So I think within the constraints of its genre this was about as good as it could be.
Politically it's incoherent. Hydra as the uber-conspiracy is disappointing -- but, OK, they lean heavy on SHIELD as the other side of the same coin and dismantle them both -- but then they add the Black Widow testimony scene about how what we really need is a bunch of exceptional people to protect us. I think the script has its heart in the right place, but because they're only going to deconstruct SHIELD and not the whole rationale for superheroes, it ends up in a rather libertarian place, distrusting all forms of organisational power.
But the fight scenes are brilliant, the character work is brilliant, the overall structure and pacing are pretty good, and I really loved the feel of it.
Whoever cut the trailer is a genius. Not just "Your work has been a gift to mankind" -- which bugged me from the get-go, as it didn't make sense addressed to either Cap or to Fury, and I couldn't see the third possibility -- but "You need to keep both eyes open" and in particular "Are you ready, for the world to see you as you really are?" -- the latter surely being the most obvious hook for a Black Widow solo film ever.
It's an interesting feeling seeing a film this deep in the MCU, though. It does feel like its own thing, but it's also so much part of a larger thing, I feel a bit like I've seen two hours of an incredibly slowly made TV series.
(no subject)
Date: 2014-03-27 11:02 pm (UTC)Politically it's incoherent. Hydra as the uber-conspiracy is disappointing -- but, OK, they lean heavy on SHIELD as the other side of the same coin and dismantle them both -- but then they add the Black Widow testimony scene about how what we really need is a bunch of exceptional people to protect us. I think the script has its heart in the right place, but because they're only going to deconstruct SHIELD and not the whole rationale for superheroes, it ends up in a rather libertarian place, distrusting all forms of organisational power.
But the fight scenes are brilliant, the character work is brilliant, the overall structure and pacing are pretty good, and I really loved the feel of it.
Whoever cut the trailer is a genius. Not just "Your work has been a gift to mankind" -- which bugged me from the get-go, as it didn't make sense addressed to either Cap or to Fury, and I couldn't see the third possibility -- but "You need to keep both eyes open" and in particular "Are you ready, for the world to see you as you really are?" -- the latter surely being the most obvious hook for a Black Widow solo film ever.
It's an interesting feeling seeing a film this deep in the MCU, though. It does feel like its own thing, but it's also so much part of a larger thing, I feel a bit like I've seen two hours of an incredibly slowly made TV series.