I was a superhero fan growing up, but I somehow never knew this film existed. I heard about it in recent years, probably around the time Marvel Studios was producing CAPTAIN_AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER (2011) for its shared cinematic universe. From what I heard, this 1990 version was a joke. But as I watched it, I was surprised to find that this is a legitimate Marvel Comics movie. Or at least it starts that way. In fact, the story of Captain America's origin (breezed through in a matter of minutes) is rather similar to the version that plays out in the 2011 film. This 1990 film keeps the retro WWII origin for Cap and the star-spangled costume is right out of the comics. The plot moves along rather briskly, and admittedly there are some cheesy scenes, but the first twenty-five minutes of the movie feel like a pulpy comic book brought to life. And in 1990, that's probably what they were going for.
Matt Salinger plays Steve Rogers, who volunteers for a top-secret government experiment to create super soldiers from the physically weak. He's not a scrawny kid like in THE FIRST AVENGER, but rather a strapping young man who suffers from polio and walks with a limp. The experiment turns Rogers into Captain America, the Allied secret weapon against Hitler and his own super soldier, the gruesome Red Skull (an Italian this time around, not a German). On his first mission, Captain America heroically foils the Nazis' plot to bomb the White House, but is consequently lost in the frozen North. Thawed out several decades later, Cap is called upon to ferret out the still-living Red Skull and rescue the President.
Cap's 1940s sweetheart is not Agent Peggy Carter, but Bernie, a girl from his hometown. He returns to find she has married and grown old, but she has a pretty blonde daughter named Sharon (a nod to Sharon Carter of the comics, no doubt). Sharon tags along with Steve as he tracks the Red Skull back to his native Italy.
Disappointingly, the movie as a whole doesn't live up to its first twenty-five minutes. There's a long section in the second half where Steve Rogers does his sleuthing without the costume, and there's nothing really Captain America-y going on. If they were gonna make one Captain America movie and have it stand alone in representing the character on the big screen, they should've had the guy wear the costume more. Otherwise the film becomes a generic action flick.
And while Red Skull is a brand-name comic book villain, his present-day incarnation in this film is a big letdown. Decades removed from his red-skulled WWII treachery, the evil mastermind has undergone plastic surgery to cover up his deformity as he lives quietly in his Italian fortress. With his slicked-back hair and tailored suits, the Red Skull looks like any generic mob boss.
It becomes obvious that CAPTAIN_AMERICA (1990) is a low-budget affair, not the Hollywood blockbuster that we've come to expect from superhero movies these days. The photography of the climactic action scenes in Italy looks almost amateurish. The cast seems fairly obscure today, although real-deal character actors Ned Beatty and Darren McGavin lend support, and Melinda Dillon has a scene as Steve Rogers's mother.
There are several points where the movie seems to be on the right track (there's a touching scene between Steve and Bernie, reunited after fifty years), but it somehow loses its way. (Reading up on the film, it seems some character development from the original script was cut from the final edit.) And the film oddly tries to carry a half-hearted environmentalist message, even urging the audience to support the Environmental Protection Act of 1990 in the end credits.
CAPTAIN_AMERICA (1990) is a strange movie.
4.5/10
Matt Salinger plays Steve Rogers, who volunteers for a top-secret government experiment to create super soldiers from the physically weak. He's not a scrawny kid like in THE FIRST AVENGER, but rather a strapping young man who suffers from polio and walks with a limp. The experiment turns Rogers into Captain America, the Allied secret weapon against Hitler and his own super soldier, the gruesome Red Skull (an Italian this time around, not a German). On his first mission, Captain America heroically foils the Nazis' plot to bomb the White House, but is consequently lost in the frozen North. Thawed out several decades later, Cap is called upon to ferret out the still-living Red Skull and rescue the President.
Cap's 1940s sweetheart is not Agent Peggy Carter, but Bernie, a girl from his hometown. He returns to find she has married and grown old, but she has a pretty blonde daughter named Sharon (a nod to Sharon Carter of the comics, no doubt). Sharon tags along with Steve as he tracks the Red Skull back to his native Italy.
Disappointingly, the movie as a whole doesn't live up to its first twenty-five minutes. There's a long section in the second half where Steve Rogers does his sleuthing without the costume, and there's nothing really Captain America-y going on. If they were gonna make one Captain America movie and have it stand alone in representing the character on the big screen, they should've had the guy wear the costume more. Otherwise the film becomes a generic action flick.
And while Red Skull is a brand-name comic book villain, his present-day incarnation in this film is a big letdown. Decades removed from his red-skulled WWII treachery, the evil mastermind has undergone plastic surgery to cover up his deformity as he lives quietly in his Italian fortress. With his slicked-back hair and tailored suits, the Red Skull looks like any generic mob boss.
It becomes obvious that CAPTAIN_AMERICA (1990) is a low-budget affair, not the Hollywood blockbuster that we've come to expect from superhero movies these days. The photography of the climactic action scenes in Italy looks almost amateurish. The cast seems fairly obscure today, although real-deal character actors Ned Beatty and Darren McGavin lend support, and Melinda Dillon has a scene as Steve Rogers's mother.
There are several points where the movie seems to be on the right track (there's a touching scene between Steve and Bernie, reunited after fifty years), but it somehow loses its way. (Reading up on the film, it seems some character development from the original script was cut from the final edit.) And the film oddly tries to carry a half-hearted environmentalist message, even urging the audience to support the Environmental Protection Act of 1990 in the end credits.
CAPTAIN_AMERICA (1990) is a strange movie.
4.5/10