Captain America
D: Albert Pyun (1992); with Matt Sallinger, Scott Paulin, Ned Beatty, Ronnie Cox.
Until the recent X-Men, Marvel Comics had a hard time getting its characters onto the big screen. This venture was supposed to hit theatres (some may recall seeing lobby posters for it) but was sent straight to video — not surprising considering how bad this effort is. Like most superhero films, its fans are waiting for the title character to appear in costume. And when he does make an appearance in his red, white, and blue togs, it’s only for a brief moment. The story follows Steve Rogers, a dedicated American who wants to serve his country in WWII. He volunteers to be injected with a super serum, which will make him a prototype for an American super soldier. After tangling with Italian bad guy (German in the comics) the Red Skull, he ends up trapped in suspended animation for nearly 50 years. He awakens in a new world that still has the same old bad guys. The story is fairly faithful to the good Captain’s origins (minus the teen sidekick Bucky), but the action rolls along at a snail’s pace. Cap only makes a few appearances in his costume and the moments leading up to those scenes are incredibly boring. The final clash with the Red Skull leaves much to be desired. In the end, this was another failed effort to capture Marvel magic. For other examples of similar mishaps, see the awful The Punisher and Howard the Duck.
This article appears in May 4 • 2001.