Movie Review - Captain Marvel

Captain Marvel *** (out of 5) (PG-13) The latest marvel Comics’ superhero to find new life on the big screen is the eponymous gal of this sci-fi epic. As usual, we begin with an account of her origins, at least for this version. Not so usual is how confusing that is for those of us who didn’t already know it. Her gender, evolution and powers have varied through several decades of print existence. I didn’t even know this version of the Captain (Brie Larson) was female until I prepped for the screening. That’s OK, since its equally confusing for her, and takes most of the film for all of us to understand the complicated backstory. Even so, the path is exciting, with all the computer-generated effects one has come to expect from these offerings.

The tale begins on a planet of Krees, who look just like Earthlings. They are locked into a longstanding clash with a green, reptilian race of shape-shifters - the Skrull. Our heroine is still learning how to use her powers under the tutelage of Jude Law’s character, with guidance from their Supreme Being, embodied by Annette Bening. The conflict between those sets of aliens spreads to an unwitting Earth, before its nascent S.H.I.E.L.D. organization even realized that extraterrestrial or super-powered threats would become part of its mission. That brings in founder Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Agent Coulson (Clark Gregg), who are already well-known to Marvel’s legions of fans from their previous TV and movie appearances, covering events later in time than this saga. Timelines are often confusing, if not conflicting, in the Marvel Universe. Don’t sweat the details.

The standard opening graphics were morphed into a Stan Lee tribute that drew applause from the crowd. Larson isn’t exactly charismatic, but she plays her role well enough for the gig, including the inevitable sequels and joint ventures with other Avengers that surely lie ahead, as long as they remain so highly profitable. True to form, there’s more comic relief in the mix than we usually get from the DC counterpart productions, though less than Iron Man’s Tony Stark provides. During and after the lengthy credits, added scenes portend what is yet to come for this character, so stick around after the first fade to black. (3/8/19)