tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196813830708036159.post5761706642536085640..comments2023-01-21T12:14:17.714-08:00Comments on Miserable Pile of Secrets: Captain America: The Winter Soldier (Anthony Russo, Joe Russo, 2014)Henryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10826787550676541006noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196813830708036159.post-3835007291940334052014-04-16T09:46:26.000-07:002014-04-16T09:46:26.000-07:00"I did think it a bit far-fetched that suppos..."I did think it a bit far-fetched that supposedly the most effective espionage and law-enforcement agency in the Marvel universe could be so thoroughly infiltrated by its criminal counterpart for decades without anyone noticing."<br><br>To quote Nick Fury, "I noticed!"Robert Funghttps://plus.google.com/116312282847645737180noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196813830708036159.post-23281741497289320752014-04-16T11:48:32.000-07:002014-04-16T11:48:32.000-07:00Did he notice before or after they killed him?Did he notice before or after they killed him?Henry Fungnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196813830708036159.post-33428462744482893742014-04-16T12:04:43.000-07:002014-04-16T12:04:43.000-07:00Good question. Maybe he began to notice when his c...Good question. Maybe he began to notice when his car started blowing up from guys shooting at it.Robert Funghttps://plus.google.com/116312282847645737180noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196813830708036159.post-21346089694592265682014-04-16T12:47:56.000-07:002014-04-16T12:47:56.000-07:00Even then, that's probably something he has to...Even then, that's probably something he has to put up with just every time he drives alone through the shopping district.Henry Fungnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196813830708036159.post-40616552179877319302014-04-16T14:00:35.000-07:002014-04-16T14:00:35.000-07:00"I will say that one of the things that holds..."I will say that one of the things that holds Captain America: The Winter Soldier back slightly is that, unlike in typical R-rated spy films or even a PG-13 James Bond movie, no significant noncombatant ever just gets suddenly and unambiguously blown away." <br><br>You would have preferred the Winter Soldier to have challenged Captain Rogers to shoot a shot of whiskey off of his lover's head. Then when Cap misses, the Winter Soldier blows the girl away, and asks, "What do you say to that?" And Rogers says, "What a waste of good Scotch!"<br><br>Yeah, you would have liked that.Robert Funghttps://plus.google.com/116312282847645737180noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196813830708036159.post-24462226851987484072014-04-16T14:22:11.000-07:002014-04-16T14:22:11.000-07:00Haha, just for the public record (since I never go...Haha, just for the public record (since I never got around to blogging about it), I hated Skyfall, I hated that scene, and I think I now just hate everything James Bond because of it.Henry Fungnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196813830708036159.post-6354458231850730282014-04-16T14:42:18.000-07:002014-04-16T14:42:18.000-07:00Hated everything except the theme song sung by Ade...Hated everything except the theme song sung by Adele?Robert Funghttps://plus.google.com/116312282847645737180noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196813830708036159.post-47699205116115782992014-07-10T03:16:33.000-07:002014-07-10T03:16:33.000-07:00The Avengers is flawed in many ways, but to me, th...The Avengers is flawed in many ways, but to me, the portrayal of Captain America was one of its strengths. In fact, his role was probably the most distinctive in that movie. The other three biggies kind of did the same thing – bash baddies, with the exception of Iron Man’s entertaining advantage of continual flight. And by the end, the lowly two – Black Widow and Hawkeye – were basically Cap’s lieutenants, doing his bidding.<br><br>Captain America stands out because he’s out there rescuing people in immediate danger, while the stronger Avengers are fighting the overpowered showcase villains. My favorite scene in that movie is when Cap actually takes on a hopeless face-to-face against such a villain, Loki, giving an inspiring speech while he’s at it. Granted, he knows that backup is on the way, so he’s not exactly sacrificing himself, but his role has always been more symbolic than those of the other Avengers, mostly for us viewers, but sometimes in the in-movie reality as well. He is the very symbol of a shield for the helpless. And what he can do that the other Avengers can’t is speak from a place of genuine moral authority. Robert Downey, Jr., as an actor, sounds tired of himself when he has to deliver a line sincerely, rather than ironically or comically. Thor is lofty but not deep. Hulk by design speaks as little as possible; likewise, Bruce Banner mumbles like a mouse. Thor and Hulk are strictly men of action.<br><br>It perhaps mirrors real life, where the job of the “everyday hero” is not glamorous. As such, I think Cap is the most relatable of the Avengers, especially when set against the backdrop of Iron Man, Hulk, and Thor. He’s making the most of what he has, little though it is in context. And I think the point is that it’s not so much his abilities that are on display in his three movies, but his character. <br><br>Because he is defined by gadgets and mayhem and cool, Iron Man is the hero that 10-year-old boys root for, both in real life, and in the movies (Iron Man 3). I’m not sure who roots for Thor and Hulk, and they've clearly taken a back seat, both in the narratives, and at the box office (Hulk doesn't even have his own movies anymore!). Captain America is the hero for people like that woman he saves in The Avengers, who appreciates first-hand the immediacy of the person who pulls you from the jaws of death, as opposed to the soldiers going out to the battlefield to give the enemy hell. <br><br>For me, it’s a welcome antidote to the generally mindless spectacle of The Avengers, or even worse, the characterization of Superman in Man of Steel. Such is the level of the filmmakers’ obliviousness that they take the ultimate “good guy” and turn him into a "hero" for whom killing the galaxy's most dangerous criminal is an existential crisis, but who apparently doesn't even notice that his midair grudge match has resulted in the demise of untold thousands (millions?) of innocents in his wake of collapsing towers and exploding glass.Robert Funghttps://plus.google.com/116312282847645737180noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196813830708036159.post-29449858739841134202014-09-19T10:55:32.000-07:002014-09-19T10:55:32.000-07:00[…] within S.H.I.E.L.D., right before their plane ...[…] within S.H.I.E.L.D., right before their plane is hijacked. Then, on that weekend between episodes, Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) opened in theaters, and, of course, the fate of S.H.I.E.L.D. proved a huge part of that […]Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Season 1) (2013-2014) | FRAGGIN' CIVIEhttp://fraggincivie.com/2014/09/19/marvels_agents-of-shield-season-1-2013-2014/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7196813830708036159.post-4734474135053778432015-05-11T16:59:42.000-07:002015-05-11T16:59:42.000-07:00[…] and the Hulk. The only post-Avengers movie tha...[…] and the Hulk. The only post-Avengers movie that it would help to have seen before Age of Ultron is Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), which covers what happened to Nick Fury. The events of Iron Man 3 (2013) and Thor: The Dark World […]Avengers: Age of Ultron (Joss Whedon, 2015) - FRAGGIN' CIVIE | FRAGGIN' CIVIEhttp://fraggincivie.com/2015/05/11/avengers-age-of-ultron-joss-whedon-2015/noreply@blogger.com