Captain Marvel is arriving this Friday, just in time for International Women's Day. The long-awaited movie marks Marvel's first-ever female-led superhero movie, so obviously expectations are very high.
Starring Brie Larson as the titular superhero (also known as Carol Danvers), the movie promises to reveal her origin story and also follows Captain Marvel as she is caught between two alien races during an intergalactic war.
However, despite early social media reactions promising a "totally" awesome '90s superhero film, other reviews from critics haven't been as kind. While some praise the movie, the overall reaction was lukewarm with one dissenter going as far as to say that "the first female-led movie of the MCU deserved more."
Now, in case you missed it, watch the trailer for Captain Marvel below.
The good
Owen Gleiberman, Variety[Boden and Fleck] have brought off something exciting, embracing the Marvel house style and, within that, crafting a tale with enough tricks and moods and sleight-of-hand layers to keep us honestly absorbed.
Peter Bradshaw, The GuardianIn any case, Captain Marvel is an entertaining new part of the saga.
Moira MacDonald, Seattle TimesLike its tough, smart heroine, "Captain Marvel" dances to its own beat; it's an origin story that isn't structured as an origin story but gets there all the same.
Brian Truitt, USA TodayAlthough Larson's heroine is still a work in progress, "Captain Marvel" lays a solid foundation to follow her wherever she flies next.
A.O. Scott, New York TimesIt's not too long, not too self-important, and benefits from the craft and talent of a cast that includes Annette Bening, Jude Law and Ben Mendelsohn.
April Wolfel, TheWrapAbsolutely grounds itself in the '90s, even evoking a riot grrrl-adjacent feeling, buoyed by a soundtrack that features almost exclusively rock fronted by female voices - a reminder of an era that showed so much promise for brash, loud women.
The meh
Esther Zuckerman, ThrillistThe raw material is all there, but filmmaking itself does not yield any truly thrilling, resonant moments. The action sequences are rote, at times almost muddled.
Mara Reinstein, Us WeeklyIt succeeds more as an amusing fill-in-the-blanks Marvel backstory provider than a confident, stand-alone tale of a woman discovering her fierceness.
Stephanie Zacharek, TIME MagazineLarson does get a few opportunities in Captain Marvel to be that regular, flawed-but-strong human-there just aren't enough of them, and they're hardly the focus of the movie.
And the bad
Lindsey Bahr, Associated PressThe first female-led movie of the MCU deserved more.
David Ehrlich, indieWireNeither a blast from the past, nor an inspiring glimpse into the future, at the end of the day it's just another Marvel movie. And not a particularly good one, at that.
Radheyan Simonpillai, NOW TorontoCaptain Marvel effectively makes feminism a target, a goal to be achieved in ways that feel more self-congratulatory than progressive.
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco ChronicleGood thing it's still March. "Captain Marvel" would have made a weak start to the summer blockbuster season.
