Movie Breakdown: Captain Marvel (Noah)
Pre-Screening Stance:
There is no doubt whatsoever that I am one hundred percent excited for Captain Marvel. I’ve ridden this 20-film train this far and the landscape has only gotten better and better. Am I taking this as an amuse-bouche before the rack of lamb that is End Game? Yes. But that doesn’t temper my expectations the slightest.
Post-Screening Ramble:
Right out of the gate, let’s just say it – this is a big space blockbuster that with very little subtlety thrusts Brie Larsen’s Captain Marvel into the forefront of the MCU. Every decision in this film is aimed at the goal of diversifying the Marvel universe, of further easing the superhero reigns away from the RDJs and multiple Chrises and passing it along to a less-white, less-male MCU. And it’s awesome. Directors Ryan Boden and Anna Fleck have taken what seems like a directive from the top down and created a film that belies the expectations of big budget action films while existing very much within the sandbox. This isn’t exactly an origin story, though the plot’s main thrust does revolve around rediscovering one’s past. Brie Larsen plays Veer, a mysterious Kree warrior deployed as a part of the Kree Starforce to fight back against their shape-shifting arch-enemies the Skrull. Things go badly, Veer ends up on Earth circa 1990 with a Skrull invasion on the horizon, a two-eyed Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury as her sidekick, and a slew of pursuers in her wake. Larsen is an interesting choice for the lead in this film, and I don’t know if she exactly nails it. There’s a casual, almost reticent attitude to her character that makes for a few good lines but doesn’t instill me with the feeling of strength and power. She’s flippant where she needs to be a badass. For a directing duo who’s best known feature is the Ryan Gosling drug drama Half-Nelson, this is a big film. The opening forty-five minutes are large scale space opera on par with anything out there right now. Boden and Fleck seem like strange choices, but they imbue the film with small, believable emotional beats that allow us footholds into the slowly revealed story of Veer. If one is looking to dive into the Marvel Universe with little to know knowledge, Captain Marvel is a stretch. To get everyone on board with what’s happening, Boden and Fleck front load the film with layers of – enjoyable – exposition, dragging Veer from planet to planet while fleshing out the Skrulls and introducing a whole team of Kree warriors and reintroducing a Nick Fury that’s just a little different than the one we know. It’s a lot, and even as a seasoned MCU veteran, I felt a little battered at times. In the end though, Captain Marvel is another strong entry into the MCU’s already rock-solid filmography. One that barrels forward past preconceived notions and sets a path for a very different looking and feeling world.
One Last Thought:
I know this film is set in the ’90s, but did they only need to draw from the most blatantly MTV quality female-led pop-rock? Did they really need to use Garbage, No Doubt and Elastica in the same two hours? Off the top of my head I can think of 10 other powerful female-centric rock ‘n’ roll outfits and somehow Fleck and Boden still ended up only pulling hits of the NOW! This Is Music compilation from 1996.
