We’ve often considered the work of Marvel to be one of but a small number of mainstream fiction to effectively demonstrate the concept of true morality. By this we mean goodness without the goal of a pass into the afterlife or entry into a girl’s affections/pants, so when we do find it we can’t help but be impressed. Of all the recent movies, with the potential exception of the opening Toby McGuire Spider-Man movie, Captain America: The Winter Soldier is at the forefront of this moral code and it’s because of this that it has managed to go beyond the confines of being just another big-budget blockbuster.
The follow-up to Captain America: The First Avenger was released on DVD, Blu-Ray and digital download on the 18th August 2014, and while the morality side of the film is a big part of its success, there’s a whole lot more to the impressive movie. It has a great storyline, solid characters, good performances, some of the most amazing special effects and sets things up brilliantly for both Avengers: Age Of Ultron and the third installment of the Captain America movie series.
The story for the film picks things back up with Steve Rogers a little while after the dramatic world-saving end to Avengers Assemble, as he tries to come to terms with the loss of the last 70 odd years and life in modern day America. Now working with Natasha Romanoff (AKA Black Widow) for S.H.I.E.L.D, under the watchful eye of Nick Fury, he finds himself being sent on a mission to recapture a S.H.I.E.L.D naval vessel and save the hostages on-board from a band of mercenaries led by the Algrian villain, Georges Batroc.
Following the successful completion of the mission, Captain America discovers that Romanoff and Fury have been keeping secrets from him, making him question his allegiances to the organisation. But when the full force of an unknown enemy, along with their lethal assassin, The Winter Soldier, attacks Nick and Cap, showing themselves to be in the process of world domination, Rogers is left with no choice but to suit up and duke it out.
The plot makes for a pretty impressive return for the film series with the solid backbone of the original Captain America comics as it’s inspiration, combined with a very modern day technophobia spin on things. The space the film gives to the concepts of data privacy, government surveillance and weapons technology development is an effective part of the storyline, bringing them all into question in a world in which 1% of people have psychopathic tendencies.
The cast is equally honed to near perfection with Chris Evans (Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World) going on to build on his ongoing personification of Captain America.His action scenes are genuinely epic, looking every bit the part even when he’s going toe-to-toe with UFC legend Georges St-Pierre, who plays Georges Batroc.
Scarlett Johansson (Jungle Book (2015)) is in great form too as Black Widow, pulling off a whole lot of action, along with strong dialogue delivery, especially in the sarcasm that she puts on the banter with Evan, as she teases him mercilessly throughout the film. She also manages to pour a lot of emotion into the character, which isn’t easy to pull off for a straight-faced deadly assassin. She does well in bringing the trust element of the role, along with the history of the character, to the screen, making Romanoff a well rounded part of the film.
Anthony Mackie (Gangster Squad) does a very good job of introducing Sam Wilson/Falcon, who will also be starring in the same role of Avengers: Age Of Ultron, while Cobie Smulders (The Lego Movie) and Emily VanCamp put in strong showings as Maria Hill and Sharon Carter/Agent 13. Samuel L.
Jackson gets a lot of time in front of the camera as Nick Fury and while we’ve never really been convinced by his casting in the role before, he’s did a lot to win us around. He’s intricate and deft in his delivery, while continuing to sustain a cool and calm persona no matter how fraught the situation is, which is exactly what the role calls for.
We’re big fans of Sebastian Stan’s performance as Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier in the film, as he gives it a big, iron clad punch to the face for the latest in the series. He’s menacing and intense throughout, acting as a very credible adversary for the Cap to go up against. He’s backed up by the brilliance of Robert Redford as the mastermind behind all of the tyranny, Alexander Pearce, as well as the driving attack of Frank Grillo as the S.H.I.E.L.D agent baddy, Brock Rumlow, creating a pretty effective set of antagonists for the film.
The special effects and CGI make for some of the best viewing we’ve seen all year, stacking up with the equally impressive Guardians Of The Galaxy. Giant flying gunships, Falcon’s suit in action, massive explosions and soe very cool sky dives combine to make this one hell of a good looking film
The score is another big part of what makes Captain America: The Winter Soldier such an intense thrill ride, as it builds with the scenes to deliver incredible sounds to accompany the film. It’s the brainchild of the great Alan Silvestri, who’s previous work includes the legendary Back To The Future trilogy and Forest Gump, as well as Captain America: The First Avenger and Marvel’s Avengers Assemble.
The excellence of the film is a massive credit to the obvious attention to detail and intentions of greatness from directors Anthony and Joe Russo, producer Kevin Feige, and screenplay writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely. They’ve managed to pull together a genuinely impressive move, delivering a great sequel to the first in the series, setting things up well for the next film, and creating a lot of anticipation for Avengers: Age Of Ultron.
In terms of home entertainment releases, the Captain America: Winter Soldier DVD is one of the best of the year and for anyone that has a love of action, sci-fi, superheroes or mad-skills special effects this is definitely a movie that needs to be seen at least once. If you have a mean home movie setup, it’s probably also a good shout to add to the collection, because this is one that will keep your jaw down low for years to come.
Captain America: Winter Soldier DVD review: 5/5
