled. Seeing that chapter of his life, returning in a painful way, both in Peggy's illness, in the threatening form of the Winter Soldier and in the ghosts of Zola (Toby Jones) and the fascism of the organization HYDRA.
In Captain America the Winter Soldier, certain aspects already present in the characters first film are even more present and guide the entire narrative of this plot. There is a whole atmosphere of espionage, action thriller, a sense of constant threat that grows and unfolds over time, involving conspiracy, betrayals, investigation, spectacular escapes, persecutions in the correct pace of spectacular action. Here, brothers Anthony and Joe Russo move the action according to the narrative amidst many dialogues and an intriguing plot. The action is never exaggerated and unbalanced, besides being directed with extreme competence. Directors abuse high-speed action scenes on highways, in bold camera frames that put you into the action and, for the most part, shot in broad daylight, which makes it much more complicated to hide any misuse of effects, which never happens. Another merit is the high number of scenes of corporal fight, without abrupt cuts, seeking to use more open plans and sequence plans.
These action sequences and visual effects are present from the first to the last minute and, as always, are impeccable. We witnessed a great sequence, right at the opening, when the Captain, alongside his team of trained SHIELD agents, invaded a ship hijacked by pirates and, shortly after, the attack suffered by Nick Fury on the streets of Washington, in addition to the persecution of the Winter Soldier to the Captain, Black Widow and Hawk around town, and obviously in all the action present in the last act of the film after the discovery of the great conspiracy involving HYDRA, which extended its tentacles within the spy agency SHIELD and seeks to materialize a megalomaniacal plan involving the aircraft of the Insight project. Incidentally, this last act can be compared in scale and quality to that seen previously in The Avengers.
Anthony and Joe Russo have a simple plot in hand, but it is complicated at certain times by editing, especially in explaining the main plot at the old Captains training site, but that does not compromise understanding. In general, the viewer will see, as in the previous films of the other characters, an evolution in the character's narrative line, which will bring consequences at the end of phase 2 in The Age of Ultron. The combination of an impactful action in a context that mixes espionage, suspense, unexpected twists is very well dosed. Even though the film has a more serious tone, with a real threat to the characters, humor, even to a lesser extent, is present, as it could not help missing. Together with The Avengers (2012), it is perhaps the best film from Marvel Studios, and represents a huge leap in quality for the studio.