Captain America


Steve Rogers: "The American ideal. It's a little tough to find these days, isn't it?"
Dr. Mills: "Not if you know where to look."
Steve Rogers: "Right on."


release year: 1979
genre: superhero action
viewing setting: bootleg home DVD, 12/14/13

synopsis: A strong ex-Marine is made even stronger by a serum that it was sort of his destiny to have.

impressions: In and of itself, especially in the context of the late 1970s, this wasn't too bad. It had a simple plot, interesting situations, and some corny action, fights, and chases. The problem is that this wasn't really Captain America - not the version everyone read in the comic books. There was no World War 2 connection, no super-serum administered to a skinny weakling, no Captain America preserved in ice and thawed to find himself a man out of time. Oh, also no indestructible shield. He did have a rocket-powered motorcycle though, and it shot out of the back of his van when needed. No, this was basic light sci-fi that could have been anything of not for the name and the uniform. I think they had to alter the material from its roots, to make it work as a television movie. They did a good job with what they had, but it felt like they lacked full licensing and a large budget. Late in the movie, Captain America started making bionic-type noises as he did bionic-type things.

other reviews of this movie: http://www.revolutionsf.com/article.php?id=3269 and http://comics-x-aminer.com/2013/12/12/comics-x-aminer-presents-marvelous-movies-captain-america-1979-review/

acting: Reb Brown is athletic and personable as Steve Rogers, who reluctantly becomes Captain America. Len Birman is the government scientist-of-all-trades who befriends him and eventually inspires him to be all that he can be.

the "you will see him again in the near future" factor: Lance LeGault, who would go on to play the A-Team's nemesis Col. Decker, was an evil henchman here.

final word: Interesting look into the past and lower-budget attempts to bring superheroes to life on the screen.

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