9: captain america: the winter soldier

Main takeaways:

• Aly: This was a really good movie. I think it’s probably in the middle of the pack for me – it had a couple of standout scenes, but there wasn’t anything that made it super memorable. I liked how they brought Bucky back in and introduced Falcon, but I got kind of confused trying to follow everything that happened with Bucky. Eventually, I understood what was going on with him, and then I once again got confused with trying to distinguish good SHIELD people from Hydra people. Once I figured out basically everyone was a bad Hydra person, it finally made a little bit more sense, but by that time, the movie was pretty much over. There wasn’t anything that I truly disliked about this movie – the action, the plot, the character: everything was there. I just felt like it might have been missing a little something. It was definitely still one of the better movies, though. To be clear – it’s a good movie, but it’s just not the amazing film everyone hyped it up to be. 
• Ally: Best MCU movie, or at least the best one we’ve watched so far. Cap, Widow, and Falcon are the best trio in the MCU and this movie also has the best action scenes. Cap’s internal struggle with feeling like he died for nothing back in WWII, considering Hydra still exists in present day, really helps the audience identify with the character. This is the movie that makes Captain America more of a human character rather than a perfect super soldier. This also helps to set up the plot of Civil War, because it plants the seeds of doubt in Cap’s mind and makes him resistant to any sort of organization having power over him. It also gives more insight into his relationship with Bucky and builds up the tension which will come to a head in Civil War as well. The relationship between Nat and Cap in this movie is my favorite part, and the fact that they never end up together is my biggest complaint with the MCU. I also appreciate this movie for having a lot of Black Widow and absolutely no Hawkeye. 

Favorite scene:

• Aly: My favorite scene was probably the Apple Store scene. I thought it was one of the more realistic scenes of the MCU, and I really enjoyed how we could actually relate to what was happening. I also really liked the chemistry between Natasha and Cap – how she ever chose MARK RUFFALO (!!!) over him is absolutely beyond me. The Apple Store scene had the perfect mix of action, suspense, comedic relief, and reality. For being one of the more complex and slightly confusing movies, this scene really ties the whole thing together.
• Ally: Cap and Nat on the run is my favorite scene in any MCU movie so I have to give the nod to this one. From the Apple Store to stealing the car to meeting Arnim Zola in the bunker, this entire scene is important to the plot and to the relationship between my favorite characters. My other favorite scene in this movie is the first fight between the Winter Soldier and our trio, because each of them gets their chance to fight. My other other favorite scene is when they take Sitwell up to the roof and throw him off the top of the building, simply because that’s the most boss move I can recall seeing.

Favorite / least favorite character:

• Aly: My favorite character was Black Widow! I’m sure Ally will probably say the same, but that’s because we’re both correct. Whenever there are no cute kids like Harley or good characters like Coulson, I have to resort to other characters. Black Widow was really good for diversifying the plot since she was able to diversify the group – the only main girl character (besides Cobie Smolders, but she wasn’t in a whole lot of the movie). The movie also made her somewhat more complex, showing her relationship with Fury. My least favorite character would probably be Zola once again. He’s just so annoying – his little (literally) voice is just mind-numbing to me. He was a good addition in terms of connecting that previous Captain America movie to this one, but he just annoys me. 
• Ally: Black Widow is the best character in the entire MCU so are we surprised that I’m choosing her? Her skillset as a spy is on full display, her relationship with Cap is thriving, we get to see her attachment to Fury, and she has some of the best moves in this movie. The iconic line at the end will always be one of my favorites and I genuinely think her hair looks the best in this one. That’s very important to me. Rumlow and Pierce are my least favorite characters, but I’ll give Rumlow the advantage just because I know he comes back in Civil War and I know I’m going to hate him even more in that one. You can tell from the very beginning that there’s something off about him, but he does gift us with Cap’s iconic elevator scene so that’s something. 

Ranking (out of 10):

• Aly: 9/10. This movie was similar to an Avengers level of action for me. I thought that the plot was really interesting and it was fairly easy to follow, but I was still a little lost throughout the whole Bucky storyline. 
• Ally: 10/10. Maybe it’s generous but this is my favorite MCU movie so if this doesn’t get a 10/10, nothing will. My favorite characters with great action scenes makes a pretty perfect movie as far as I’m concerned. If you want to arrest me, arrest me.