In the weeks leading up to Captain Marvel, I had mixed emotions. I have seen every movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (multiple times), which means I have waited a long time for Marvel to finally give its audience a female lead film. Because of this I was, without a doubt, extremely excited for the film. To clarify, I didn’t go see this movie simply because of its female protagonist; I am a major fan of Marvel and would have been going to see this film no matter the gender of the lead role.
As opening day drew closer, the nerves began to overtake my excitement. I knew a lot was riding on the film due to the whole ordeal with the Rotten Tomatoes score being sandbagged. I didn’t trust what the reviewers said, though, because I knew a majority of them had yet to see the movie. They had tried this before with Black Panther and The Last Jedi, both of which had still gone on to be extremely successful movies. I couldn’t help but still feel worried, though.
The first time I saw the movie was on opening day, March 8. It was honestly very difficult for me to be completely focused on the film because half of my attention was on the fear that it wouldn’t live up to my expectations. I was also terrified that if the movie didn’t do well enough in the box office that Marvel would question making more female lead films in the future. Not to mention, all the online trolls who would love to be proven right.
The trolls, however, could not have been more wrong. Captain Marvel had one of the largest opening weekends in the box office, earning over $150 million. After the first month, the film is approaching a total lifetime worldwide earning of $1 billion.
Before I continue, I would like to point out that I did go to see Captain Marvel a second time the following weekend. I was able to view it with a clearer focus, knowing that the film had not only met my expectations but surpassed them.
I would also like to point out that the article from here on out contains spoilers.
Of course, I had a few issues with the film, but every movie has its flaws. The plot twist with the Skrulls being good and the Kree being evil definitely could have been more complex. I would have liked if Minerva or another one of the other Kree had taken Carol Danvers’ side because I don’t think it is accurate to portray a race as being just simply good or evil. Not all Kree should be evil just as not all of the Skrulls should be good. Every race should have a deeper complexity.
Another minor issue I had with the film was the way Nick Fury lost his eye. Since the moment we first saw Fury on the big screens, many have wondered what caused the injury that forced the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. to wear an eyepatch. He alluded to the moment in Captain America: The Winter Soldier when he was speaking with Captain America himself and said, “Last time I trusted someone, I lost an eye.” Unless he’s just trying to cover up the embarrassing fact that a cat (well, flerken) clawed his eye out, his tone was much too serious and left the audience expecting a deeper story.
Although there were a few flaws, the good of the movie greatly outweighed the issues. Brie Larson, in my opinion, did really well in the role. Her casting was not one of the things I had been worrying about going into the film – she is an Oscar winner after all. The “she needs to smile more” argument is completely invalid, and the way Marvel addressed that in the movie was incredible. Danvers is a powerful superhero to be taken seriously just like every Marvel superhero that has come before her. You don’t see Iron Man or Captain America grinning in their movie posters or killing their enemies with kindness.
Another major aspect of the film that was incredibly well done was her practical combat suit. Often times female superheroes are outfitted in impracticable, unrealistic, sometimes even skimpy ensembles. It was so satisfying and refreshing to finally see an outfit suited for physical combat.
Now to what matters the most: why Captain Marvel is so important.
Throughout the movie, Carol Danvers encounters many challenges and often we see her facing failure. The strongest theme showcased throughout the entire movie is how she always finds the strength to stand back up after she’s been knocked down. No matter at what age or during which circumstance in her life, Danvers never let anyone hold her back and always put her best effort into everything she did.
Another important theme illustrated throughout the film was that Carol Danvers, and women in general, have nothing to prove to men. One of Carol’s fellow Kree, Yon-Rogg, has a habit of telling Carol that her emotions make her weak. Not only does he manipulate her into thinking that her feelings make her less powerful, he constantly reminds her that what can be given can be taken away. Carol breaks free from this mindset towards the end by breaking past the inhibitor on her powers. She understands that her emotions make her stronger and that no man should be able to take anything away from her or from any woman. Yon-Rogg didn’t give her those powers and he certainly had no right to take them from her.
At the end of the film, Yon-Rogg tries to bait Carol by telling her to fight him without her powers. He knows that she is clearly more powerful than he and thinks she has to prove herself by taking him on in hand to hand combat, which is something he had always been more successful at. With a single blast of her powers, Carol shows that she is done playing by his rules and won’t tolerate Yon-Rogg, or any man for that matter, telling her what is best.
Woman have nothing to prove to men. There is no such thing as taking a seat at a table that should have belonged to a man. We have the right to be at the table contributing to the conversation, and if there are men who won’t allow us a seat, Carol Danvers is the prime example of how woman will be pulling up their own chairs.
Brie Larson portrays a character that encounters many of the struggles that many (if not all) woman have to face in their everyday lives. It’s so important for young girls to have strong female leads to look up to, especially female superheroes. They can become role models to teach independence as well as both physical and mental strength. Carol Danvers is the perfect character to showcase that it’s okay to fail as long as you stand back up and try again.
Captain Marvel is a movie that shows that woman do not have anything to prove to men, that we can be independent and strong on our own. It was an amazing movie and, although it may not have been the best in the MCU, it was certainly a movie that impacted the lives of many, many females. It has opened the door for not only Marvel, but for other studios as well to make more films with strong female leads. Because of this, I give Captain Marvel a full 10/10 and cannot wait to watch it again. Thank you, Marvel, for finally giving females both young and old a very important and influential role model in Carol Danvers. And thank you, Brie Larson, for giving the character life and fighting for all women everywhere.