Captain Marvel provides us with the origin of the latest Marvel superhero to join the MCU, but to the studio’s credit, manages to subvert the formula enough to tell this familiar tale in a wholly unique way, that should stand as the example of how to go about origin stories. Gone is the usual wordy exposition or 'moments of destiny' that takes up the first act of traditional superhero fair. In its place comes an action-packed romp with a charismatic lead that instantly draws the viewer in with her confident swagger.

While there may be many a mystery still lurking behind the surface - something you’d already know if you’ve watched any of the trailers before sitting down for the movie proper - the initial focus smartly stays on Brie Larson’s character as the back-talking, headstrong but still instantly likeable Carol Danvers (aka Captain Marvel), who is thrown into situation after situation that only lead on from each other to show the extraordinary world she is a part of, instead of simply telling us.



The action comes thick and fast in Captain Marvel, with the movie quickly ramping up and only really slowing down for the needed exposition towards the end of the second act. This frantic pace suits the movie though, with great moments of humor interspersed throughout. These small gems crop up frequently but never take focus away from any serious scene or linger too long to break the flow that has been built up.

Jackson’s take on a younger, less grizzled, yet no less as sharp, Nick Fury plays off wonderfully against Danver’s confident, rebellious, and equally witty ways.

The two major sources of these moments come from the interactions between Brie Larson and Samuel L. Jackson’s characters as their “buddy cop” relationship grows throughout the movie, and surprisingly, from the de facto boogeymen of the movie in the form of the Skrull. Jackson’s take on a younger, less grizzled, yet no less as sharp, Nick Fury plays off wonderfully against Danver’s confident, rebellious, and equally witty ways.

In the Skrull we find a new villainous race of shape-shifting aliens that can assume the shape and likeness of anyone that they witness, down to the most basic recent memories of their target. This leads to some fantastically animated scenes as they take or leave forms, as well as some great makeup work when they are in their base forms. As a fair warning to any Aussies out there, you’ll likely have to suffer a little as the Skrull accent seems to have been picked up from their lead actor.



Overall, each of the supporting cast manages to bring something to the table, no matter how short or focused their time is on screen, with many appearances from characters that have shown up in previous MCU titles that were based later in the timeline. These leave a lot of space for the more galactic side of the MCU to still be explored within, leaving more than a few tales still out there to be told of the time between Captain Marvel and the events we’ve seen leading up to Avengers: Endgame.

Of course, talking about any of the supporting cast would not be complete without the mention of a certain orange cat that we’ve all been introduced to in the trailers so far. Be on the lookout for Goose and all the shenanigans that come from smallest cast member (fans of the comics won’t be disappointed).

As with several other cosmic-based MCU entries, the space battles look gorgeous...

Visually, Captain Marvel is simply gorgeous, and the early setup scenes had me very much wanting the team working here to build up the next live-action sets and effects for any Star Wars scene taking place on a more populace planet. Action scenes do suffer a little from the usual MCU dark set with fast and furious motion, though the choreography is crisp and impactful. The super strength, powers, and tools of each combatant shines through, with a particular early fight managing to fit some great prop comedy work into the balance. As with several other cosmic-based MCU entries, the space battles look gorgeous and I can imagine would call for the cost of upgrading to watching the movie in 3D.



Littered throughout the movie are loving references to the 90s, some more on the nose than others (see the blockbuster from the trailers). However, this only adds to the feel of the movie making sure that it stands outside of the other MCU entries that take place in the more modern setting. This is clearly set in a time before the Avengers, and you are not expecting any to swoop in to help save the day.

Running throughout the movie is a soundtrack that anyone who grew up in the 90s - and had a wardrobe of at least a 30% all black nature - will induce major waves of nostalgia in. For everyone else, there are still any number of well chosen and iconic tracks from the decade that the movie is set in, managing to weave themselves into the scenes and elevate each of them.

Overall, Captain Marvel manages to find itself its own space within the MCU that, while seemingly not having as much influence on the greater interconnected piece that we have at the moment, fills in the gaps that were missing. Some of these are filled in some interesting ways and the reasons for the missing Captain Marvel is well handled by the end of the movie, though some of the more purist comic book fans may take issue to one major element of the story line - something you’ll need to watch the movie to find out for yourself.



That all said, if this first outing is anything to go by though, we are in for one amazing team up when we next see Captain Marvel taking up her place in the MCU and a safe pair of (extremely powerful) hands to drive the story towards what is sure to be an exciting Endgame.