Captain Marvel
SPOILER ALERT: If you have not seen this movie or any of the MCU movies leading up to Avengers: Endgame, you may not want to read this. I won’t go into too much detail but there are dots connected from previous movies that I come out in Captain Marvel.
I know I’m late with this one, but I definitely had to make sure I did this before Avengers: Endgame came out this weekend.
I LOVE MARVEL! It’s just amazing and makes me feel like a huge kid. No, I do not read comic books, I know the stories from MCU and then I tend to do research after each movie so I can better understand the nuances that confuse me developed from the original story lines and characters, but my appreciation for the superhero universe is just as authentic as anybody that follows the comics and prefers those. At least that’s how I feel about it, lol.
Captain Marvel has been a long awaited missing piece in the puzzle that is the story of the Avengers. I had no idea what I was getting myself into, what has turned into a lifestyle, of following the MCU universe in it’s vivid and meticulously thought out story line. The backstory for Avengers: Endgame has been in the process of being developed for 11 years since the first Iron Man debuted May 2, 2018. I’m extremely thankful for how the execution of these movies have advanced over the years leading up to Captain Marvel.
First we can start with the fact that Captain Marvel is the first women to receive a self titled movie in the MCU Avengers story line. Not to down play Hope from Ant-Man and the Wasp or Gamora in the Guardians franchise of course, but they aren’t highlighted as the main characters for their respective story lines. Carol Danvers, Vers, or Captain Marvel, depending on how you want to refer to her, is the first woman to receive a self titled movie based on her story AND she happens to be the the catalyst behind the start of the Avenger’s initiative.
Of course the movie itself is corny, but in my opinion all of the Marvel movies are corny, it’s superhero land… what do you expect? That’s what makes them so fun and exciting. Captain Marvel wasn’t the best movie ever made, the plot could have been developed a little more but it’s a start, it got straight to the point. Honestly, my largest disappointment is that her betrayal and climax were so predictable. Yon-Rogg (Jude Law) was easily the culprit of brainwashing Carol and bringing her over to the Kree side to fight for them. She’s a weapon and woman, couldn’t possibly be strong enough to experience the energizing blast that initiated her powers and keep her memory intact… that was full of sarcasm by the way. It’s so typical to paint women in the defenseless, damsel-in-distress role instead of portraying us in a strong and powerful role. God forbid we’re displayed, seen, and appreciated as the amazing rib he created us to be.
I appreciated this movie and it’s small but influential moments in the story. For example, Maria Rambeau (LaShana Lynch), the black female pilot that working with Captain Marvel before she lost her memory. I didn’t care much for how her daughter idolized her aunt Carol, though. I understand the family aspect, but it just leads me to further think about how easily a black women could have played Captain Marvel. Of course then there would be the thing about getting brainwashed by a white man and I’d still feel some type of way about it, so I prefer the black family in the supporting role here, LOL. Maria was a DOPE pilot and was the perfect counterpart to Fury, in my opinion, from her entrance into the movie all the way through the climax and resolution. It was really nice to see a black women working side by side with Samuel L. Jackson in a Marvel movie where he’s been a key element for 10+ years.
Which leads me to the very simple and funny, but still unfortunate way Fury loses his eye. Talk about mind blown! I mean, maybe I would have known that if I read the comics but… yea… not changing my stance there.
I loved the progression of the story line. The layout was familiar; starting with an unclear origin and ending with an answer to an unknown question. The best part was finding out the truth about Carol’s past and how she really ended up with the Kree. I was confused about her origin thinking she was more of a killer frost, but she wound up being more like a Barry Allen. I liked the fact that her journey let her back home and how that tied into who the Avengers are and what they do. Endgame will be a case of the created meeting it’s maker. The irony since women give life, and Captain Marvel would be the maker… I find joy in the little things really.
She is a source so powerful the is bottled up and let out on a leash. In an attempt to be controlled she finds the truth and releases what has her bound to be a colonizer against her will. The war between the Kree and Skrull is a well known story that has been told over and over in many different ways with all different types of characters and story lines; slavery, Columbus and the Native Americans, the white martians and the green martians, and any other story of oppression where success is built on the backs of a minority that doesn’t want to conform. The positive note in all of this are the women that step up to help the Skrull escape this fate that has been assigned to them unfairly.
Her powers are unleashed at the end of the movie leaving the question of how powerful she really is, and her appearance shows us just how great a force she is to be reckoned with when she arrives 24 years later looking exactly the same way she did when she left on her excursion in 1995. Immortality looks good on her, if that’s what we can call it. She’s definitely a game changer against the all powerful Thanos whom we’re all ready to see perish on behalf of the loved ones we lost from Infinity War… yea a few of those really hurt.
All in all Captain Marvel was a pretty good movie, I would give a strong 3.75 out of 5. The acting and cinematography were definitely on point, but the story line could have been developed more and provided more development for the main character. It was definitely a great set up to bring the stories together for the final show down against Thanos. I’m just ready to see what’s coming to him because if nothing else comes back for him his conscience and Captain Marvel are going to rip him a new one, LOL.
Release Date: March 8, 2019
Where I watched: Firestick