Captain Marvel

A blast in the past.

 

Confession: I never cared for the superhuman Captain Marvel comic book character. If you're my age, Captain Marvel was more commonly the name for Shazam! — and if you really knew comics there was a male Captain Marvel and a Ms. Marvel too. 

I didn't care for the trailer for this new movie either, with scenes of Brie Larson (Room) flying and shooting fire mashed up with images of her flying and shooting fire. But when Avengers: Infinity War ended on a cliffhanger with a pager message to Captain Marvel as the solitary beam of hope, suddenly everyone cared about Captain Marvel, including me.
 
Captain Marvel the character cleverly lands on earth in a '90s Blockbuster store. Captain Marvel the movie lands in a point in 21st Century history where no one watches a stand alone superhero movie, we're all watching serials. Nothing about the trailer or the comic brought me to the theater, but my investment in the Marvel Universe story line did.

As a contribution to the series, the film works well. Oscar-winner Brie Larson is a wonderful woman addition to the Marvel Universe and it's a blast to see her interact with a young Nick Fury. When you see a 1995 Samuel Jackson in a boxy car, it sparks Pulp Fiction vibes. It's all digital manipulation of course, but seamlessly done. I had a blast seeing the "world's first superhero" set the stage for everything we know about the Avengers now.
 
As a stand alone movie, there's not much that will warrant a repeat watching. Oscar nominees Annette Bening (American Beauty) and Jude Law (Cold Mountain, Grand Budapest Hotel) have thankless roles and everyone seems to think if they deliver their lines deadpan it might add more depth to the story. Ben Mendelsohn, however, finds the sweet spot of dramatic interest and humor for most of the film, until some questionable choices steer the movie to a 1990's Star Trek: Next Generation corny TV vibe. Perhaps it was appropriate for a movie set in the 1990's. 

I did enjoy the retro touch overall, including a string of girl rocker nineties music, but ultimately it's difficult to recommend this as a film that stands on its own. Who am I kidding though, you're going anyway and you'll be as happy as I was to discover the mid-credit scene that sets up the next one, Avengers: End Game. Thank you, next.

In a nutshell: A fairly entertaining distraction until the the Avengers return in seven weeks.  

Award potential: None.   

The Ten Buck Review: Worth ten bucks for fans of the Marvel Universe serial. Not worth ten bucks on its own.