Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Directors: Anthony and Joe Russo
Starring: Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Samuel L Jackson, Sebastian Stan ⋆⋆⋆⋆
With his patriotic duds and a giant Frisbee for a weapon, Captain America was never Marvel Comics’ hippest superhero. Put him next to Iron Man, Thor or the Hulk, and the strait-laced super-soldier from the Second World War doesn’t quite boast the same wow factor. But this follow-up to 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger demolishes that notion. Think this 1940s throwback is a bit square? At one point, he goes mano-a-mano with a jet fighter plane. How’s that for heroic? The cracking story sees the espionage/security outfit SHIELD compromised from within, with its eye-patch-wearing director Nick Fury (Samuel L Jackson) left for dead after an ambush led by a mystery assassin known as the Winter Soldier. Turning fugitive, Captain America (Chris Evans) and his limber colleague Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) go on the run in an effort to save the agency from the Machiavellian forces at work.
For sheer outrageous fun, this can’t be beaten – with co-directors Anthony and Joe Russo, the sibling filmmakers behind the sitcom Arrested Development, carefully seasoning the explosive story with some neat one-liners. The only major disappointment is Robert Redford, whose turn as a corrupt politico never quite grabs. Otherwise, this is yet another barnstorming blockbuster from the Marvel stable.
* James Mottram