I finally watched Captain Marvel earlier today. I enjoyed it. I went in with no real expectations. Most of what I was hearing was that it was average at best. Well, that and all the people on social media that hated it with a passion (most of which whom have been screaming about how much they hate it for the last several months despite the fact that it barely came out 4 days ago). Anyway, here's what I enjoyed about it.
Bie Larson - She was actually good in it. The trailers made her seem pretty muted, but she was a fun character, kind of snarky and surprisingly funny. Brie fleshed out the character nicely.
Ben Mendelsohn - He was surprisingly good as Talos. He brought a lot of heart to the character and made him a standout.
The 90's nostalgia - Between the music and the tech jokes (as well as Blockbuster Video), it was just enough to be amusing, but they also didn't hit the viewer over the head with it.
The amnesia angle - it helped to keep the story moving, kept it interesting. There were a few surprises / twists to the story that also helped keep it interesting. While some of them were predictable, such as the reveal of Jude Law's character not being who he pretended to be, others were better done (the reveal of who Annette Bening's character really was, how Vers / Carol Danvers got her powers). And of course the cat Goose, who had some scene stealing scenes.
Carol's friendship with Maria Rambeau (Lashana Lynch) - It was moving without being over the top, they didn't overdo it or make it hammy and over sentimental.
And finally, the sweet tribute to Stan Lee at the beginning (as well as his cameo). Future Marvel films will feel a little emptier without him randomly appearing.
And that first mid credit scene. It ties into the upcoming Endgame. Definitely worth staying for.
As for the things that were not very good: while it was amusing how Nick Fury lost his eye, it was also predictable (I guessed it the first time I saw the trailer). It also felt anticlimactic. In a past movie, Fury said "the last time I trusted someone, I lost an eye", so that left the viewer expecting some type of big betrayal.
I also felt let down by the bit parts given to Clark Gregg and Lee Pace. It was nice to see Agent Coulson and Ronan, but their roles were small and mostly unmemorable. I really thought Coulson was going to have more screen time. The few scenes they got could've been played by any background actor really.
Anyway, the film was fun. Not Marvel's best, but not their worst (I enjoyed this much more than Dr. Strange, the first 2 Thor films, Hulk's solo film). I also enjoyed this much more than Aquaman, which was one of those movies that you forget about 10 minutes after you've walked out of the theatre.
And finally, let's address the elephant in the room. For all those people bitching about how this is a SJW movie, there isn't anything in this movie that's even close to that. Carol Danvers was NOT a Mary Sue (there's a clear explanation of how she gets her abilities, unlike Rey from Star Wars who just happens to have these amazing Jedi abilities for no apparent reason and without any training). I get why fans hated The Last Jedi. It went completely off the rails and treated the characters and their story lines as if the previous film(s) never existed.
There was no feminist agenda in this movie. A fight scene at the end plays No Doubt's Just A Girl, that's as close to "female power" as it gets, and that's pretty weak. People are mad over stuff Brie Larson said so they hate the movie (and most hated it months ago despite it not having been released, if that makes sense). It's just a movie. It's not that serious!
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