Captain America: The Winter Soldier

They’ve done it again! The Marvel Universe just keeps getting better! Captain America: The Winter Soldier is simply an AWESOME film. If you are considering going to the theater for a weekend movie, you can't lose with this one!

The writing duo of Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely teamed up with Ed Brubaker to give us what is truly a tremendous sequel.  Famous for The First Avenger and the Narnia films, this team knows what they’re doing!

What makes this film different from its peers is that the story is so good!  All of the best superhero films manage to balance the child-like fun and adventure of a comic book with the serious tension of much weightier themes.  Benjamin Franklin once said, “Any society that would give up liberty to gain some measure of security will deserve neither and lose both.” The Winter Soldier, with the underpinnings of a political thriller playfully peppered with comic relief, ranks up there with the best of the genre.

Gone is director Joe Johnston from the first film. Enter co-directors Anthony and Joe Russo. I’m glad I didn’t know this going in because I would have been terrified. They’ve never done anything like this before and in fact, their only previous directing gigs were for tv sitcoms. With new directors, I’m always skeptical about how a film will turn out, but there is nothing to be concerned about here.  

The Russo Brothers, along with a fantastic team of writers, deliver a movie that flows seamlessly from the previous Avengers and Captain America films.  With a clever script, terrific visual effects, stellar cast, and more than a few twists, The Winter Soldier pushes a tremendous pace for its 136 minutes before leaving you wanting more as the credits roll.

Here's a few more fun facts:

I’ve never been into spoilers in movie reviews, so I won’t start now. However, I will say this: MMA fans have an awesome surprise in store. Kudos to the media and the Marvel studio for keeping this one under wraps!

A la Alfred Hitchcock, Stan Lee makes another cameo appearance as a security guard in a pretty funny scene.  Also, see if you spot Joss Whedon.

Fans of Marvel films probably know this already, but under no circumstances should you leave the theater before the house lights come up.  You have not one, but TWO bonus scenes. So stick around through the credits!  One sets up the next Avengers film, while the other alludes to the next Captain America installment.

So the bottom line is this: Captain America: The Winter Soldier is really freakin' great!