Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel, DVD

[Nerys Myk]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

I thought the omission of the racial segregation of the US Armed Forces in the movie was odd as well. I just went with the idea that this special unit of the Armed Forces was integrated, though it still is a little tough to believe they would ever contemplate a non-white soldier receiving the super-soldier serum and being frontline soldiers, unless it was done like in the Truth miniseries, to use minorities as guinea pigs to work out the kinks before the white soldiers got it. In attention to Truth, I liked how the comic Flags of Our Fathers, a Black Panther-Captain America WW2 team-up, handled the issue. It showed Cap as forward thinking and not tolerant of the conventional racial wisdom of that day.

As the movie progressed and became even more fantastical, with all this futuristic Hydra weapons, etc., I just decided to roll with it. Captain America was a very fantasy take on WW2. Did it do a disservice to the character and the war itself? I guess that's a matter of opinion.

It's funny but the way ENT dealt with Nazis came off as more realistic than in Captain America, and they had space Nazis.

While an interesting topic, its not really one that this particular movie was designed to discuss. Heck, I dont even think the Sgt Fury and his Howling Commando book ( where Gabe Jones first appeared) discussed how a black man could be in a elite commando unit in a segregated US Army.

This is after all Captain America not Band of Brothers or Tuskegee Airmen. Its supposed to be fantastical and futuristic not a realistic warts and all examination of the US Army in WWII.

I am a rare cat being from a neighborhood where everybody was Black or their parents were interned during the war. And even more rare that both apply to me.

I accept the Strategic Scientific Reserve as an intergrated offshoot of the OSS more then I do the Stormtroopers be willing to die for science and Hydra more then the SS and the motherland. I just think the show would have been stronger if there was a White/Colored rope line at a War Bonds Tour stop or the Blacks were put in the back row of the USO show. And Captain Rogers/America choosing His team would have had more impact

That's obviously a personal issue for you. Yeah, I have to admit seeing an integrated movie theatre took me out of the film for a second, but then I remembered it wasn't a film about racism or civil rights. Nor was it a historical documentary. It was a action adventure film based on a comic book. It would be like expecting commentary on Western Imperialism in North Africa or Japanese expansionist policies in Asia in an Indiana Jones film. Sure those things were happening at the times and places of Indy's adventures but are they needed in those films?

 

[DarKush]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

I know that Captain America was not designed to discuss racial segregation in the US Armed Forces in WW2. But an acknowledgement of it, and the hypocritical fight against Nazi racism while practicing homegrown racism wouldn't have been a bad thing nor would it have derailed the film. It could've been about Cap fighting against bullies no matter their uniforms and showing that we were all in it together against the Nazis.

Because the film went almost totally into the realm of fantasy with Hydra, it didn't bother me much, and we did get just a smidgen with Dugan and Morita. But why it is that some folks feel that any mention of racism equates to it having to be a full accounting or an exhaustive exploration of racism? Like the very mention of it is too much for some folks to handle. I heard this reasoning with X-Men: First Class, and now I'm seeing shades of that with Captain America.

Whether with Captain America or other films, I'm not a fan of sweeping history under the rug, and when it comes to the history of non-whites in this country, I think there is a tendency on the part of some folks to minimize it, ignore it, or remain blissfully ignorant of it all together, and then get mad or indignant if you bring it up. I'm not referring to anyone in this thread from what I've seen per se...yet, but that it is more of a general statement.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

For me its a topic that deserves more than a quick nod. It would be a disservice to the topic ( and those that suffered) to treat it in that manner. The Captain America character has faced this topic in comics over the years, but it was given the room is deserves and not just a quick scene or line.

 

[JD]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

I'm sorry, but I really don't think CA was really trying to be any kind of an accurate representation of the times, and if you expected it to be then you were very mistaken. All this wanted to be was a fun, comic book movie and that is all it was. I actually didn't even notice any of the stuff you guys are talking about, but then again when I go to a movie like CA I don't analyze every single frame as it appears, I pretty much just turn my brain off and enjoy the movie for what it is.

 

[Star Wolf]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

I'm sorry, but I really don't think CA was really trying to be any kind of an accurate representation of the times, and if you expected it to be then you were very mistaken. All this wanted to be was a fun, comic book movie and that is all it was. I actually didn't even notice any of the stuff you guys are talking about, but then again when I go to a movie like CA I don't analyze every single frame as it appears, I pretty much just turn my brain off and enjoy the movie for what it is.

I guess we can skip over to Cowboys and Aliens. But we have invested 265 post and we are a week past opening day. Analyzing ever single frame of TV and movies is what we do.

 

[captcalhoun]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

did anyone else think Schmitt's line about "digging in the desert" was a joke about Raiders?

and who else loved Steve's pulling down the flagpole and casually handing the flag to the drill sergeant before climbing in the jeep whilst everyone else stared at him?

 

[CorporalCaptain]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

who else loved Steve's pulling down the flagpole and casually handing the flag to the drill sergeant before climbing in the jeep whilst everyone else stared at him?

That was good. I saw that scene as a one-up on the similar scene in Disney's Mulan.

 

[Shazam!]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

did anyone else think Schmitt's line about "digging in the desert" was a joke about Raiders?

It obviously was, given that Johnston was the art director on that film.

Personally, I loved the old school 'A Matter Of Life And Death' shout out with Peggy talking to Cap over the radio

 

[Shazam!]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

You need Captain America in your first "Avengers" film no matter what publication history and continuity dictate in 616.

No ones has given me a good reason outside of "we want to see him there".

That is a good reason. In fact, I'd say it's the best.

 

[Captain Craig]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

The estimates for Cap's second weekend have him in 3rd place with about $24.9m. That is a 61% drop if estimates hold and a bit worse than you'd like to see.

Still, the US domestic total is now $116.7m in 10 days, more than Green Lantern after 7 weeks. The worldwide is up to $170.2m and will hit more international markets this week.

 

[JD]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

did anyone else think Schmitt's line about "digging in the desert" was a joke about Raiders?

and who else loved Steve's pulling down the flagpole and casually handing the flag to the drill sergeant before climbing in the jeep whilst everyone else stared at him?

I loved both of those.

 

[Captain Craig]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

did anyone else think Schmitt's line about "digging in the desert" was a joke about Raiders?

and who else loved Steve's pulling down the flagpole and casually handing the flag to the drill sergeant before climbing in the jeep whilst everyone else stared at him?

I loved both of those.

I totally thought that was a Raiders reference.

The flag pole scene was great, both crowds I saw it with liked it.

 

[Skywalker]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

The estimates for Cap's second weekend have him in 3rd place with about $24.9m. That is a 61% drop if estimates hold and a bit worse than you'd like to see.

Still, the US domestic total is now $116.7m in 10 days, more than Green Lantern after 7 weeks. The worldwide is up to $170.2m and will hit more international markets this week.

Damn, I'd forgotten that both Cowboys & Aliens and The Smurfs released this weekend. If it had just been one or the other, Cap would have fared better, I think.

 

[Mr Light]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

I went into this with little anticipation and I thought it was pretty good. I did prefer Thor and X-Men First Class, but I thought it was a solid movie. The makeup on the Red Skull was flawless and the FX on Skinny Steve looked totally real.

 

[Eduardo]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

Did anyone else notice the Iron Man 2 viral video playing in a screen behind Cap in the final scene?

This one:

http://www.starkexpo2010.com/accutech/

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

I really enjoyed this - not as much as Green Lantern, but certainly it's a great deal better than Thor.

 

[trekkiebaggio]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

I really enjoyed it, it just felt like it was a bit rushed to get him in place for The Avengers. Sort of like it was a highlights of Cap's life so that people don't get confused when they watch Avengers. I hope they do another film in WW2 era so we can have more of Bucky and the others.

 

[Anwar]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

It was also nice they avoided the "All Germans were evil Nazis" cliche thing: That bit where Erskine points out that the Germans were the first ones conquered by the Nazis served as a small reminder that plenty of Germans suffered from the Nazis as well.

 

[Trek4Ever]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

Loved the film, now I can finally relax since I was hoping that after the Green Lantern debacle that it wouldn't suck. My one concern about the storyline is that I really want time devoted to Steve Rogers adapting to life in the 21st century and I doubt that the Avengers film will spend any significant amount of time doing that.

 

[captcalhoun]

Re: Captain America: The First Avenger-Review, Discuss, Grade, Sequel,

Did anyone else notice the Iron Man 2 viral video playing in a screen behind Cap in the final scene?

This one:

http://www.starkexpo2010.com/accutech/

i saw it, but couldn't make out what it was advertising.