For the longest time, if the DC versus Marvel movie debate came up in conversation, I would always vote in favor of DC comics.  DC comics had created one of my favorite movies of all time, The Dark Knight, and Marvel had only made the first two Iron Man movies, Thor, and the Incredible Hulk.  However, as time has gone on, the quality of DC movies has become sharply detracted, while that of Marvel film has begun to increase.  Man of Steel and The Green Lantern were terrible, while Captain America, Avengers, and Thor: The Dark World, ranged from decent to great.  Recently, Marvel released that the third movie in the Captain America series will be released on the same day as the Man of Steel sequel, known now as the Untitled Batman-Superman Project.  For the first few weeks, I was a bit split on this news, trying to decide which one I will see on the opening weekend when both are released.  But, after having seen Captain America: The Winter Soldier, the highly anticipated sequel to the first Captain America film, my mind is completely made up.

This film follows the endeavors of Steve Rogers, who is trying to get used to life in the modern world by working for S.H.I.E.L.D., the organization that assembled the Avengers.  Through S.H.I.E.L.D., he hopes to help other people and be a hero, the way he was during the second world war.  Unfortunately, when the head director of S.H.I.E.L.D. is shot, Rogers and his friends in the organization (Black Widow and The Falcon) are forced to uncover dark secrets about what S.H.I.E.L.D.’s new project, Operation Insight, is all about.

In terms of the Marvel films that are cannon with the Avengers, I would safely say the Captain America: The Winter Soldier is probably the most real.  Does that mean that it is realistic, in terms of its action and technology.  No.  What the does mean, is that the film is much more brutal in its violence, and political in its plot.  When people are shot and killed in the film, there is no holding back on what the audience sees.  Besides the lack of over-the-top gore that most R-rated films deliver, the action we are given in this movie is some of the most brutal in any recent PG-13 picture, with people being thrown into rotation blades, and getting shot point blank, in full view of the screen.  The plot has more of an edge to it, as well, bringing in political corruption that had been occurring for years in the Marvel universe.  Thus, we are given a “darker” superhero movie, that doesn’t have the over-abundance of sub-plots and dark lighting seen frequently in Christopher Nolan’s dark hero films.

It is dark in plot, but not in atmosphere or characters.  Captain America retains his chipper attitude, and his charismatic conversations and banter with both Natasha Romanov (Black Widow) and Sam Wilson (The Falcon) are funny and feel real.  Though he is always considered a boy scout, always following orders, he shines though as a leader, asking all the right questions when they have to be.  He is a relatable hero, more so than most of the other superheroes that are floating around right now.  However, one thing has to be addressed, that I think holds true for many Marvel films.  Fix your villains.  The corporate bad guy needs to be adjusted, made either more sinister or more charismatic.  As they stand, these villains ( all three of the corporate villains in Iron Man, and the one in this) are quite dull, and detract from the real comic book enemies who should be the focus.  The Winter Soldier, of whom this film is named, takes  bit of a backseat to another villain, whose name I won’t spoil here.  He acts as more of a mindless assassin, whom I feel might be back for a bigger role later.

It is a great superhero film, the nail in the coffin of the DC franchise.  If neither one of these two films steps down from their May 2016 release, this Batman-Superman film has just lost a ticket.  At least, it has lost on opening weekend sale.  Check this film out.