Welcome back to MCU Marathon. We continue with the first female superhero movie in the MCU, and we will see if this movie can hold up as well as the others.
Pros:
1.) The most noticeable good CG of the movie is the de-aging of Nick Fury and Phil Coulson. There are many films in the MCU that have actors playing younger versions of themselves by de-aging them, and they look great. This movie is no exception, though it has to go on for two hours whereas the other films had it for a couple of minutes. The visual effects team did a great job on making us believe we are seeing the younger versions of these characters (though Coulson’s face looks a little off at times).
2.) The Skrulls and Kree makeup are good as well. It kind of reminds me of the makeup in Star Trek and Star Wars. Though the Skrulls makeup looks better than the Krees’ (since all they have to do is paint the actors), and there are times I felt it could have been better, it still looks impressive to me (even if some people accuse it for looking similar to Piccolo in Dragonball Evolution). Despite some need of improvements here or there (especially with Ronan’s appearance), I believe that the makeup is solid.
3.) I like how the first act started. We get to see more of the Kree home-world as well as other planets (or just one planet). It helps the world-building in not just this movie, but the MCU as a whole. We did not really get to see much of the Kree other than Ronan the Accuser in Guardians of the Galaxy, so it is cool to see a little more of it…
Cons:
1.) …However, as soon as the movie enters Earth, this where the movie falls apart. Let’s start with some of the obvious: the production has a lower quality compared to the previous MCU films. The cinematography in the action scenes lacks any punch (especially with some shaky and close-up camera shots), the music is forgettable (not the 90s songs, they are fine), the setting and locations do not scream 90s to me (other than a few references), and many of the CG (other than the de-aging) does not look that great. I was not expecting the production to be as a good as Avengers: Infinity War, but I did not expect it to be that bad either.
2.) Where do I begin with the story? Let’s start by saying that it is dull. It tries to do an amnesia plot, but was executed poorly (mainly because of the character, but I will get to that). Amnesia plots are risky plots to begin with, and can easily be bad if done poorly. One example of those plots done well are the Bourne films, but I digress. The character developments are lacking any substance. I barely care what is happening to these people even the ones from the past MCU films, because the movie does not give much room to develop them. However, the biggest problem with the story is that it created plot holes in the MCU. There were other films that had plot holes as well, but I forgive them for three reasons: it was starting out and was still building the MCU world, it did not hinder the films’ enjoyment, and they were later fixed in later films. This is a prequel, and it hinders the other MCU films like how the Star Wars Prequel Trilogy interfered with the Star Wars Original Trilogy. That and the movie is not enjoyable. I do not know how they are going to fix some of these plot holes, though I will understand if fans are willing to forgive them (though how Nick Fury lost his eye I will never forgive) …
3.) …However, the biggest problem I have with this movie is Captain Marvel herself. She is one of the blandest heroes I have ever seen (like Superman in any of the DCEU movies). Her goals are to stop the Skrull Empire and retrieve her memories, and how they showed that is just as bad as how they executed the story (see previous con). Her character is not interesting either: she is not as charismatic as Iron Man, nor as respectful as Captain America, nor as cunning as Black Widow. Nothing about her stands out. What makes it worse is that the actress playing Captain Marvel, Brie Larson gives out a bland performance. How did she do that? I have seen her in Room, she did a fantastic job in that film, even receiving an Academy Award for it. Throughout the movie, the character is told to not show or use any emotions, but Larson has such an emotionless face that it ends up standing out in a bad way. There are times where I can sense she wants to do more than that, but she somehow did not. This is either a miscast or the directors’ fault, because this is going to make her look like the black sheep of the entire MCU superhero lineup.
Overall:
There is a big culture war going on with this movie. One side has their own agenda, and another side has theirs, but I am going to review this movie as non-bias as possible. Do you understand? I hope so, because after watching this movie, I found it to be completely dull. The writing is bad, the production is inadequate, and the main superhero is uninspiring. I was hoping for the movie to be enjoyable at least, but it could not even do that. The only good thing that I can say about this movie is that it is at least slightly better than Iron Man 2 (barely). If you want a great female superhero film, watch DC’s Wonder Woman. As it stands, I cannot buy that Captain Marvel is going to lead Phase 4 of the MCU. For her sake, I hope Brie Larson shows improvement in Avengers: Endgame, otherwise fans will be wishing for someone else like Spider-Man to lead instead.
4/10
If there is one other good thing that this movie did, it made me more excited for Avengers: Endgame. Speaking of Avengers, here is something to help you more excited for that movie:
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[…] 0:25:49 – Captain Marvel […]
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