Had potential, but fell short with a poor lead performance

Rating: 5/10 (25 March 2019)

I am a long-time MCU fan and was highly anticipating this movie. It's always nice to see what a new character can bring to the table and how their personality will fit into the MCU. However, Larson's performance kept me from becoming attached to Carol Danvers as I have the other characters in the extended universe. Her delivery is flat for most of the movie, as if she is just there to read the line, get paid, and go home. In the movie, she is constantly told to control her emotions to get a better hold of her powers, but the problem is there were no emotions to control. Occasionally there was some playful banter, but even some of that fell flat.
Part of what makes Marvel so successful is how invested we become in their characters, but here Larson's bad performance just did not match up with the franchise's history in committing to characters. I don't know if it's her as an actress, the writers, or the director to blame, but it was sinply not good and thus led to a bad movie. Even when she is told that Jude Law's character was the bad guy and not who she thought he was, it should have been world-shattering. Instead her performance just lacks the passion to have the audience care about such an important moment. I would not mind seeing a recast even, just because Captain Marvel as a character deserves better. Actresses like A.J. Cook (Criminal Minds) or Lauren Cohan (Walking Dead) have played strong women who have distinct personalities and would honestly have been a better choice.
Larson's performance aside, the movie is fun in a typical Marvel fashion. A lot of fun nods to the comic fans, the supporting cast was outstanding an the most redeeming part of the movie, and the action/chase sequences were really well done. This is a good movie that could've been one of the best if Larson's performance was better or they just had someone else in the role. If this is the future header of the MCU, the future looks as bleak as Larson's acting most of the movie.