The Penultimate Marvel

Right now, Avengers End Game is killin’ it in theaters. Seems like everyone has seen it already. Except me. You’re supposed to watch the other Marvel movies first, and the previous one is still theaters. So my wife and I finally watched Captain Marvellast weekend!

First: no spoilers.

We had the big question on our minds going into this movie. How would Marvel do compared to DC with a female-lead superhero flick? Wonder Woman was a critical and commercial success. Would Captain Marvel crush it? And how would Brie Larson perform in the role?

Our answers: we liked Brie and we liked Captain Marvel.

The Stars

I think Larson portrayed a comical superhero well. She was funny, didn’t take herself too seriously, and seemed to have fun playing the role. She also pulled off the more serious and strong emotions and actions well-enough.

My wife and I puzzled over who else might have been cast for the lead role. We think the best contender could have been Emily Blunt. She was super tough in Edge of Tomorrow (Live Die Repeat).

Then there’s Samuel Jackson’s character, Nick Fury. He is funny! Not only that, this movie gives you Fury’s origin story in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I didn’t expect that, but it was a nice bonus.

The Film

The movie itself was interesting. It was less of a special effects spectacle than I anticipated. Aquaman kinda raised the bar on that for me!

Captain Marvel had a lot of calm dialogue scenes. The pacing and tone seemed more low key, with more drama than the usual superhero formula.

I think that makes sense because this movie was more about the main character’s life than the life of the planet or the lives of humanity on the brink of alien destruction.

What we liked most was the humor. There’s a cat named Goose, for example, that had us cracking up! It reminded me of Men In Black starring Will Smith. You must stay until the end of all the credits. Trust me.

The Nostalgia

Another reason I really liked this movie: the 90’s nostalgia! Wow! There were many songs from my high school years in the film, triggering memories. There was also some grunge attire and other set pieces, like a Street Fighter II arcade game.

And for a tech geek, seeing all the slow dial-up internet displays, old-school computers and internet cafes, it was both nostalgic and a small plot point of humor in the film. Very enjoyable!

The Weird

What I didn’t like about the movie was how some scenes with alien characters looked and played out far too much like a TV sci-fi series: think Star Trek.

I don’t know if that was intentional or not, an artistic choice of cinematography. I liked Star Trek: The Next Generation. But I didn’t care for that kind of feel in this modern marvel of a movie.

If you want to know how the movie should have really ended, then click over to the HISHE on YouTube. Funny as always.

Now that we’ve seen this MCU flick, all that remains is End Game. I plan to add my money to the box office soon to help it break all the records.

Have you seen Captain Marvel?