Another win for Marvel..

Rating: 8/10 (7 May 2019)

I liked Captain Marvel. It manages to feel like the early origin films of the MCU with a simpler style and less flashy in your face action of the more recent entries. It battles through a uneven, exposition heavy first act to settle into a quicker pace that led to many twists and turns and several comedy bits that worked for me. Samuel L. Jackson, returning as a younger Nick Fury, steals every scene he's in and is clearly having the most fun he's had in the role since The Avengers. Brie Larson works in the title role, opting for a low key approach to the character but builds it into a worthy hero as she develops her superpowers. I was on the fence after initial footage was shown but seeing her go full Marvel was a treat and I liked her in the role. She brought to it a quirky little attitude that will fit in nicely with Tony Stark and Peter Quill, and be different from the stoic nature of the Avengers other resident Captain. Ben Mendelsohn and Jude Law both work in their respective roles, rounding out a great cast that all had their moments to shine. The directing team of Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, whose previous work on Mississippi Grind didn't exactly shout big budget comic book movie but they're serviceable here, never going too big and keeping the action fairly light in the most dialogue heavy MCU film since the first Captain America. A more action focused filmmaking team might have opted for a bigger splash but this approach worked for Captain Marvel's first big screen adventure, setting her up for a fuller showcase in future films, of which she figures to feature prominently moving forward. It was a fun lead on to Endgame, which is really all I was wanting, and nicely introduced a new major character without showing too much and leaving me wanting to see more of her in future films.