Movie Review: Captain America: The Winter Solider

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

The release of Captain America: The Winter Soldier brings the world only one movie away from the already highly-anticipated (pardon the understatement) second Avengers film and marks the halfway point of Phase 2, which in keeping with the tradition of sophomore seriousness has shown Earth’s mightiest heroes in some of their darkest and most desperate moments yet. Fortunately, the Good Captain is here to carry us through the action-saturated, Bond-esque political-thriller sequel to The First Avenger.

Perhaps it is more accurate to say that The Winter Soldier is more of a sequel to the Avengers, at least in terms of time and circumstance. The movie opens with Captain showing us what he’s been doing with his time since the alien invasion of New York. He is now a top-ranking S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who has taken several martial arts classes and hired a new costume designer; he truly looks the part of the world’s finest soldier, and it is absolutely thrilling to watch him go toe-to-toe with his fiercest opponents to date.

What is also nice to see is how Captain has emotionally evolved since New York. Coming from a world in which the good and the bad were very clear-cut, Captain has struggled adapting to the shadowy and constantly shifting world of international politics and diplomacy; Monday’s enemy could very well be Tuesday’s new friend. Captain sticks out brilliantly (even more so than in his red, white, and blue jumpsuit), butting moral heads with S.H.I.E.L.D. executives Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Alexander Pierce (Robert Redford). By the end of the film we see a Captain who has learned how to decipher black from white in a world of grey but is still loyal to who he is at heart and where he came from.

The Winter Soldier is also true to the underlying Phase 2 theme of past demons returning to wreak havoc on the present day. Here again I think the movie falls victim to an inaccurate label by calling it a political thriller and examining it through the vague “untrustworthy government” lens. Instead, we should examine it through the “unsuspecting past” lens. Demons are created, believed to be dealt with, forgotten, and then resurface when and where they are least expected.

Unfortunately, the movie is haunted by the “bigger is always better” demon. While the fights are superbly choreographed and fluid, and the action sequences are thrilling the movie starts to feel as if it’s trying to be bigger and (therefore) better than the previous Marvel movie instead of focusing on being a good, well-rounded, and balanced movie from start to finish. If this trend keeps up I’m afraid Captain America 3 is going to be the Good Captain fighting and smashing his way through walls for a full two hours; and let’s not even try to imagine what a “bigger and better” Hulk film would entail.

Flaws aside, The Winter Soldier was a captivating film and one of the better Marvel films produced. A truly fun and thrilling ride from start to finish, The Winter Soldier not only takes its characters on a journey but also leaves them with nearly limitless and interesting paths spread before their feet. Have their demons truly been conquered once and for all? or will new ones emerge from the shadows to test their strength and resolve? Only time and the good people at Marvel studios can give us those answers. 

Overall Rating: 8.0 out of 10