Sound Off! Captain Marvel

Welcome back to Sound Off!, a semi-regular column where members of Speculative Chic gather together to chat about the latest BIG THING in entertainment. This time, go higher, further, and faster and discuss Captain Marvel, which premiered in the United States on Friday, March 8, 2019.

Sound Off! is meant to be a reaction, but not necessarily a review. After all, while we are all individuals, even mutual love of something (or hate) can come from different places: you may find everything from critique to fangirling to maybe even hate-watching.

Now, join Shara White, Nancy O’Toole Meservier, Ronya McCool, Erica Hildebrand, Merrin, and J.L. Gribble as they talk about Captain Marvel. [Note: Spoiler-free!]

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Shara: Honestly, it’s all I can do to keep from typing GOOSE!!!!!! in all caps and letting that be my reaction in full. Because, obviously, GOOSE!!!!!!!!

But I’ll try to be a little bit more detailed than that, and I’ll even resist spoilers, even though I just want to gush about everything that’s spoilerific.

Yes, I enjoyed the hell out of it. I loved all the nostalgic nineties shout-outs. I loved seeing Nick Fury, pre-patch, acting as an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D instead of its head, and I could DEFINITELY use more movies starring Nick Fury. And Phil Coulson. I loved his cameos so much (kudos to the technology used on them both that made them believably look younger).

I loved meeting Carol Danvers. At first, before she ends up on our planet (not a spoiler: the trailers spoiled that for you), the movie was a little slow, but once she made it to our world, the movie was SO much fun. And it’s ironic, because for all the whining about Carol Danvers not smiling in the trailers, she actually cuts up a lot in the film, and to the point, she has fun with her power. It’s impressive and it’s breathtaking, and you can’t help but grin right along with her.

I had a moment (won’t spoil it) while watching where it hit me just how different this is than the usual origin story Marvel gives us. It didn’t feel like an origin story at first, but it also really subverted what we’ve come to know and expect from stories about superheroes. Not many embrace friendship as one of the key relationships of the story, and for those that do — Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes — there’s a lot of angst and guilt and the characters are barely able to simply be friends. Not so here, and I can’t tell you how much I freaking LOVED Carol’s friendship with Maria Rambeau and Maria’s daughter Monica. I also loved how Maria Rambeau was a character in her own right, with her own skill set that didn’t have to be upstaged or overshadowed by Carol Danvers. Also, can we get a Rambeau cameo of some sort in future movies and/or Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D?

Brie Larson was an absolute delight. I don’t have a history with Captain Marvel as a character (I’ve only ever read a few issues, so yes, I knew what a flerken was, and no, I’m not upset about the name change), but Larson’s interpretation and look just went far and beyond any expectations I had. I want to be her for Halloween. The thing about this movie, at its heart, is how no matter how many times you get knocked down, the important thing is not quitting; it’s about getting up again, and again, and again, and again.

I can’t tell you how empowering that is, not can I fully express just how awesome it felt when Carol Danvers finally realizes she doesn’t have to prove anything to anyone (which wasn’t meta at all, nope!).

Stay for the two end-credits scenes (I’m so looking forward to seeing Danver’s role in Avengers: Endgame!), and try not to cry during the usual Marvel opening. Dare you.

And because I don’t think I mentioned it, I just want everyone to know that Goose steals the show. Also, I love that this movie reveals that Nick Fury is a cat person, and Fury and Goose might be the OTP of this franchise. GOOSE!!!!!

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Nancy: Higher Further Faster, baby!

Like many comic book readers, I was first introduced to the character of Carol Danvers AKA Captain Marvel while the character was under the stewardship of Kelly Sue DeConnick at Marvel comics. As someone who enjoyed the run well enough, I was curious to see how Carol would fit into the MCU. Now that I’ve seen the film, I can honestly say that I’m pleased.

Captain Marvel is a thoroughly entertaining superhero popcorn flick anchored in strong performances. Brie Larson is a great pick for Captain Marvel, able to deliver on both the physicality required of the action scenes, as well as the more nuanced character moments. Carol is a strong-willed woman struggling to find her humanity. I really enjoyed getting to follow her on this very personal journey. Thanks to digital de-aging, we’re able to see Samuel L. Jackson take on a much younger, looser version of Nick Fury. His performance is a joy to watch but also somewhat sad. Clearly, time at S.H.I.E.L.D. has taken a toll on Fury, given the more solemn demeanor he tends to embrace in current day. Praise should also be heaped on Ben Mendelsohn, who plays shapeshifting Talos, and Lashana Lynch, who plays Air Force pilot Maria Rambeau.

It may not look it from the previews, but Captain Marvel has a fair amount to juggle. It must be both a cosmic and earth-bound movie, introduce the Captain Marvel-related cast while letting us explore younger versions of established characters, as well as present a period piece from the 90s side by side with a futuristic sci-fi action piece. I’d be lying if I said that the directors did a perfect job keeping everything afloat. Some of the action sequences lack the oomph we’ve come to expect from other Marvel directors (mainly, the Russo brothers), and multiple characters feel underutilized (at this point, I just feel bad for Ronan).

There are certainly things to nitpick, but where the movie needs to succeed, it does, creating a film that I know I will enjoy re-watching. Carol is a fantastic addition the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and I look forward to seeing where she (and her cat) fit into the timeline in present day.

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Ronya: It’s so exhilarating to see comic book characters on the big screen. It’s even more amazing to see female comic book characters as onscreen leads with the same treatment as their male counterparts. I haven’t read much of Ms. Marvel or Captain Marvel — just the Kelly Sue DeConnick run and the Kamala Khan arc — but Captain Marvel film is both really accessible in terms of character backstory and as an entry into the Marvel universe (for the latecomers who haven’t seen the last x number of films; I see what you did there, Marvel).

To be fair, I did not get the same rush as I did watching Diana Prince charge into her first skirmish, or when Black Panther showed up last February (has it only been a year-ish? I’ve seen that movie five times and it still isn’t old). But Captain Marvel is just plain fun. The film doesn’t take no for an answer; it comes out swinging. The story balances humor and sense of adventure with 90s nostalgia and the title character’s inner journey/origin story. Brie Larson is radiant and comfortable in this character. And she’s made her character so emotional, thank goodness — and so this film’s approach to Marvel’s ongoing superhero saga feels fresh. (And that soundtrack is so on point.)

For those of us who were let down by Infinity War (so, like, everybody), further infuriated by the ending of Ant-Man and the Wasp (again — everybody), Captain Marvel is the film that breathes hope into the Infinity War arc. My misgivings: As Marvel’s first female superhero film, while I loved Captain Marvel and early Nick Fury/S.H.I.E.L.D. workings, and loved how it pointed to the unsung heroines of aerospace exploration and war, and I thought it worked well as a standalone, the film was also designed to get people interested in the larger Marvel film universe. Soooo, if we expanded the scope of the Bechdel test to include the other Marvel films, would Captain Marvel pass if we did?

But you know what? Right now, today, I don’t care. I walked out of that theater happy. Mission accomplished, Marvel. NOW GIVE ME MY CAPTAIN MARVEL MERCHANDISE.

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Erica: Do you remember that scene in Wonder Woman where Diana finally puts on the tiara and then crosses No Man’s Land? Did you, like me, cry with pride and hope and other feels at that part?

There’s a moment like that in Captain Marvel, too.

It’s no accident this movie came out on International Women’s Day. It tells a kick-ass story about Earth’s Mightiest Avenger, who just so happens to be a woman. A woman who’s been laughed at for her try-fail cycles of development, who’s been told by a random creep on the street to “smile” and then called a bitch when she doesn’t. Who, along with her best friend Maria Rambeau, was not allowed to fly combat missions even though both women are skilled fighter pilots. Who has no memory of her past, or how or why she ended up with the Kree and with superhuman powers.

And NONE of that stops her. She perseveres, and she kicks some serious ass. And it warmed my heart like a photonic pulse.

Captain Marvel was fantastic! Several friends in different states saw it over the weekend and we all were texting “OMG!” at each other. I’m a big fan of the comic series written by Kelly Sue DeConnick (DeConnick has a small cameo in this, by the way), and I thought this did justice to those comics. Brie Larson is great as confident, no-nonsense Carol Danvers. She literally and figuratively radiates strength. It’s no surprise, given what she’s gone through, that she perceives she doesn’t need anyone but herself. But she collects her true allies along the way. And a young Nick Fury makes a great and entertaining display as her onscreen partner.

The movie also has an answer for why Fury didn’t call her until the end of Infinity War.

Though there was an accidental slip on the internet that prematurely revealed Jude Law was Yon-Rogg, I was super psyched about the casting choice for Mar-Vell.

I love how much time was devoted to Carol’s reconnecting with Maria Rambeau — her family, really — and Maria’s daughter Monica, who has a hand in helping Carol recover her memories. I also love the set-up to bring a grown-up Monica into the modern MCU.

And I love that it was set in the 90s! Those were my formative middle school and high school years, and the song choices really tugged at my nostalgia strings. I’m pretty sure the soundtrack lines up with my old mix tapes.

I only wish we didn’t have to wait this long for MCU to make this movie. It’s great fun, and if for no other reason, you’ve gotta see it for Goose.

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Merrin: I want to open this reaction with just screaming “Y’all” about sixteen times at the top of my lungs. Here’s the thing. I loved this movie. I loved this movie so much. I didn’t react to it quite as emotionally as I did to Wonder Woman, but man did I love this movie. But I also find it hard to talk about critically.

My level of avoidance for spoilers is so good at this point that I didn’t even know about the tank job that Men’s Rights Activists worked on this movie until after I’d seen it. (If you’re unfamiliar with this, apparently angry white men on the internet who don’t want movies starring women or people of color to succeed tried to ruin the Rotten Tomatoes aggregate with a bunch of fake reviews before the movie released. Rotten Tomatoes had to change its submission rules to take care of the issue.) Imagine my disgust when I searched the Captain Marvel hashtag on twitter and discovered these bottom dwellers.

So if I have valid criticisms about it (and I probably will, when my brain comes down off these endorphins), I probably won’t discuss them anywhere but in person with other women. Since this is a reaction though, and my first reaction was overwhelmingly just a bunch of key smashes and exclamation points, let’s talk about that.

Brie Larson is perfection. She’s physical, she’s tough, she’s funny, she’s got great comedic timing, and she looks like the female equivalent of Chris Evans’ Captain America, which is to say practically perfect in every way. Nick Fury with two eyes was so weird, I forgot he had another eye? Phil Coulson was a fun surprise (not actually that surprising). I loved the team interaction in the beginning of the movie and single mom friend Maria is also actual sunshine and perfection.

Standouts: The cat. The revelation that [spoiler] was the one that [spoilered] six years ago. “I have nothing to prove to you.” THE SOUNDTRACK. Finding out that the [spoiler] were [spoiler].

If I have one bit of criticism that I’m comfortable sharing here, it’s that Marvel does a terrible job at putting together trailers for its movies that don’t step all over its big moments. I said the same thing when Thor: Ragnarok came out and the trailers had all leaked that Hulk was in the film, stepping all over the joke that Hulk was actually Jeff Goldblum’s champion. I wish so much that the trailers hadn’t shown the sequence of Carol Danvers rising from the ground, because I cried at that moment but I’d also been waiting all movie for it, and I feel like if I hadn’t known it was coming, it would have been that much more impactful.

Like at this point Marvel should just be dropping movies like Beyonce drops albums. We’re gonna show up anyway, just tell us when.

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J.L.: Confession time: I’m behind on multiple writing projects. So today, I’m pulling the “I put together these posts so I can do whatever I want” card and only writing a short bit. Honestly, there’s not much left for me to say that the others haven’t already mentioned. I have a very minor critique that the pacing could have picked up a bit, but I didn’t realize I felt that way until after I was out of the movie and my husband pointed out the same thing. While sitting in the theater, I was too busy gushing over everything I loved: the awesomeness of a bad-ass female title character, young Nick Fury, the music, and of course…

Really, need we say more?