Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) is again different from the films preceding it. Steve Rogers, played by Chris Evans, does not have to go through the same type of personal change that Thor and Tony Stark go through. Steve has never had money or fantastic abilities. He is small and has a laundry list of medical issues. He doesn’t let that stop him from trying to join the military and fight in WW2. He is given his abilities because he is a good person. Dr. Erskine, played by Stanley Tucci, helps him to achieve this ability by giving him a super-soldier-serum. He asks him, “Do you want to kill Nazis?” Steve answers, “I don’t like bullies. I don’t care where they’re from.” This line exemplifies his entire MCU arc.
The Red Skull, a Nazi super-soldier, starts his own Nazi regime as the head of Hydra. He acquires the Tesseract from Tonsberg, Norway in the opening scene and then builds an arsenal to destroy the world. Hugo Weaving was not given the opportunity to really excel due to some script issues. The Red Skull is “judged” by the tesseract for trying to kill millions of people. We learn that much later though. When the film came out, we had no idea what just happened as a huge beam of light blasts him into space.
Quick Hits
Howard Stark. Like Tony’s dad. He’s in it. He is a part of an Expo in New York. Sound familiar? Eh?
Tommy Lee Jones is the film’s comedic relief. Crushes it. Very funny.
“Do you two…. you know…fondue?”
Bucky dies…. or does he?
The Howling Commandos are a lot of fun. Their archetypal natures make them entertaining.
Stan Lee cameo is a military man at Steve’s medal ceremony
The post-credits scene is the AVENGERS TRAILER!!!!
There is a montage in this movie that was made to show off 3D stuff. Bleh.
Apparently, there is a Dr. Who companion in the movie. Also, some actress from Game of Thrones makes out with Steve.
The one major flaw Steve has in this film is that he lets the super-soldier thing build up his ego a bit. First, he asks Bucky if “He’s ready to follow Captain American into the jaws of death.” Bucky helps remind him that it is not the “great soldier” everyone is following but the “good man” by saying “I’m following that kid from Brooklyn that was too dumb to run from a fight.” Later, Peggy, played by Hayley Atwell, catches him making out with some random woman and attempts to shoot him. That brought him down a peg or two.
This film also starts the greatest love story in the entire MCU. Agent Carter and Steve Rogers never get their first dance. They challenge each other and surprise each other. In the end, Steve sacrifices himself to save humanity and, in doing so, misses out on his opportunity to live a normal life. He is thrust into the future where all of his friends are gone and Peggy is an old woman. Thus, Steve’s journey into “letting go” begins. He is a government man through and through in this first adventure. We will see that begin to change as the government becomes the bully in future films.