CAPTAIN MARVEL (2019) MOVIE NEWS & REVIEW

captain marvel (2019) movie

Genre              |   Science Fiction

Classification   |   M

Running time   |   TBA minutes

Released         |   7 March 2019

cast

Brie Larson ... Carol Danvers
Jude Law ... Walter Lawson
Lee Pace ... Ronan
Gemma Chan ... Minn-Erva
Ben Mendelsohn ... Talos
Samuel L. Jackson ... Nick Fury
Djimon Hounsou ... Korath
​Clark Gregg ... Coulson

director

​Anna Boden
Ryan Fleck

writer

​Anna Boden ... (screenplay by) &
Ryan Fleck ... (screenplay by) and
Geneva Robertson-Dworet ... (screenplay by) and
Jac Schaeffer ... (screenplay by)
 
Nicole Perlman ... (story by) and
Joe Shrapnel ... (story by) &
Anna Waterhouse ... (story by)
 
Roy Thomas ... (based on the Marvel comics by) and
Gene Colan ... (based on the Marvel comics by)

cinematographer

Ben Davis

music

​Pinar Toprak ... (composed by)

film editor

​Debbie Berman
Elliot Graham

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box office result

Worldwide               $? million

Australia                 $? million

North America        $? million

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the best dialogue

Carol Danvers: I keep having these... memories. I see flashes. I think I have a life here. But I can't tell if it's real.

Nick Fury: I know a renegade soldier when I see one. Never occurred to me that one might come from above.

Nick Fury: Space invasion, big car chase... truth be told, I was ready to hang it up. 'Till I met you today.

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related movies

AVENGERS: ENDGAME (2019)

CAPTAIN MARVEL (2019) MOVIE IMAGES

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CAPTAIN MARVEL (2019) STORY SYNOPSIS

​Set in the 1990s, Marvel Studios’ “Captain Marvel” is an all-new adventure from a previously unseen period in the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe that follows the journey of Carol Danvers as she becomes one of the universe’s most powerful heroes. While a galactic war between two alien races reaches Earth, Danvers finds herself and a small cadre of allies at the center of the maelstrom.

CAPTAIN MARVEL (2019) MOVIE REVIEW

Reviewed by Mark Geraghty   |   Review date 6 March 2019

​Pop ​Movee Rating

CAPTAIN MARVEL arrives at exactly the right time as far as Marvel Studios is concerned...

The film introduces a new hero to help close out the first ten years of this hugely successful movie blockbuster machine AND also helps usher in the first of a new roster of MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) players, laying the narrative foundation for the next wave of films to be released by the Studio beyond the Universe-changing events of the upcoming AVENGERS: ENDGAME (2019).

Let’s not forget the MCU roster will also be bolstered in the very near future by the return of the X-MEN, DEADPOOL and FANTASTIC FOUR brands to the Disney stable thanks to the acquisition by the Mouse House of Rupert Murdoch’s 20th Century Fox film interests. Imagine such friend and foe as Wolverine, Professor X, Doctor Doom and Galactus taking centre stage in the MCU...

In the meantime however, let’s focus on the here and now.

For viewers expecting something different from this latest film, it’s best not to raise your hopes too high…

Despite the independent film background of its directing duo, CAPTAIN MARVEL plays it safe; never straying too far from the formula that’s made every Marvel film a box office success.

Marvel Supremo Kevin Feige must have been keenly aware that the film preceding AVENGERS: ENDGAME (2019) couldn’t mess with the Thanos plot established in AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR (2018), so he and the rest of the Marvel brainstrust have opted to set this latest film in the year 1995. This allows the likes of Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury to play a more substantial role in the Captain Marvel origin story while avoiding reference to just about everything that’s taken place in the MCU timeline since IRON MAN was released back in 2008.

Even though it’s a “steady as she goes” film, CAPTAIN MARVEL is hugely entertaining and ticks all the boxes for anyone considering slapping their hard-earned cash down at the box office of the local cinema multiplex. There’s action, big set-pieces, humour, intergalactic conflict and a decent story twist.

For fans of both Marvel films and comic books, there is also a keen awareness that CAPTAIN MARVEL is the first release from the Studio since Stan Lee passed away in November 2018. The Studio doesn’t allow his passing to go unmentioned. Without spoiling the tribute itself, the acknowledgement is fitting for a pioneer of the comic book genre and beautifully captures his contribution to the success of Marvel films in more recent times.

CAPTAIN MARVEL is co-directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck. The pair also share screenplay credit with Geneva Robertson-Dworet, writer of the 2018 TOMB RAIDER reboot starring Alicia Vikander. Nicole Perlman, who wrote GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY (2014), also worked on the story, along with INSIDE OUT (2015) writer Meg LeFauve.

This number of writers sometimes leads to pause for concern, but, for the most part, the story stays on a straight trajectory. As mentioned, Boden and Fleck established their credibility in the indie film space with well regarded efforts such as HALF NELSON (2006) and SUGAR (2008). More recently, the pair wrote and directed the 2015 Ryan Reynolds & Ben Mendelsohn feature MISSISSIPPI GRIND, but the have worked predominantly in TV on shows such as THE BIG C (2011), THE AFFAIR (2015) and BILLIONS (2016).

On the surface, Marvel blockbuster would not be the type of project these two filmmakers would associate with.

Perhaps it was the lure of a Superhero movie where the central character was female?

A female Superhero film, co-directed by a female, is a great step forward by Marvel, and parent company Disney, but, let’s not forget, Gal Gadot and Patty Jenkins were ahead of this curve when they dropped WONDER WOMAN for DC back in 2017, striking critical and commercial success in the process. With a template already established, the path for Marvel has been cleared, so it’s a fair assumption to make that CAPTAIN MARVEL should resonate with the same audience who embraced Diana Prince a couple of years ago.

It’s pretty hard to stuff something up when somebody else has done all the hard work and all that needs to be done is to “follow the recipe”.

So, what of Brie Larson as the titular heroine?

While the film won’t be judged solely by Larson’s performance, the viewer’s embrace of Larson will have a bearing on whether the character takes centre stage in Marvel’s future adventures...

Larson can be best described  as a solid addition to the Marvel hero roster as Captain Marvel aka Carol Danvers. She’s a human who has come into contact with the Kree, an alien race first introduced in GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY (2014). Danvers is now “more human than human”, her DNA fused with the alien race after being rescued from a catastrophic crash but has only fragments of memory prior to her accident.

Larson is required to play her character as a blank canvas for much of the film. For two-thirds of the film’s 124 minutes Danvers is searching for answers about who she really is. An unplanned visit to planet C-53 reveals more than even she could have imagined as she - quite literally - comes crashing back to Earth!

While the story constrains the character’s ability to embrace her true self for much of the film, Larson delivers enough sly smiles and twists her dialogue delivery just enough to imbue Captain Marvel with some genuine personality. Viewers familiar with Larson’s previous films know that she’s a good actress and any future MCU appearances should provide the opportunity for her to go all-out with the character.

Samuel L. Jackson returns as Nick Fury in his most meaningful MCU appearance since CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER (2014). Jackson has the most fun he’s ever had playing Fury and benefits from the character being a little less “worldly wise” given the timeframe of the story. Jackson and the film’s feline co-star “Goose”, a ginger tabby cat, get to play most of the film’s laughs and their scenes help to fill-out a whole heap of Fury backstory that Marvel fans will find amusing. Suffice to say, the more serious latter day Fury of THE AVENGERS (2012) and WINTER SOLDIER (2014) is hiding a softer, gentler side not on display to his “Avenger Initiative” recruits.

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY (2014) supporting actors Lee Pace and Djimon Hounsou, along with Clark Gregg, help fill out the roster of returning MCU characters, all playing earlier versions of themselves. Fans hoping to see more of these three, especially Gregg’s SHIELD Agent Phil Coulson, will be disappointed.

Meanwhile, Jude Law, Ben Mendelsohn and Annette Bening all seem to enjoy their first outing in a Marvel film...

All three characters play a big part in the story twist that flips the film on its head at the end of the Second Act. The trio of performers add additional depth to the vast array of supporting characters that might be called upon for further Marvel movies and, as of CAPTAIN MARVEL with its mid 1990s setting, provide an opportunity for additional films to delve back further down the timeline between the events of CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER (2011) and IRON MAN (2008).

CAPTAIN MARVEL features the customary end credit sequences, so viewers need to make sure they hang around to get the complete story. The mid-credit sequence will send fans into a spin as the corresponding mid-credit sequence from AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR (2018) links directly to the equivalent sequence in this film. The post-credit sequence has less to do with ENDGAME, but it’s sure to produce plenty of laughs as patrons file out the exit door…

CAPTAIN MARVEL doesn’t have the wackiness of THOR: RAGNAROK (2017), the quirkiness of ANT-MAN AND THE WASP (2018) or the Universe-shattering consequences of AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR (2018). It’s a very “safe” film. What it does have is a talented young actress in Brie Larson portraying the main character. That alone lifts CAPTAIN MARVEL up to a level that can be considered better-than-average and demonstrates that the post-ENDGAME cinematic adventures will continue to expand and explore the furthest reaches of Marvel universe.

CAPTAIN MARVEL MOVIE (2019) USEFUL LINKS

Captain Marvel (film) - Wikipedia
​Captain Marvel (2019) - IMDb
​Captain Marvel (2019) - Rotten Tomatoes​

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