Captain America: The Winter Soldier (5 Stars)

This is the ninth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, released in April 2014. I consider it to be the best film in the MCU so far, although it's difficult to decide. The best MCU films are all very good, so I might change my mind when I watch them all again in order.

Stan Lee's cameo scene lasts 16 seconds, of which we see him on screen for 14 seconds, making it one of his longest cameos. He plays a security guard in a Smithsonian museum. (I'm not sure whether the museum is in Washington DC or in New York. Maybe one of my readers can help me).

There's an exhibition with life size models of Captain America and his Howling Commandos, wearing realistic replicas of their uniforms. When Captain America lost his modern uniform he sneaked into the museum and stole (or rather borrowed) the replica of his old uniform. When Stan Lee saw that the uniform had been taken on his watch he moaned, "I am so fired". Poor Stan.

This film is a key part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with implications for the following films and the television series "Agents of SHIELD". It's revealed that Hydra infiltrated SHIELD when it was formed, and it has lain dormant for 70 years waiting to strike. Now is the time. An assassination attempt is made against Nick Fury. He goes into hiding by pretending to be dead.

This is Nick Fury's gravestone. Note the Bible quote, "The path of the righteous man...". If you check your Bible you might be confused. This is the text of Ezekiel 25:17 from the most common modern translation, the New International Version (NIV):

"I will carry out great vengeance on them and punish them in my wrath. Then they will know that I am the Lord, when I take vengeance on them".

There's nothing about a righteous man in the verse. Indeed, there's nothing about a righteous man in the whole of the chapter. Only attentive film fans will understand what's happened. In the film "Pulp Fiction" the hit man Jules, also played by Samuel L. Jackson, says that he's memorised Ezekiel 25:17, and he always recites it before he kills someone:

"The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness, for he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee".

If he quoted that to his teacher in Sunday School he would get a Fail. The last part of his quote approximately matches what the Bible says, but the beginning is a pure invention. It's better not to quote the Bible at all than to quote it incorrectly, especially if the misquote is used as a justification for killing people.

"Captain America: The Winter Soldier" introduces a new member of the Avengers, the Falcon, played by Anthony Mackie. I know very little about him as an actor, but he puts on a memorable performance in this film. I ought to know him, because he appears in six non-MCU films in my collection. I'll have to watch them again. Eventually. At the moment I don't want to make my to-watch list any bigger.

Here's another snapshot of Stan Lee from his cameo scene. Just because I can.

Success Rate:  + 2.0

	Order from Amazon.com
	Order from Amazon.co.uk
	Order from Amazon.de