Wednesday
Sep192018
Yes No Maybe So: Captain Marvel
Wednesday, September 19, 2018 at 10:46PM by Nathaniel R
Hey look, it's our first official image of Brie Larson from Damien Chazelle's First Ma---- oh, that's not right. It's Brie Larson as First Woman to lead a movie in the MCU. Captain Marvel hits theaters on March 8th, 2019, or as we like to call it, two weeks after the Oscars and two months before Avengers Infinity War Part 2.
After the jump the first trailer and a quick Yes No Maybe So breakdown.
YES
- A perfect beginning, with our heroine crashing like a meteor to earth and landing inside a Blockbuster Video. Hee! It's a perfect way to say "this takes place in the 1990s"
- Marvel trailers are very fond of these dramatic monologues in voiceover to suggest instant gravitas. This one wisely begins with Nick Fury's voice and then transfers over to the voice of his new discovery Captain Marvel (Brie Larson)
- Is she from Earth? Or not? What's with the memories. We appreciate a trailer that asks a lot of questions without answering any. The idea is to sell the movie, not give you cliff notes so that you don't need to see it. This is a very simple concept that many trailers get entirely wrong.
- That shot of Captain Marvel punching an old lady is perfection. HA. Love an unexpected curveball in trailers. One assumes that's an alien Skrull in human form (they shapeshift and Captain Marvel has a long history with them)
- the 180º shot with Marvel strapped into some sort of mind-machine is grabby. What's happening?
NO
- We get virtually no idea about what kind of powers Captain Marvel has other than some kind of CGI bolt coming out of her hands. Are they saving the action for a later trailer or is it just not poppy enough for trailer bites?
- Marvel movies have already taken over all of culture so it's kind of sad that we're also now getting prequels as if owning the NOW isn't enough. They must also own the THEN.
- The visuals, at least thus far, look a bit generic / under-designed. There are so many superhero movies so we need them to get more stylistically bold (like Thor Ragnarok or Logan) so that they can properly differentiate themselves from one another.
- How many superheroes are too many superheroes? Between right now and next November we're getting 12 comic book movies. In order of release: Venom (Oct), X-Men Dark Phoenix (Nov), Aquaman (Dec) , SpiderMan: Into the Spider Verse (Dec), Hellboy (Jan), Captain Marvel (March), Shazam (April), Avengers Infinity War (May), Spider-Man: Far From Home (July), The New Mutants (August), Joker (Oct), and Wonder Woman 1984 (Nov). I expect Joker probably won't make it's release date so 11. But that's still a lot!
MAYBE SO
- This shot screams "CHEESY 90S SUPERHERO MOVIE" which could mean that the film totally knows itself and is perfect. Or it could mean it's just a generic superhero movie that is trying to be cool. We won't know it till we see it.
- Not at all pleased that we only see one shot of Jude Law, still one of the most handsome men to have ever lived.
- How will Brie Larson be in this? I think she's a super actress in human-sized roles, but I wonder how her girl next door appeal and emotional complexity will translate to a role that requires instant iconography and larger than life stylization rather than, well... everywoman appeal and emotional complexity! Rooting for her but worried.
- This trailer gives us ZERO sense about the supporting cast. We can hope they have personalities or are interesting but all we get is Nick Fury and Captain Marvel.
Are you a Yes No or Maybe So and why?
Reader Comments (18)
Dark Phoenix is rumored to be dead and it was pushed to 2019 months ago before the new rumors began.
As for Captain Marvel, it looks dull, cheap and very uninteresting. I agree that it does nothing to set it apart from everything else. It looks like any other first superhero film in a trilogy or franchise. Like they didn’t wanna invest too much money and they’ll wait for a sequel to pump some cash into it.
I'm reassured by the trailer that this will be awesome. It very cleverly leaves us unbalanced. I love Larson (she'll be perfect as a cosmic heroine!). The sucker punch to the old lady makes me think the Skrulls will transfer to screen from the page very well as the villains, with their shape-shifting and deceitful nature exploited in the best possible way to serve the film. It's yes for me.
And you're so right about "still one of the most handsome men to have ever lived." Law (as Dickie Greenleaf) is unforgettable as a golden, swoon worthy obsession. He was also perfectly cast as Gigolo Joe.
I totally want to see this and will. I really like Larson and am curious to see how she'll be in this role. Other actors who excel in "human-size" roles have fared well in the Marvel universe. There's a ton of superhero movies these days, but I see very few of them, so the glut is not a deterrent for me.m
I don’t know the source material but it seems Marvel generic. And her voice is kind of a baby voice? I will reserve judgment but it seems like it could have been a perfect role for Jennifer Lawrence. She is the right look and age, etc. Maybe Brie will be fine.
I think it's pretty good though it's just the an indication of what might be coming. Plus, seeing Brie Larson wearing a NIN shirt brought the fanboy in me screaming like a girl.
Isn't Annette Bening in this movie? I was hoping she'd pop in the trailer. :(
YES: I love Brie Larson. To signal my support, I’ll see this on the opening weekend.
Since I don’t plan on seeing any of the other movies on the Marvel list (except Wonder Woman), maybe I’ll go watch Brie twice.
I avoid these movies.
I was so excited when I found out that the Marvel higher-ups got Brie Larson for this, but, I don't know, seeing this trailer made me a bit skeptical. She looks like she's playing tough instead of actually _being_ tough, you know? And I second Jono in that her voice comes off as too cutesy. And it doesn't help her that Samuel L. Jackson gives a great-sounding VO in comparison. Fingers crossed that she's a lot better in the movie itself.
I want to support female-driven superhero movies, but this trailer is incredibly vague and generic. With a lesser known hero like this shouldn't they be doing more to explain the concept?
Of course I will see this because the MCU is basically a mini-series on film, and I'm invested. But the trailer did not wow me. I generally love her, but just based on this small sample Brie doesn't seem very well-suited for this role. Hopefully I'm wrong.
I am surprised so many people find this generic. The shots of her falling down through the years, and rising up through the years-wow. Those shots sold me. They convey that a hero does not just happen because of one radioactive spider bite or gamma blast. A true hero is the culmination of a life of persevering through trials and testing your own strength. Beautiful cinematography. And I LOVE the score.
My only Maybe so is her line delivery. It seems really flat. But Chadwick Boseman was also kind of flat and it served the role well, and then made his emotional scenes more charged. I'm hoping that is the case with Ms. Larson, or at the very least, this will be like Keanu Reeves in the Matrix where the role needs to be a blank canvas. We'll see. I will forever be a fan because of Short Term 12.
This looks....bad. I usually love Brie but she seems like she’s forcing it. The costumes look bland, the visuals look bland. Really hoping it turns out much better than the trailer after all this hype buildup.
Here’s hoping this will bring re-evaluation to the unfairly maligned SUPERGIRL, which I believe to be the best superhero movie ever made. (Dunaway is Oscar worthy as the glamorous witch Selena).
As for Captain Marvel... I don’t know. While I really liked Short Term 12 and, at the time, was fine with her Oscar win for Room, I’ve surrendered that I don’t care much for Brie Larson. I’m also not into these superhero movies and sometimes feel distressed over how many we’re expecting in just the next four years (I counted 40).
Realistically, it’s a big no for me, but I wish it well because action movies are always better with female leads. (Kill Bill, obviously, but I also rewatched Charlie’s Angels recently, which is silly and often problematic, but so fun).
I'm on the Maybe So side, and can't decide if I lean more Yes or No on it. But, I'm gonna say this: does EVERY superhero movie need to have the same generic "inspirational epic" music in their trailers?
I usually like Brie Larson but she seems kinda flat in this. What's going on with the baby voice? She sounds like Britney Spears.
Hoping for the best though....
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The trailer isn’t that substantial but it’s not surprising considering it hasn’t been that long they stopped filming. But I know Brie Larson can do stylization, two words Envy Adams.