Serviceable comic book fare, Captain America: The First Avenger tells a simple story which is better executed than its predecessor Avenger movie, Thor. It’s not as jingoistic as you might expect, given the name. The hook is that Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) was selected to become a superhero not because he knows how to beat up the bad guys, but precisely because he isn’t a bully and doesn’t want to kill anybody, even if they are Nazis.
Best of the 2011 comic book movies so far (though that’s not a huge endorsement), this prequel revives the flagging X-Men franchise with by-the-numbers competence. While not as exhilirating or quirky as Vaughn’s last superhero flick Kick-Ass (2010), the action keeps moving, interspersed with the contrasting back-stories and philosophies of the upper-class idealist Charles Xavier/Professor X (James McAvoy) and the concentration camp survivor-realist Erik Lehnsherr/Magneto (Michael Fassbender). Goes beyond standard superhero scripts by dealing with themes of prejudice and xenophobia, and repeating the ‘smart action’ of the first flick (2000), where the mutant’s abilities are used in interesting and sometimes surprising ways.
Slightly better than average for a big-budget superhero movie, especially considering Thor is positively B-list among the comic pantheon. Not bad CGI action, watchable faux-Shakespearean Asgard scenes (directed by Kenneth Branagh no less), but the movie falls apart when the action is on Earth. You’re supposed to buy that Thor (Australian newcomer Chris Hemsworth) learns humility and falls in love with a mortal (Natalie Portman), but it just doesn’t seem as believable as even the sci fantasy scenes of the Norse gods come to life.
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