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drwex...which is just fine by me. I've seen several good reviews of this movie but none so concise as this, which I think originated on Polygon:
Another reviewer pointed out that this is a movie about female power, which is subtly different from empowerment. Carol Danvers always has power - she's just trying to figure out how much and how to use it. 4/5 stars as a competent and enjoyable Marvel film filling in important origin information.
The movie does several things very well; for example, I can't think of another mother-daughter superhero film in the modern canon. It allows both Captain Marvel to have her origin told and to give us, somewhat subtly, Nick Fury's MCU origin story. That's a credit to the writing and directing of Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck.
A lot of electrons have been spilled over Brie Larson's acting, many of which I think miss the point. Larson is playing a character who is amnesiac, unsure of herself, but at the same time brash and cocky. When you critique Larson for inconsistent acting you miss the reality that she's bringing to life. Vers, her Kree name and persona when we meet her, is a person unsure of herself in an unsure situation. The transition from Vers to Captain Marvel (a name that's never actually spoken in the movie) requires that Vers recapture her past Carol Danvers self in order to create the foundation for who she will become. I wouldn't put Larson in the "A" acting class, yet, but I think she shows herself more than capable at her craft.
If there's a weakness to this it's that the script has too much action. Perhaps that's deliberate, but the pacing of the film sees Vers yanked from one emotional and physical challenge to the next. That alone could keep someone off balance, sure, but it also doesn't give us viewers time to become closer to the character. For much of the film that doesn't matter, but when Danvers is interacting with Lashana Lynch's Maria Rambeau I think the film would've benefited from a slower pace, especially as an origin story.
To the rescue comes Monica Rambeau (Akira Akbar). Other than Spider Man we haven't seen many children in MCU movies so I was intensely interested in how they'd handle this. I can't say much because it'd be spoilers, but Akbar's dialog and performance provide much-needed cement for the scenes she's in.
In conclusion I urge everyone who has any interest in the current genre of superhero movies to see this, if only to drive up its revenue numbers and make more dudebros cry. We've been desperately short on female-centered MCU stories and this one is a good example of what can be done with these characters.
Captain America gets back up again because it's the right thing to do. Captain Marvel gets back up again because fuck you.
Another reviewer pointed out that this is a movie about female power, which is subtly different from empowerment. Carol Danvers always has power - she's just trying to figure out how much and how to use it. 4/5 stars as a competent and enjoyable Marvel film filling in important origin information.
The movie does several things very well; for example, I can't think of another mother-daughter superhero film in the modern canon. It allows both Captain Marvel to have her origin told and to give us, somewhat subtly, Nick Fury's MCU origin story. That's a credit to the writing and directing of Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck.
A lot of electrons have been spilled over Brie Larson's acting, many of which I think miss the point. Larson is playing a character who is amnesiac, unsure of herself, but at the same time brash and cocky. When you critique Larson for inconsistent acting you miss the reality that she's bringing to life. Vers, her Kree name and persona when we meet her, is a person unsure of herself in an unsure situation. The transition from Vers to Captain Marvel (a name that's never actually spoken in the movie) requires that Vers recapture her past Carol Danvers self in order to create the foundation for who she will become. I wouldn't put Larson in the "A" acting class, yet, but I think she shows herself more than capable at her craft.
If there's a weakness to this it's that the script has too much action. Perhaps that's deliberate, but the pacing of the film sees Vers yanked from one emotional and physical challenge to the next. That alone could keep someone off balance, sure, but it also doesn't give us viewers time to become closer to the character. For much of the film that doesn't matter, but when Danvers is interacting with Lashana Lynch's Maria Rambeau I think the film would've benefited from a slower pace, especially as an origin story.
To the rescue comes Monica Rambeau (Akira Akbar). Other than Spider Man we haven't seen many children in MCU movies so I was intensely interested in how they'd handle this. I can't say much because it'd be spoilers, but Akbar's dialog and performance provide much-needed cement for the scenes she's in.
In conclusion I urge everyone who has any interest in the current genre of superhero movies to see this, if only to drive up its revenue numbers and make more dudebros cry. We've been desperately short on female-centered MCU stories and this one is a good example of what can be done with these characters.
no subject
Date: 2019-03-13 07:29 pm (UTC)I have consistently found this the failure mode of Marvel movies; I was complaining about it as far back as Thor (2011). The characters could always stand to hang out more, just to interact with one another before the CGI plows into the plot. I used to think it meant I was the wrong audience for action movies, but I really think it's Marvel. Even Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), which I otherwise love, suffers from unnecessary plot compression. Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018) and Black Panther (2018) in their very separate ways are the closest I've seen to Marvel not doing that and I think they should not do it more.
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Date: 2019-03-13 07:57 pm (UTC)I'm mindful (particularly after seeing Spider-Verse) of McCloud's writings on how action can be used to convey plot and I wish more of these movies would do things in that direction rather than being live-action fantasy flicks.
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Date: 2019-03-13 09:53 pm (UTC)It encapsulates what I love about the character, and the movie got that theme right IMO.
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Date: 2019-03-17 03:33 am (UTC)I was watching for the "too much action" problem, and actually thought they did pretty well at giving the main character some breaks. Nothing like actually letting her sleep or eat, but there were plenty of slow "banter" moments that I really enjoyed.
no subject
Date: 2019-03-17 01:57 pm (UTC)