REVIEW Captain Marvel movie takes a while to land but builds into a celebration of the nineties
Captain Marvel - Credit: Archant
Staring Oscar winner Brie Larson in the lead role, this latest instalment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe introduces the previously unseen Captain Marvel, a powerful cosmic warrior with links to earth. Set in 1995, this film acts as a prequel of sorts to the entire franchise as well as telling the tale of its heroine, the first female hero to headline her own Marvel movie.
Staring Oscar winner Brie Larson in the lead role, this latest instalment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe introduces the previously unseen Captain Marvel, a powerful cosmic warrior with links to earth.
Set in 1995, this film acts as a prequel of sorts to the entire franchise as well as telling the tale of its heroine, the first female hero to headline her own Marvel movie.
Brought up by an alien race known as the Kree, Carol Danvers (Larson) is a member of an elite military star-force, but after crash landing on earth, she begins to experience flashbacks to a former life and sets out to discover who she really is. Before this can happen, however, she must team with young Shield agent Nick Fury to defeat the shape shifting Skrulls who have invaded the earth.
Marvel continue their trend of hand picking exciting young film makers to helm their films. This time enlisting the services of co-directors Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden.
The pair reunite with Australian actor Ben Mendelsohn (Star of their 2015 film Mississippi Grind) cleverly casting him as Skrull leader Talos.
Samuel L Jackson reprises the role of Nick Fury, albeit this time with the help of some astounding de-ageing effects, a much younger version.
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The film’s first act, as Danvers struggles to unpick her complicated origin, is a confusing muddle and will likely baffle even the most learned MCU fan.
Pleasingly, however, the film finds its feet as the story reaches earth.
Larson is well cast as the cocky Danvers and has a great chemistry with Jackson. The pair’s fledgling friendship is the heart of the film and brings an interesting dynamic to proceedings.
The filmmakers use the nineties setting to great effect with a Blockbuster video store making an appearance early on, while a scene where our heroes are forced to wait for a CD rom to load, is laugh out loud funny.
The soundtrack is also choc full of music from the era and will generate warm feelings of nostalgia in older viewers.
Captain Marvel doesn’t break the mould in the way Black Panther did, but Fleck and Boden deliver an entertaining introduction to a long overdue female superhero.
It’s true the film takes quite a while to find its rhythm, but by the time it reaches its action packed finale the majority of fans will be punching the air triumphantly.
