CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER

Captain America: The First Avenger stars Chris Evans, Hugo Weaving, Hayley Atwell, Tommy Lee Jones, Sebastian Stan, Dominic Cooper, Stanley Tucci, Toby Jones and yes there is a cameo by Samuel L. Jackson (aka Nick Fury)! Directed by Joe Johnston. Rated PG-13 with a running time of 2 hours and 5 minutes. Based on the Marvel comic book character.

Plot: Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) volunteers to participate in an experimental program that turns him into the Super Soldier known as Captain America. As Captain America, Rogers joins forces with Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) and Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) to wage war on the evil HYDRA organization, led by the villainous Red Skull (Hugo Weaving.)

Marvel has done it again! They took another one of their superhero characters and made another good movie. Captain America has a great cast and is pure summer fun. It also has a retro vibe since it takes place during WWII and the it looks great. Chris Evans is very good as Steve Rogers/Captain America. He surprised me because he actually brings some depth to the character and you feel for the guy. You understand that he is a good guy and just wants to fight for his country, but his sickly body keeps holding him back. This movie brings us back to the old days where good guys are good and bad guys are bad.

I was a little worried when I first heard Chris Evans would be playing Captain America. I didn't know if he could pull it off and plus he already played a superhero in the Fantastic Four movies! But not to worry folks, Evans can actually act and he is solid as Cap. I also have to point out that the special effects that transformed Chris Evans into the 90 pound weakling that is Steve Rogers were excellent. I heard that they digitally erased parts of Evans to make him look like that. It was very believable and didn't distract me once.

The rest of the cast was also solid. Hugo Weaving plays Johann Schmidt/Red Skull who is the villain in the flick. He is the leader of HYDRA which is the deep science division of the Nazis. Weaving is good here but Red Skull is your average villain, he just wants to take over the world. Hayley Atwell is Peggy Carter who is a British liaison to the U.S. army and love interest to Captain America. The love story does seem a little forced but at least Atwell gets to run around and shoot guns instead of just being there to be saved by Capt. America, like we have seen in countless superhero movies. Tommy Lee Jones is absolutely perfect as Colonel Phillips who is the commanding officer of the super soldier program that Steve becomes a part of. Jones is the main source of humor in the film and he does this part so well that he could do it in his sleep. Stanley Tucci plays a german scientist who created the super soldier serum that transforms Steve into Captain America. Tucci is kind of a mentor to Steve and is the first to believe in him and campaigns for him to be chosen for the super soldier program. Sebastian Stan plays Bucky who is Steve's best friend. He looked out for him when he was a little weakling but the roles become reversed when Steve becomes Captain America.

Now lets get to the Marvel Cinematic Universes. So far in chronological order, Steve Rogers is the first superhero to be established hence The First Avenger in the title. In this movie we are introduced to Tony Stark/Iron Man's father Howard Stark. He is the weapons manufacturer for the U.S. army during WWII and also had a hand in transforming Steve into Captain America. Howard Stark is played by Dominic Cooper and he does a fine job. You see a little bit of Robert Downey Jr. in him and so he's very believable as Tony Stark's father. As we all know, whether you have read the comics or not, that Captain America will be a part of the upcoming Avenger movie that will continue the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Since that movie will take place in the present day along with Iron Man, the Hulk and Thor, one might ask how Captain America is in it since he was around his mid-twenties during WWII. Well don't worry it is explained in this movie and is pretty epic to say the least. I won't spoil it for you but it is exciting because Capt. America will be in the present day and will feel all alone because everyone he once knew is probably dead. It will be interesting to see Evans' depth of emotion because it already has been said that The Avengers will deal with this aspect of Captain America. Samuel L. Jackson returns as Nick Fury near the end of the film. His part in this movie is to presumably recruit Capt. America into The Avengers.

Marvel is doing exciting things with their comic book characters and I simply can't wait for The Avengers! They are on a roll right now that started with Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 2, Thor and now Captain America. That roll will definitely continue with The Avengers. They obviously care about their characters and they get good directors and actors who understand their vision and can translate it onto the big screen. Captain America is the latest of this trend and it is worthy to be with all the previous Marvel movies. Though this one is unique as it contains a retro vibe since it takes place in the 1940's. It's pretty cool to see a superhero that takes place during this time period. With a solid cast and great visuals, Captain America is good fun and is the last piece of the puzzle before The Avengers. May 4th, 2012 can't come soon enough!

B+

HORRIBLE BOSSES

Horrible Bosses stars Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis, Kevin Spacey, Jennifer Aniston, Colin Farrell and Jamie Foxx. Directed by Seth Gordon. Rated R with a running time 1 hour and 40 minutes.

Plot: Three friends (Bateman, Day and Sudeikis) have..you guessed it horrible bosses! They decide that the only way to save their miserable lives is to kill each others bosses. They even go as far as to hire a "hit man" played by Jamie Foxx. Of course chaos ensues as these guys discover that there initial plan isn't as full proof as they thought.

I am very pleased to say that Horrible Bosses is the funniest movie of 2011 so far. With disappointing comedies like The Hangover Part II and Bad Teacher, I was worried that Horrible Bosses would also fall into that category. Thankfully though it did not and it definitely has to do with the perfect casting. Jason Bateman is the normal friend of the group and reacts to all of the crazy antics around him. Charlie Day was very funny as the neurotic dental assistant who is always getting the trio into trouble. The running gag that his character is a registered sex offender was hilarious. Sudeikis is the womanizer of the group and gets some great one liners like " I wouldn't mind bending her over a barrel and showing her the 50 states".

The horrible bosses themselves were also very good. Kevin Spacey was as dickish as ever and was definitely the worst boss of them all. Jennifer Aniston put herself out there and played a character no one has seen her play before: A sex-crazed dentist who won't let Dale (Day) out of her sight. She was actually funny (I never thought she was funny before this) and was a lot more crude for a change. Colin Farrell was also very funny as a coke snorting, karate loving asshole. I would of liked to have seen more of his character because he actually isn't in the movie that much. Jamie Foxx is also hilarious playing Motherf**ker Jones who gives murder advice to the three main guys. His name alone is good for a few laughs.

Overall the cast was excellent and everyone gets time to show off their comedic chops, especially Charlie Day who gives a breakthrough performance in my opinion. Horrible Bosses is a little darker than most comedies but it never takes itself seriously. This movie takes a relatable concept and obviously goes further than normal people would but it's filled with plenty of laughs and has an excellent cast. Horrible Bosses is a delightful surprise and is definitely worth checking out.

B+

TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON

Transformers: Dark of the Moon stars Shia LaBeouf, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, Patrick Dempsey, Frances McDormand, John Malkovich, John Turturro, Alan Tudyk and Ken Jeong. Directed by Michael Bay. Rated PG-13 with a running time of 2 hours and 34 minutes.

Plot: When a mysterious event from Earth's past erupts into the present day it threatens to bring a war to Earth so big that the Transformers alone will not be able to save us.

I have actually been a fan of the previous Transformer movies. The first one was a solid action flick and was a lot of fun. Sure the second one is definitely worse but it still had some cool action scenes, plus don't we go to these movies to see giant robots kicking each other's asses? I'm pleased to say that Transformers: Dark of the Moon is the best of the franchise. Not only does it have great action scenes with the Autobots and Decepticons battling each other, but it also has somewhat of a story, some funny new cast members like John Malkovich and Ken Jeong. I also believe that Transformers: Dark of the Moon is the first movie to fully utilize 3D technology since Avatar.

The story begins with humans actually making contact with the Transformers in the early 1960's when an Autobot ship crashes on the moon. This event is what actually started the space race between the U.S. and the Soviets. This backstory is actually kind of interesting and it gives the viewers relief that Bay and the producers actually thought up a story unlike what they did with Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. It is also revealed that humans are actually working with the Decepticon's so that when they take over the world they will be spared. While this is all going on we catch up with LaBeouf's Sam Whitwickey who is a recent college graduate who is looking for a job. After saving the world twice Sam just wants to matter again. But this is a Michael Bay film so this is pretty much as far as the story goes. So this obviously leads to Sam and another one of his hot girlfriends (Huntington-Whiteley) teaming up with Optimus Prime and the Autobots to foil the latest evil plot of the Decepticons amid destruction in Chicago. LaBeouf is doing his usual schtick here screaming and running away from evil robots. Rosie Huntington-Whiteley definitely cannot act but hey at least she looks good, right? I can hear Michael Bay pitching that to the studio. Once again Josh Duhamel and Tyrese Gibson show up in meaningless roles that add nothing to the film. John Turturro shows up again as some former government agent. Turturro definitely did not need to be in the film again and I believe he is meant to be funny but isn't, at all.

Some new additions to the cast that worked for me were John Malkovich, Ken Jeong and Patrick Dempsey. Who would have thought that they would all be in a movie together. Malkovich plays Sam Whitwickey's boss. He brings some zany humor to the film that balances with the action quite well. Ken Jeong also brings some humor to the movie and once again it works well for the film. After seeing the bad Hangover: Part ll, I grew tired of Ken Jeong's schtick but luckily he makes this role work and he is only in the movie for about 5 minutes. Patrick Dempsey makes a good villain as one of the humans working with the Decepticons. I was surprised by Dempsey and he is one of the few people who actually can act in the movie.

As for the Transformers, Peter Cullen who voices Optimus Prime does great voice work. His voice is epic, commanding and heroic, as is Optimus Prime. Leonard Nimoy from Star Trek fame also does some good voice work as Sentinel Prime who was the leader of the Autobot's before Optimus. Let's just say that Sentinel may have other motives. Hugo Weaving is back as Megatron and does fine as well, though Megatron has a smaller role this time. Seeing the Transformers battle each other in 3D was amazing. Finally here is a movie that utilizes the 3D technology. The 3D was not an afterthought like most 3D movies these days. There is one scene where military men are soaring through the skies of Chicago amid the huge epic battle. Those scenes are visually astonishing. I saw this movie in IMAX 3D and I urge you to do the same because it is worth every penny.

Look, this is a Transformers movie and like I said most people (including me) go to see these movies for the giant robots kicking each others asses. In my opinion these movies are fun action spectacles that keep me entertained throughout. Is there great acting in these movies? No not at all. There was also probably about 20 minutes of the movie that could have been cut without affecting the plot. These flaws aside, Transformers: Dark of the Moon is a visually stunning action romp that will keep you entertained throughout.

B+