‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ Review
“Marvel’s The Avengers” is a tough act to follow, but “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” sure as heck gives that film a run for the money, upping the super-hero ante — here with a strong story line, some fine acting, fabulous special effects, and a whole lot of political intrigue. The sequel to 2011’s “Captain America: The First Avenger” finds Steve Rogers, a.k.a. Captain America, living in Washington, D.C., and trying to adjust to the modern world. But sooner than you can say “S.H.I.E.L.D.,” Rogers finds himself embroiled in a massive conspiracy spawned during the height of WWII and set into motion with the attempted assassination of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson). Enlisting the aide of Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Rogers uncovers a nefarious plot for world domination. There’s some nice touches here — a scene with a now aged Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell), witty banter between Romanoff and Rogers, the appearance of a new hero, The Falcon (Anthony Mackie), the appearance of a new enemy, the Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan), and a savvy distrust of government and political functionaries. Kudos to directors Anthony and Joe Russo for their use of hand-held cameras and real cars in the chase scenes.Extras: Making-of-featurette, deleted scene. Blu-ray adds commentary, more deleted scenes, bloopers, and a nifty documentary on the notebook Rogers keeps to list the things he needs to catch up on (“I Love Lucy,” the moon landing, disco, etc). Vitals: Director: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo. Stars: Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Anthony Mackie, Sebastian Stan, Robert Redford, Samuel L. Jackson, Hayley Atwell, Frank Grillo, Toby Jones, Dominic Cooper, Emily VanCamp, Cobie Smulders, Garry Shandling, Maximiliano Hernandez, Jenny Agutter, Alan Dale. 2014, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 128 min., Action, Box office gross: $253.988 million, Disney. 
