Captain America: The Winter Soldier

The second Captain America, reasonably moved to the “present”, is more serious and filled with more physical action. It takes place predominantly in the streets (cars and shootings) and it’s nice that the movie’s best scene is dominated by Samuel L. Jackson. However, the conspiracy plot is unsurprising and becomes chaotic in the second half. The initial diversity of the action-scene settings also disappears in the second half. And the action scenes are not helped much by being finished with contrived twists (anyone can be rescued from anywhere at the last moment). However, the audience will be kept on their toes with respect to the identity of the intriguing villain until the end. And the villain’s shared past with the Captain saves the plot. As a spectacular comic book blockbuster that you can watch with your brain turned off, it’s not bad. (08/04/2014)

The first one introduced us to the subject and allowed us to get to know the main character in a relatively interesting and unconventional retro-futuristic affair, but it adhered a bit too much to the shallowness and straightforwardness typical of comics. The sequel is more complex and works much better as a standalone film. In fact, it's an upgrade of 100 percent. It has plenty of references to war and espionage, excellent antagonists, great timing in shots and surprisingly even in action scenes. The action itself is phenomenal, with beautifully coordinated visuals, editing, and sound that formally present depict the protagonist's supernatural abilities. And they achieve all that even without a ton of slow-motion shots and various other auxiliary tricks. The only drawback is the pathos towards the end and the piano, which had no business being there. An outstanding episode and a great taste of what's to come with the coming Avengers, etc. (05/04/2014)

The Captain’s second stop will wipe the grin off the faces of most doubters. A pithy techno-thriller atmosphere starts the opening unbelievably. Well, opening... The first half hour is perfect, crowned by the fight on the freeway which takes your breath away in Heatstyle. The ending then heads into familiar Marvel waters and in a raunchy finale it easily abandons the endeavor to do it slightly differently. Nothing exceptional, but never mind. Evans was born for the role of Steve Rogers, but I hope the Winter Soldier gets his own movie some day, or else they’ll deal with it comic book style (if you read it, you know what I mean ;-) because it... I mean he has the mojo for it. Redford disappointed me a little for not being the man I thought he was, and with the final confrontation. The Russo brothers are on an outrageous roll and maybe it’s thanks to Opaloch’s dynamic camerawork, but the action is a feast for the eyes. The moments where the story diverges from the comic book are interesting, offering many interpretations of things to come. The glance into the Age of Ultron also lured into and hinted at the dark atmosphere I mentioned above. Sock to me, I want more. (06/04/2014)

The environment and era are changing, forgetting any idealism in terms of genre, moving from a number of surprising twists – and yet it's still number one. In the lead role remains a dedicated heartthrob, who you can't help but root for, and if I had to jump into any war, let it be the one where this guy is standing by my side. He is capable of clarifying the shadows of the past, lighting up the thickening future, and, in collaboration with the amazing Black Widow and the lovable Falcon, delivering lines in one continuous sequence against the backdrop of perfect action. Many may find plenty of mistakes in this comic book world, but I will not join them. A sixth five-star Marvel film in a row is no coincidence. (28/04/2014)

First of all, interpreting the first half of Captain America through the prism of the espionage genre requires a relatively high degree of tolerance for the reckless and simply transparent twists, but which, I’m afraid, also leads to disappointment about halfway through, when inevitability comes to the fore and the Captain reminds us that he can hardly break the Avenger’s rules (in a way, the IM3 twist is much more subversive, but it somehow fits into the humorous style). In other words, for me, this film maintains a stable level of simplicity. To perceive it as a subversive and overlapping moment, when the symbol of American war propaganda plays out on the aggressiveness and unscrupulousness of US foreign policy, requires a certain degree of leniency. The true and authentic values are not particularly endangered, because the main character carries them from beginning to end. In this respect, Marvel films do not test the integrity of their heroes much and they bend the world to their image (no one is going to tell me that not only is contemporary America troubled by the snooping of citizens and "leaks", but also by the problem of internal enemies and denazification). But no more criticism. This is truly a superstructure that one can / does not have to build. Otherwise, the Captain ticks off the Marvel blockbuster box par excellence. The film has the best directed action of the entire Avengers series (great kinetics and physical contact surprisingly survive without opacity and 3D glasses). In his muscular version of Grandpa Simpson, Chris Evans still finds enough fragility and goodness, the supporting characters have their "careful magnetism" and this time the storytelling does not suffer from overlong exposition. Although it makes it difficult for me to get emotionally hooked on it, I still have a good time. Definitely one of the three best Avenger films. [75%] P.S. Out of competition: isn't the Marvel Universe a little too divergent and unmanageable? Terrifying destructive objects levitate in the air, and one wonders ... where the hell is Tony Stark? (04/04/2014)