The Best of Twenty Eleven

Captain America: The First Avenger

By: Katie Miller

A great movie should have an interesting plot and surprising storyline. There should be plenty of action, a romantic story, a blood-curdling villain, a super hero, some tragic events, some comedy, and a good ending that leaves you wanting more or satisfies all of your questions to the point of wanting to see it again. Now, this doesn’t mean that movies should all end with a “happily ever after”, for this is not how life really goes. There is the ability to get tired of the typical, unrealistic, endings, but, when things don’t end as such, we are almost disappointed. There should also be some good effects that intrigue your mind without you knowing it. Captain America: The First Avenger satisfies such standards to the point of being the best movie of 2011, so far.

In the beginning, we are immediately drawn into the story of Steve Rogers, a boy from Brooklyn. The movie is set during WWII when every good man is going to fight for their country. Rogers, played by Chris Evans, is a small, weak, underdog, who has tried to enlist several times but, has been rejected each time. He has a strong passion for defending his country. He doesn’t like bullies and isn’t afraid to stand up for what he believes, even if he knows he will get beat up for it. We feel sorry for him and want to see him succeed. To satisfy the audience’s desire, Rogers is selected by Dr. Abraham Erskine for a special experiment to create a new breed of super soldiers. With this new serum created by Dr. Erskine, everything in the person’s body is increased. “Good becomes great, bad becomes worse” Dr. Erskine tells Rogers. Rogers is chosen because of the true humility, honor, and promising qualities he has.

We are also introduced into a romantic relationship between Rogers and Agent Cater a lovely lady in the service. At first, Carter is impressed with Rogers’ kindness and humility. After his “transformation” if you will, she not only impressed with his attributes but also his new triceps and biceps.

After the experiment’s success, Dr. Erskine, who is seen as a threat to the Nazis, is killed and his murderer is chased down by the new and improved Rogers. This scene, along with many others, is very intense and shows foreshadowing. The murder proceeds to escape in a cab. The cab service he took advantage of was associated with a star. The emblem on the door is a star right in the middle. The car is wreaked and the door is used as a shield to protect Rogers from the gunfire of the murderer. This hints at Rogers’ future life as Captain America, the avenger who will wear the star of his country on a shield. The death of the doctor causes Rogers to want to get revenge on Johann Schmidt who hired Dr. Erskine because of his intelligence and serum. Schmidt previously took the serum and because of his true inner being he became full of hate and very evil. Johann Schmidt, also known as Rogers’ Red Skull, is the antagonist, a power hungry villain who work for the Nazis but only to further his own plans of conquest.

Along with its amazing storyline and exciting plot, Captain America: The First Avenger, is the best movie of 2011 because of the cool effects blended into the film. Many times, Captain America, while in combat, throws his shield and it, like a boomerang, returns to him. Now this may seem a bit farfetched but, not once was it thought about as being impossible because of the perfect effects put into the film. There are many scenes in which Captain America performs acts that are impossible for any real human. Things like long jumps, fist fights where his opponents are defenseless, and he cannot get drunk on alcohol. Captain America will not stop until either he or Schmidt is dead. Also, the effects used to make Chris Evans the small and weak Rogers at the beginning of the film are fantastic. There is nothing about him that looks fake.

This movie seemed to be appreciated by other reviewers and critiques. Roger Ebert said that he “enjoyed the movie”. He liked the “period setting and costumes.” The New York Daily News reported that the movie was good but, they were ready for the “cool finale” where the missing “last battle” will be shown. The film received 7 out of 10 stars on IMDb.com.

Captain America: The First Avenger is so far the best movie of 2011. It was not gory and it didn’t have any sexual situations, just a good scene of Chris Evans’ upper body after he receives the serum. There is some language and some freaky sci-fi characters, so, this may not be for young children. The best part is that this movie is “made in America”. It is patriotic and helps Americans think about their past and their heritage of freedom. I urge you to get the movie on DVD or Blue-Ray today.