Marvel’s first female lead succeeds at box office
Brie Larson as Captain Marvel, stands with her assembled crew.
Marvel Entertainment made history March 8 by releasing its first superhero movie with a female lead: Captain Marvel. Directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, the film follows Carol Danvers as she fights to remember her past and bring justice to a misjudged people. Although it has a good storyline and a unique theme, the acting and humor are mediocre, and some of the special effects (SFX) lack quality.
This movie makes a major historical impact by being Marvel’s first female superhero movie, as well as being released in International Women’s Day. After Wonder Woman, released in 2017 by DC Entertainment. Captain Marvel is the second-ever superhero movie that stars a female lead. Women had a big part in creating the movie, too. With Boden, five other women are all credited for creating the story. A woman, Pinar Toprak, wrote the soundtrack, which is new compared to Marvel’s typical use of composers Henry Jackman or Alan Silvestri.
Still, as groundbreaking as the movie is, it isn’t receiving a super-positive response. According to Rotten Tomatoes, Wonder Woman has a 33 percent higher ranking in terms of audience enjoyment.
Primarily, people aren’t enjoying the movie because of the lead actress, Brie Larson. A lot of her jokes in the movie fall flat. As a newcomer to the Marvel Universe, it feels like she doesn’t understand the context of the jokes, and so they don’t come across as funny. A lot of the comedy in the movie feels forced and awkward. Larson’s acting feels stifled as well, and a lot of the movie feels like it’s being held up by her co-stars. As one reviewer on IMDb writes, “I’ve liked Brie Larson in other films, but she showed ZERO range in this.” Another says, “Watching this movie is like watching grass grow for two and a half hours.”
With that, some of the effects seem bland and cheap, which doesn’t make sense, considering that the production had a budget of $152 million. For example, a major part of Danver’s supersuit is the helmet and cowl that fits around her head and eyes. Every time she is pictured with it on, it looks terrible — the editing is so bad that it doesn’t even look like Larson in the suit. But the CGI that made Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury look like he’s 20 years younger is amazing — convincing and impressive.
The movie does have its strong points. Women all over are loving the fact that they have another superhero movie that features a strong woman as the hero. It also carries a strong political message about ending wars and protecting those who can’t protect themselves. One of Danvers’ taglines is, “I’m not gonna fight your war. I’m gonna end it.” When Danver finds out about other people experiencing injustice, she does whatever she can to help them survive. In the political climate of today, this movie does a great job of illuminating current issues without blatantly pointing fingers.
As of March 14, the movie held the No. 1 spot, , according to Box Office Mojo. This is a drastic increase from its opening day when it crashed at the box office just 10 hours after opening. This wasn’t because of the film quality, but because of trolls that deliberately sandbagged the release, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Those efforts didn’t make much of a difference, though, because the movie is currently smashing box office records. It now holds the biggest opening for a female-led movie, the second biggest opening for a superhero movie, and has the sixth-biggest opening weekend ever, according to Marvel.
This film is the perfect example of the quote, “Nevertheless, she persisted.” After everything people did to stunt its popularity, Captain Marvel has risen above. Ultimately, the movie has a strong story and a bold voice. Aside from some struggles with CGI and humor, it is an enjoyable film that should be experienced on the big screen. For these reasons, Captain Marvel receives a 4/5.
