REVIEW | Captain Marvel (2019)

“Higher, Further, Faster, baby.”

This one will make a ‘true believer’ out of you.

Carol Danvers is a noble and powerful warrior for the Kree Starforce that serves to protect the universe. Amidst an intergalactic war with a colony of dangerous shapeshifting species known as the Skrulls, Carol discovers connections to the war that leads her to earth in 1995 — a planet that she strangely has dreams and memories of.

Which begins to suggest that the things around her are not as they seem.

*Minor spoilers for Captain Marvel ahead*

So let’s see — you’ve got the fail-safe formula from Marvel, a track record for action that’s bound to blow through the roof, and an established universe of iconic characters to span several lifetimes. Not to mention, some exclusively funny moments with its era-specific, inter-species setting.

And yet, that’s not the only reason Captain Marvel is a movie that’s much larger than itself.

It’s a blockbuster picture with big names, big budget, and a bigger message that’s infused with a compelling comic book character-study. Like a popcorn-movie with a substantial story that comes on-screen with a captivating cadence. You even have the bread and butter of any hero’s tale — namely, the glittering values and enduring morals that are rooted in the micro and macro levels of the plot.

But with every superhero story — comes a simmering sub-plot just beneath the surface. And oh, does the plot thicken.

Without spoiling anything, Captain Marvel’s narrative challenges everything you [think] you know about the battle for what’s good, versus what’s evil — and every laser-beam battle that separates the two.

Delivering a virtuous hero-story on a galactic scale, with lessons to be learned for both common kids and superpowered heroines alike — seriously, The MCU’s got all the exits covered when it comes to making this for everyone.

You can expect a viewing experience that’s not too dense to digest, too ambitious to relate with, and also subtle enough not to outshine it’s equally striking themes. All while absorbing you right into its ongoing war to experience every brawl, every battle, and every outcome that comes from it — whether it’s unsavoury, unexpected, or under-the-belt.

And of course at this point, you’re already bought-in to the promise of excellent action, fantastic fun, and the super-cinematic universe — “but how about the [relatively unknown] main character?” I hear you ask.

Well just as how you have the corporate-criminal flavour from Scott Lang’s Ant-Man (2015) and the surgical-sorcery backdrop with the origins of Doctor Strange (2016). Captain Marvel takes to the skies with its female-empowering, girl-power narrative and supercharges it with the same 10-year formula that fuels the entire franchise.

All along with a pretty strong and uplifting message that assembles and anchors the entire film — the stuff of goosebumps basically.

And speaking of Goose.

If there’s anything worth noting when watching this movie — it’s almost certainly the talent-heavy supporting cast we have before us here, and not to undervalue the star of the show.

But I mean what movie could piece together a comic-panel playground with Jude Law (the space law-enforcer), Ben ‘the menacing’ Mendelsohn, and a purple-faced Lee Pace — to struggle and strategise like pieces on a cosmic chessboard in the same movie, right?

To be honest — you don’t even have to remember the name of their characters, and it’d still be fun to watch them walk-the-talk in space pants.

Not to mention the unassuming, screen-stealing purr-formance by Goose the cat (sorry… had to prove a point with a casting-calibre like that).

Just like its protagonist, Captain Marvel is somehow more than a straight-shot superhero picture and portrayal. With careful consideration — it’s a fantastic driving force that (instead of placing women in powerful shoes) places a powerful character in all of ours.

Instead of carrying you upwards from above, it’s a film that lifts you up from below, with galactic glowing-fists. And despite all the light show that fills this movie, from promotional materials to its post-credits.

You’ll still walk away feeling properly powerful — without having your hands fire photon-blasts.