"A weak man knows the value of strength."

“Captain America: The First Avenger.”

With the imminent “Avengers” movie coming next year, only one hero’s origin story remains untold…until now. Falling in line with “Thor,” “Iron Man,” and “The Incredible Hulk,” “Captain America” showcases the rise of Steve Rogers as the title character. Unlike the other films, which take place in modern times, this one goes way back to WWII, showing the Captain kicking Nazi butt! With a lot of “Wolfenstein” style occult mystique and a slight “Indiana Jones” sense of adventure, this movie has a number of solid action sequences, and plenty of imaginative special effects and setpieces. With its references to various characters and concepts of other Mavel movies, it fits into the franchise really well. It might take some stretch of the imagination to believe that Nazis could be this futuristic, but for a superhero movie, it’s all good fun.

The story in this case is pretty solid. The main character shows strong development, and for most of the movie, you really root for him. There’s nothing more thrilling than watching the underdog getting the upper hand. As it goes on, much of the character drama and story development gets pushed aside by the action, but it still works. By the end, voila, we have the lead-in for the “Avengers” film.

If there’s any complaint for this film, it’s that there could have been more. Whether it needs a stronger action setpiece or a more invoking sense of drama, I’m not sure, but something seems missing, and nothing really makes this film stand over any of the other superhero films that have come out so far.

The film is competently made, with decent (but never exceptional) photography. Editing is good for the most part, but I am not a fan of the montage in the middle of the film that makes the entire war campaign whiz by. A couple of action scenes seemed a little sloppily-edited, but it’s hardly noticeable. Acting is swell; Chris Evans is surprisingly strong as the main character, and I enjoyed Hayley Atwell, Sebastian Stan, Tommy Lee Jones, Stanley Tucci, and Hugo Weaving in their roles. Writing seems pretty good. Production value is high, featuring lots of good (if not overly-slick) sets, props, costumes and special effects. Music is appropriately upbeat and adventurous.

In the end, I’d say the film met my expectations, but never fully exceeded them. But it, along with an all-too-short sneak preview after the credits, provide the necessary bridge to the “Avengers” film.

Recommended.

4/5 (entertainment: 4/5, story: 4/5, film: 4/5)