Takes its Time, but the Payoff is Worth It

Rating: 8/10 (8 March 2019)

The film takes its time to build, but the payoff is spectacular. A bit of a departure from a typical origin story as we follow Danvers' identity crisis. Identity struggle is mirrored in the ambiguity over who the real villain and even in the figure of "Goose". Danvers has an Elsa moment where she claims her true self in a sequence that is a moving climax. Up until that point, she plays the role of soldier, principled and loyal to a code even with flaws. She starts as Captain America and then starts looking more like Spider-Man as she learns more about who she is. The pacing is very much on the indie fill. context where Boden and Fleck are most comfortable. The fusion of that grounded intimacy and the backdrop of a cosmic war is uneven at times, but works. It's very much on par with the pacing of the Winter Soldier which might be hard for people who don't know anything about Captain Marvel. The complexity of the villains is refreshing since mid-way through we don't know who it really is. We have to discover who Danvers is and who the enemies are with her and the audience is never ahead of the story. Everything that might bother someone else about the story and pacing is exactly why I find this MCU installment refreshing and compelling.