Captain America: The Winter Soldier (Part 1 of 2)

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (Part 1 of 2)

TWS is a well directed action movies and it is a nice follow up to the first movie. The movie flows at a nice pace. It is more like an action/spy movie than really a superhero movie. And, that's fine because we have Iron Man 3 and Thor 2 for all the superhero stuff. This movie is more about action and car chases. There are a few problems with the overall plot, which I won't spoil because it involves a plot twist. It is minor in the grand scheme of things. The Winter Soldier is a fine tuned machine and a nice action movie with some charming character moments.  

This sequel is directed by the new team of Anthony Russo and Joe Russo. Going in, I thought the movie would feel like a lite-reboot in the same manner as GI Joe II. However, they actually take great pains to reference the first movie directed by Joe Johnston . This movie does have a more modern film feel, but at least there are callbacks to the style of the first movie. Many of the references are in the form of flashbacks.

The movie also has a strong sense of the larger Marvel world that this story takes place. We get many mentions of Tony Stark and his family (also there is a strong implication about his father's fate that would changes Tony Stark if only he knew). There is a bigger world going on here with tons upon tons of hints and foreshadowing that DC only wished they could pull off. I know people are saying this movie stands on its own, but I don't think it does, and that's not a bad thing. You get a better understanding if you watch the other Marvel movies.

My other problem is the camera gets a little too shaky in the action scenes and you want to see some of the fighting involved. There are a lot of smooth moves from various characters in the close quarters fighting scenes, and some of them are almost ruined by the jerky camera and editing. However, that's not always the case for most of the movie.

As I stated before, the action scenes are very good and build upon themselves. The tanker/ship mission at the beginning feels like a cooler version of Metal Gear Solid 2, and I am sure that was their influence in this section of the movie. I should also mention that there is a sweet one on one fight between Captain America and and a MMA fighter. Another cool scene involves Nick Fury fighting off some bad guys in his modified up automobile. Another set-piece is the fight on the highway. Very cool. Take note, Michael Bay!

The movie is impressive to see on the big screen. Most of the CGI and practical effects are very well-crafted with little to no flaws. Again, I just wished the camera would stand still sometimes so we can witness the craftsmanship of the scenes firsthand. The mixture between the effects is outstanding.

I think the movie mixes the better aspects of both the Ultimate and Normal Marvel comic book versions of Captain America into a nice Movie Version.  

Captain America not only has super strength, but knockout farts.  When he clears a room, he clears a room.