Captain Marvel review

Malcolm Durfee O'Brien, Managing Editor

Marvel’s latest origin story, Captain Marvel, is the best Star Wars movie since The Force Awakens, filled with dog fights, evil empires, complex characters, laser swords, Samuel L. Jackson and a weird villain with poorly defined powers who gets killed by a bunch of wimps the next time he appears. It is truly a major accomplishment for Marvel to have made such a fantastic science fiction film. 

What’s good in this movie? Well, there is the humor, which is just as strong and sarcastic as past Marvel films, though not quite as strong as that of “Guardians of the Galaxy, though that may be an unfair comparison. The film probably had the best action of any Marvel movie; one actually feels punches connect as they do on screen and the people actually feel like they are in pain. This being opposed to the usual Marvel action where everyone just seems like they’re getting hit repeatedly with a wet pool noodle rather than a laser blast from a space gun or getting their teeth knocked in with Captain America’s shield. 

 The shift in time periods was quite interesting; seeing this take place in the 1990s gave some new energy to the usually bored looking world of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Naturally the acting was between acceptable and great, with Brie Larson nailing her role as an intergalactic warrior-turned-superhero and is very good with relaying the complex emotions her character feels in each scene. Samuel L. Jackson is Samuel L. Jackson, I feel like I don’t need to go into explaining how Samuel L. Jackson’s performance as Nick Fury is great because he is Samuel L. Jackson. He’s usually the best part of these movies, though I think Larson outshines him in this one. The villains are villainous enough and give strong enough performances, however they don’t have a lot of screen time and that detracts from their ability to build up personas or shine in the film.  

What’s bad in this movie? Well, they are pretty much the same problems most of the MCU films have. The climax is extremely forced and feels tacked on because they were told they “needed one.” There is a major twist in the story’s plot which lacked any buildup. Like with most of Marvel’s movies there are moments with tonal issues, like all the suspense being drawn out of one scene because Captain Marvel wouldn’t stop cracking jokes. The main theme of the movie is boring; it doesn’t evoke excitement and instead is just filler sound.  

Overall, Captain Marvel is a very strong film, with most of its drawbacks coming from the Marvel Formula. I give it eight Star Wars out of ten. I suppose this means the next Star Wars movie will feel like a Marvel movie, so that the force is perfectly balanced, as all things should be.