Movie & Opinions: "Welcome Back, Capt!!!" Captain America -- The Winter Soldier Quick Review

Image from Marvel

Haven't been movie-going for ages!!! Luckily, my wife and I realised that leaving our baby with her mother is the best way to regain some private time and so last Saturday, we did just that and got to watch our very first movie since... too long ago.

Let's start with a trailer.

Like it? Before we get into the movie, I want to talk about the much talked-about, Black Widow's hair. 

Black Widow in Iron Man 2 (left) and The Avengers (right)
Image from ONTD

Girls with long hair, always pretty. Girls with curly long hair waving about between punches and kicks, always cool! That's why Scarlett Johansson gained so much attention in Iron Man 2 and everyone was expecting more of her to return in the next movie. We were right about the return (in The Avengers Assembly), wrong about the hair, turned out that she had her hair cut short, not even shoulder-length. Understandable enough, since Black Widow often changes hairstyle in the comics and she's no longer an office lady working in Stark Industry, my logic says I can forgive her for that. (Actually, I forgive her because she rocked kicking those alien asses in The Avengers!)

But...

Captain with Black Widow
Image from Forbes

Straightened hair? Shoulder length? Seems like the really odd and old. The internet is not a big fan of this hair either. Does Black Widow look alright in the movie? Well, yeah, but just because Scarlett Johansson was awesome in the movie once more in her combat mode, not because her hair was particularly pretty!

What's more... it is not only her hair that drew attention,

Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow in Captain America : The Winter Soldier
Image from Marvel

Critics are saying that her movie poster has been over-retouched that her waist looks just about the same size as her head! I think so too! It was the first that struck me when I first saw the poster. Must all perfect superwomen come with a tiny outlet hourglass figure? It's ridiculous! A bit of fat is the new sexiness, haven't you heard?

Here's what the netizens on Twitter say,

Image from The Warp

Image from screenrant

Still about Black Widow, the next juicy bit is the intimacy between her and Captain America Steve Rogers. It was somehow weird for me because I thought she has this untold secret connection with Hawkeye from The Avengers, though having Hawkeye around will most probably hinder the development the love line between the Captain and Black Widow.

But I'm not the screenwriter or director, and I do enjoy seeing Steve and Natasha together, so why not? I do think the Captain does emit some sort of a charm being boring and single for decades and yet not changing any bit of his patriotic and righteous personality, so I guess Black Widow  is somehow drawn to him by that.

The kiss of the century, for Captain America that is.
Image from johanssonweb.org

I'm expecting a lot more for romance from them in terms of the intensity and depth in the upcoming movies for the two.

Finally, onto the rest of the movie,

Kind of expected, right guys?
Image from screenrant

The box office speaks for itself, Forbes reported that the movie earned an amazing US$96.2M in the US for the first weekend, and US$303 worldwide.

And we all know the Captain, and we expect lots of shield-throwing actions, but seems like his throws are perfected to such a degree that it is almost like playing a pinball machine when he wants to hit his targets! 

Falcon
Image from Marvel

Maybe the addition of Falcon is another reason why we don't need Hawkeye in this movie, then again, it is time we add a few more black heroes to the show. We aren't going to see Will Smith's Hancock for sure, so we need someone else, and Anthony Mackie does his flying job really well! 

Strength VS Strength
Image from IMDb

For those of you who have read the comics, you knew who the Winter Soldier really is from the start. Still, it is pretty cool to see a not-so-villain villain demonstrating a power that can match the captains.

For most of the previous Marvel superheroes movies, the villains are just themselves, just a bad defective version. Can't remember? Let me remind you.

Iron Monger in Iron Man (2008) villian
Image from IMDb

Ivan Vanko as Whiplash in Iron Man 2 (2010)
Image from sadpanda

The Abomination in The Incredible Hulk (2008)
Image from Wikipedia

The Red Skull in Captain America The First Avenger (2011)
Image from listal

Venom in Spider-Man 3 (2007)
Image from nukethefridge

If it wasn't of Iron Man 3, we will never get villains who aren't replicas of the heroes. Luckily with Captain America 2, we will too get something different.

For more behind the scenes and future developments, you surely should read IGN's Marvel Studios Boss Kevin Feige Talks Captain America: The Winter Soldier Spoilers and What's in Store for the Marvel Cinematic.

For those of you who have already watched the movie and want to learn more about the movie, you may like to check out Hey U Guys.co.uk's 10 Things You May Have Missed in Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

And as always, don't forget to look for Stan Lee this time!

Resources:
Marvel's Four Secrets to Superhero Success @ Bloomberg
http://www.bloomberg.com/video/marvel-s-four-secrets-to-superhero-success-m_~pmYC9TZOCv7NSKQQI0w.html

What Will Black Widow's Hair Look Like in 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier?' @ ONTD
http://ohnotheydidnt.livejournal.com/77156177.html#ixzz2yG6mflOS

Scarlett Johansson's ‘Captain America 2' Waistline Sparks Cries of Photoshop Foul (Photo) @ The Warp
http://www.thewrap.com/scarlett-johansson-captain-america-2-photoshop-sparks-backlash

Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson Mtime Interview @ YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74ONLrZGhK8

Review: 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' Proves More Is Less @ Forbes
http://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2014/03/27/review-captain-america-the-winter-soldier-proves-more-is-less/

‘Captain America 3′ Tugs On ‘Batman-Superman’s Cape With May 6, 2016 Release Date @ Deadline
http://www.deadline.com/2014/04/captain-america-3-release-date-may-6-2016/

Weekend Box Office: 'Captain America 2' Tops $300M Worldwide @ Forbes
http://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2014/04/06/weekend-box-office-captain-america-2-scores-record-96m-debut/

Best Comic Book Live-Action Villains @ Listal
http://www.listal.com/list/best-comic-book-movies-villains

Marvel Studios Boss Kevin Feige Talks Captain America: The Winter Soldier Spoilers and What's in Store for the Marvel Cinematic Universe @ IGN
http://www.ign.com/articles/2014/04/07/marvel-studios-boss-kevin-feige-talks-captain-america-the-winter-soldier-spoilers-and-whats-in-store-for-the-marvel-cinematic-universe

Spoiler Alert! 10 Things You May Have Missed in Captain America: The Winter Soldier @ Hey U Guys.co.uk
http://www.heyuguys.co.uk/spoiler-alert-10-things-may-missed-captain-america-winter-soldier/