So last weekend was the opening of Marvel's "Captain Marvel". A little side note on my Marvel knowledge...it is very small. When I met my boyfriend, he introduced me to the world of Marvel full force and I have to admit that I became a fan. After Infinity War, all anyone wants to see are little things here and there that give clues to "End Game" coming up next month. We hope that we see Miss Carol kick some Thanos butt.
So a little background of this character; Carol was a fighter pilot before she had acquired all these crazy powers she has now. Alongside her best friend, it seemed like she loved her job and the life she shared with bff Maria and her daughter until everything went crazy when her jet crashed...
Captain Marvel comics date back to the late 1960's and is one of the most popular heroes in the Marvel universe. Not to get confused with DC's Shazam, who is male, she is very much looked upon as a hero to women. I found in this movie, Bree Larson did a fantastic job as the character. She portrayed Carol to be a very strong, independent, loving, and motivated woman. She is very passionate about everything that comes her way whether that is her pilot job, doing her duty to Kree, and doing right and knowing in her heart who's bad and who's good.
At the beginning of the movie, we see Carol (or known as Vers in Kree) performing combat with her partner, Yon-Rogg (played by Judd Law). We get the feeling that something more than just work-partnership is going on there, but he tells her to never let her feelings get in the way. They geer up for a mission and their plan gets foiled by shape-shifting alien like creatures called Skrulls. As a result, she crashes back on planet Earth and with the Skrulls. She is meant with a lot of uncertainties about who she really is, where she came from, and what might happened if for once she lets herself get emotional.
In Los Angeles, she meets the one and only Nick Fury (played by Samuel L. Jackson) and it is so fun and amusing watching their friendship grow as they eventually team-up to find Carol's history. Along the way they find Carol's best friend Maria (played by Lashana Lynch) and her daughter Monica (played by Akira Akbar). They learn more about the Skrulls in a surprising change of events that happens in the movie, and Carol eventually learns about her past, how she got to where she currently is, and who the heck this old woman is that haunts her dreams. When all is said and done, she embraces her powers and eventually can travel faster than the speed of sound on top of her other extreme powers she possess.
All in all, this movie really sets the stage to the start of the Avengers. This story takes place in 1995 and it is so fun to watch things like dial-up internet, hear about Fresh Prince marathons, or CD players. Samuel L. Jackson gives such a funny performance, especially when we get introduced to the adorable, but not-so-innocent kitty cat, who steals the movie. Another honorable mention is Miss Akira Akbar who plays Monica as a child wiser than her age and makes the audience laugh with some of her witty comments she makes to her mother. Ben Mendelsohn, who plays Skrull leader Talos, portrays his character as passionate, motivated, emotional, and someone who has an agenda.
The visual effects of this movie are impressive. I think out of all the Marvel movies, "Doctor Strange" has had the best VFX in my opinion. This movie had everything down from motion capture, to 3D modeling and animation programs for the rocket ships, and the use of on-set effects like explosions and such.
Motion Capture is a concept that was used in Infinity War (Thanos, for instance) and Star Wars (Snoke). Marvel uses a combination of programs such as Autodesk Maya, Mental Ray and VRay. Here is a fun video that shows a little bit of how it is used:
To conclude, this story tied into the Marvel universe so well and gave us a good look on how the Avengers are created. The main characters are very lovable and it's enjoyable to follow their journey. There are some surprising twists and turns, fun moments, jokes, and serious messages to take away. The visual effects of the movie worked very well and I always admire what Marvel can bring to the table. Just when you think they did it all, they surprise you with a different effect. According to Variety.com, as of March 24th, "Captain Marvel" has reached a whopping box office sale of $900 million worldwide and continues to grow.
With that being said, I hope you all enjoyed my first review on this blog! Feel free to share your thoughts about this movie over on the forums! Oh! One more thing! Make sure you stay for the credits!
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