A Reel Review: CAPTAIN MARVEL

In 2018, Marvel Studios assembled their mightiest heroes in AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR to take on their most formidable villain. Those heroes lost that fight, and their failure led to the extermination of half of the population of Earth and the universe. It was a decimating, cliffhanger of an ending that the ten-year series had never done before…but like any great classic tragedy, it ended with a glimmer of hope. Say hello to CAPTAIN MARVEL. 

In the year 1995, Carol Danvers (Brie Larson), is a member of the galaxy-hopping Starforce. Having been infused with superhuman powers, she and her friend and mentor Yon-Rogg (Jude Law), lead the ongoing war against the shape-shifting Skrulls. During a mission, Danvers is stranded on Earth, where the Kree are searching for a device to help them in their war. She teams up with young SHIELD agent Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), to stop the Skrulls and uncover secrets of her own past. 

CAPTAIN MARVEL is a film that serves many purposes. It’s an origin tale for Danvers, a family story, a galactic adventure, and as an entry into the Marvel series of films, it sets up events yet to come and fills in the blanks in-between films. This is 1995, which is over 50 years since Captain America disappeared and 13 years before Iron Man forged his armor. The time-setting allows the directing team of Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck a lot of freedom to explore, and the ties that CAPTAIN MARVEL has to the larger picture are executed very well; the film serves as the missing puzzle piece to the larger picture that we didn’t know we were missing. 

On its own, CAPTAIN MARVEL functions splendidly. Danver’s origin tale is told in a non-traditional way. When we first meet her, she already has her powers, and her past, which she does not remember, is seen in glimpses as she has vague dreams and has her mind tapped into by the Skrulls. There’s some jarring and confusing exposition in the early goings, but by mid-film it all makes sense. For an origin story, CAPTAIN MARVEL is very unique in its telling. 

Once the action starts there’s great fun to be had. The action ranges from intergalactic battles, old-school car and train chases, hand-to-hand combat, and aerial dogfighting; all staged and executed very well. The film lacks a big-wow moment that most Marvel films have, but overall the fun and energy is sustained. Characters are fleshed out nicely and stand out amongst the massive amounts of CGI. The visual effects range from OK to great; many green-screen effects are obvious, but the de-aging process done on Samuel L. Jackson is simply breathtaking. 

Brie Larson is wonderful as Carol Danvers; playing a balance of strong yet self-doubting effortlessly. Jude Law and Samuel L. Jackson are good as always. Ben Mendelsohn pops in as a SHIELD agent and does some amazing work, and Annette Benning plays a few different parts very well. Clark Gregg returns as Agent Phil Coulson and is a joy to see, and also gets the de-aging treatment which is again, stunning. The film also has a few cameos from familiar faces from Marvel’s past films and all are treated and acted perfectly. The heart of the film belongs to 11-year-old Akira Akbar (playing as a five-year-old), whose scenes with Larson have great chemistry. 

CAPTAIN MARVEL has a handful of twists and turns offering a ton of surprises; just when we think we have it all figured out, the movie changes and never gets predictable. It wraps up leaving Carol Danvers as one of Marvel’s most special heroes, and one that we will be looking forward to seeing again very soon. 

BOTTOM LINE: See it