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Captain Marvel Review: Why It’s Still the Ultimate 90s MCU Origin Story (Essential Watch)

3rd January 2026

Is Captain Marvel worth watching in 2026? From the killer 90s soundtrack to the chemistry between Brie Larson and Samuel L. Jackson, here is our positive review of the MCU’s most powerful origin story. ⚠️ Affiliate Disclaimer This article contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. If you buy through these links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. The Verdict at a Glance Why Captain Marvel Still Soars In the vast timeline of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), Captain Marvel occupies a unique spot. Sandwiched between the devastation of Infinity War and the triumph of Endgame, this film serves as a blast from the past—literally. Set in 1995, it introduces us to Carol Danvers (Brie Larson), a Kree warrior with no memory of her past life on Earth. While the movie was a massive box office hit upon release, it has become an even better watch today as a standalone sci-fi adventure. Here is why you need to add this to your MCU marathon or pick it up on 4K Blu-ray. The “Buddy Cop” Chemistry is Unmatched Forget the superpowers for a second. The heart of this movie is the relationship between Carol Danvers and a young, two-eyed Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson). Thanks to incredible de-aging technology that still holds up in 2026, we get to see a looser, funnier, and less cynical Fury. Their road-trip dynamic drives the film, offering witty banter that feels distinct from the rest of the Avengers movies. Peak 90s Nostalgia If you grew up in the 90s, this movie is a love letter to your childhood. From crashing into a Blockbuster Video to waiting for a CD-ROM to load, the setting is a character in itself. The soundtrack is a curated playlist of bangers—Nirvana, No Doubt, R.E.M., and TLC. It gives the film a grunge-rock texture that separates it from the polished tech of Iron Man or the fantasy of Thor. It Redefined the “Origin Story” Most superhero movies follow a linear path: Hero gets powers, Hero trains, Hero fights villain. Captain Marvel flips the script. Carol starts the movie powerful but restrained. The story isn’t about her gaining strength; it’s about her realizing she always had it and breaking the shackles (literally and metaphorically) that were holding her back. The “I have nothing to prove to you” moment remains one of the most satisfying scenes in the entire MCU. Goose the Cat We cannot write a review without mentioning the real MVP. Goose, the orange tabby cat who is… well, more than a cat, steals every scene he is in. If you want a fun movie night with the family, Goose provides the best laughs. How to Watch: The Best Editions To get the full experience—especially the vibrant colors of the Kree homeworld and the Skrull prosthetics—physical media is the way to go. Streaming bitrates often compress the darker scenes, but the 4K disc handles them perfectly. ? The Best Viewing Experience: 4K Ultra HD This edition features HDR10, which makes Carol’s photon blasts pop off the screen with blinding brightness. It also includes the director’s commentary and deleted scenes. ? For the Collector: The “Life of Captain Marvel” Comic If you liked the movie, the source material is even better. This trade paperback re-tells Carol’s origin in a way that aligns closely with the modern MCU and features stunning art. ? For the Super Fan: Marvel Legends Figure Captain Marvel has had many looks, but her red, blue and gold costume is coolest. This is a great shelf piece for collectors. Final Thoughts Captain Marvel is an energetic, visually spectacular ride that offers a crucial piece of the MCU puzzle. It explains where the Avengers initiative name came from, how Nick Fury lost his eye, and introduces the most powerful hero in the galaxy. Whether you are doing a chronological re-watch or just want a fun sci-fi action flick, Carol Danvers delivers. Where to watch next in the Timeline: Once the credits roll (and you’ve watched the post-credits scene!), you are ready to jump ahead to Avengers: Endgame to see Carol take the fight to Thanos.

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Review – Joker (2019)

22nd December 2025

Review – Joker (2019) Directed by: Todd Phillips Produced by: Todd Phillips & Bradley Cooper Written by: Todd Phillips & Scott Silver Starring: Joaquin Pheonix, Robert De Niro & Zazie Beetz Release Date: October 4th 2019 A couple of years ago Joaquin Phoenix starred in a movie called You Were Never Really Here. It was directed by Lynne Ramsay and from the trailers, it looked like it could turn out to be something pretty great. Unfortunately when I saw the movie, I felt that it was nothing more than a poor man’s Taxi Driver, with the same regurgitated ideas and not much more to say. Then I saw 2019’s Joker. Let’s forget about the incredibly engaging performances and solid technical filmmaking elements in this movie for a minute. And let’s forget all of the baggage and background lore that comes with the huge pop culture characters of the Joker, the Wayne family and Gotham City. Instead, ask yourself this; if this you removed all of the DC elements from this movie, for example Gotham is just NYC, Thomas Wayne is just a rich powerful man running for office and Arthur Fleck is just a random loner with a screw loose, would this movie still be as remarkable? I enjoyed getting to revisit Joker for review. I appreciate the fact that it portrays a version of my favourite fictional character that I hadn’t seen before, but it wasn’t a story that I haven’t seen before outside of a Joker story. One of my favourite things about Joker is how much it reminds me of Taxi Driver, but when all is said and done, I still prefer Taxi Driver. I can’t review Joker too negatively because it is clearly well made by a bunch of very talented people and I did enjoy my time with it, but after reading the intensely positive reviews this thing got at the film festivals before its release I was looking for something more than a story I have seen done better decades ago. At the same time though, it is undoubtedly a film that demands multiple viewings. I hardly stopped thinking about the movie after the first time I saw it, wanting to discuss it with anybody that would listen. It has also led to so much online speculation regarding its deeper meaning and subtext since its release, so there is certainly something to be said about that element of it. My rating changed after the second time I saw it and it has changed again whilst re-watching it for review. Joker is a very enjoyable re-tread of a story that we have seen before told several times over. The question is, just because you throw a popular comic book character’s name over the top of it, is that enough to make it more worthwhile than all of the other Taxi Driver homages we have gotten over the years?

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Review – Hellboy (2019)

20th December 2025

Directed by: Neil Marshall Produced by: Martin Bernfeld Written by: Andrew Cosby Starring: David Harbour & Ian McShane Release Date: April 11th 2019 (UK) Review – Hellboy (2019) Whilst taking notes for my review for Hellboy 2019, I realised that if the movie actually has one thing going for it; it’s that it’s impressive. It is impressive in the sense that it actually made me question the futility of time and why I was wasting my short time on this earth re-watching this atrocious piece of trash. There were several times whilst watching the film that I actually couldn’t quite bring myself to believe how bad what I was witnessing onscreen really was. This might be the worst film I have ever seen. It without a doubt took the crown of the worst superhero movie ever made from Fan4stic when it was released and is frankly downright insulting to Hellboy fans. I still cannot believe that they chose to make this trash over another movie with Ron Perlman and Del Toro. Almost every single aspect of this movie is garbage and there are hardly any redeeming features. Let’s talk about the main character; this movie’s version of Hellboy. We all knew going in that David Harbour had some pretty big shoes to fill, as following Perlman’s take on the character was never going to be easy. In Harbour’s defence, pretty much the only slightly positive aspect of this version of the character is the fact that you can tell that Harbour is doing the very best with the extremely poor material he has been given to work with. Most of his lines are awful and the way that his character is written as a moaning, whiny teenager is actually insulting to the character. Also, the excessive makeup he is wearing means that he is hardly able to emote with his mouth. When he is talking, his mouth simply opens and closes like a puppet and it is painfully obvious that the dialogue has been dubbed in later and even that has not been done very well. The other slight positive in this movie was getting to see Hellboy in his full demonic getup with long horns and donning the flaming crown and sword. While this sequence was pretty cool, unfortunately this is the only fleeting glimpse of coolness we get before we are right back to the crap. One of the most memorable elements of the Del Toro Hellboy movies were the cast, unfortunately they have been substituted with an insufferably annoying lot of replacements. The actress playing Alice may give the worst performance that I have ever seen in a comic book movie, (and I saw Polar!) Every single line that she uttered was extremely cringe-worthy and poorly delivered. Daniel Dae Kim was almost as bad as Hellboy’s other sidekick. Again, a lot of his lines were ADR’d in later and really shoddily done. Ian McShane plays Broom, the scientist that found Hellboy and adopted him and he is clearly sleepwalking his way through this role for the sake of an easy paycheck. As is Milla Jovovich, who plays a stereotypical villainous witch and does absolutely nothing new here that we haven’t seen her do before in other movies. Over my years of watching almost every comic book movie that releases, I have seen my fair share of cheap, cartoony looking CGI, but this takes the cake. Almost every scene in the movie features some kind of CGI creature and they are all on a similar level of quality to an unfinished student project. One moment where it really stood out was the fight with the giants, – where we were subjected to not only one bad CGI giant, but three of them. The scene is also shot in broad daylight, which really does the bad CGI no favours. Not once did anything in this movie look better than the effects in the Del Toro movies which came out 10+ years ago. At this point in my Hellboy review, I’ve decided that I’m going to spoil the end of the movie, because seriously who even cares at this point? The absolute worst part of CGI in the entire movie, is during one of the final scenes where Ian McShane comes back to speak to Hellboy as a ghost. The CG in this scene is genuinely on par with the Rock’s CG in in the Scorpion King. Yes, it really is that bad. The soundtrack is so misused here also. The songs featured themselves are all half decent songs, but they do not work in the context of this film and they add absolutely nothing to the scenes that they are used in. The editing is also horrible. There were several times that I was reminded of the cheap editing in shows like Buffy The Vampire Slayer. The last thing that I want to talk about is the tone and humour, (or lack of,) present throughout the film. The movie opens with a flashback scene showing King Arthur chopping up the witch. The scene is being narrated by Ian McShane and it is chock-full of diabolically awful dialogue and insufferably cheesy line delivery. Whilst watching it I thought, “Oh they are really hamming it up here and going for a really corny tone for these flashback scenes.” I then swiftly came to the soul-crushing conclusion that no, – this was how the next 2 hours of this movie was going to go. The awful sense of humour is actually comparable to that in a poor quality kids film, with gross out burp and kiss jokes to boot. What happened to the darker, more horror orientated tone that we were teased with when the movie was in pre-production? Any semblance of that is sorely lacking here and it is a real shame because I would have quite liked

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Review – Shazam! (2019)

20th December 2025

Directed by: David F. Sandberg Produced by: Geoff Johns & Dwayne Johnson Written by: Henry Gayden & Darren Lemke Starring: Zachary Levi & Mark Strong Release Date: April 5th 2019 (UK) Review – Shazam! (2019) Being the big ol’ geek that I am, I usually know the source material of the superhero movie I am going to see pretty well. Shazam was an exception to this, – other than the infamous Captain Marvel/Shazam copyright battle between Marvel and DC’s lawyers over the years and the fact that he is a teenage boy who transforms into a grown man who looks like Superman with a similar power set, – I didn’t know much about the character going in. Watching Shazam for review, I enjoyed certain aspects of it, but it does fall short in other areas. Something that I always wonder is how Mark Millar managed to get away with creating his own, ‘original,’ comic book character called Superior. Superior bears multiple similarities to Shazam, – to the point that I am surprised that DC have never attempted to sue Millar for blatant plagiarism. In a word, Shazam is fun. I enjoyed my time with it and although this was only my second viewing of the film, I would still watch it again. I enjoyed seeing Mark Strong hamming it up as the movie’s villain and Zachary Levi does a great job in the titular role. Also, his chemistry with Jack Dylan Grazer’s character is a huge highlight of the film for me. The SFX are on point for the most part other than the fairly cartoony representations of the 7 deadly sins monsters. There is also a charming, dumb, pure, innocence to the movie that really shines through the entire thing. My biggest issue with the movie is Asher Angel as Billy Batson when he’s not Shazam. Not necessarily because he is a bad actor or anything, but more because of how he chose to play the role. He comes across as broody and introspective, almost the total opposite of how Zachary Levi comes across as Shazam with his over the top playfulness and silly puns. This discrepancy is prevalent to the point where the illusion that these two actors were playing the same character is entirely broken and it is as if they are just playing two totally different characters with entirely opposite personalities that are just never seen in the same room. I feel like a bit of smoothing out could have been done between the actors to come to a compromise where they could both deliver their respective lines whilst still believably playing the same character. Also, something that you should probably know going in is that this is a comedy with lessons about family and responsibility before it is a Superhero/Action movie. It does make sense within the context of the film that there are no epic action scenes as Billy is just an untrained everyday kid that has been given a bunch of amazing powers that he is still getting to grips with, but don’t expect any mind-blowing action scenes on par with MCU movies etc. Even though I guess it makes sense that there wasn’t anything too impressive in terms of action scenes, I remember being left a little bit unfulfilled as I left the cinema after seeing the movie the first time, that the film is more insistent on showing us tender family moments rather than huge scale superhero battles. Overall, Shazam is dumb fun. Don’t think too hard about it and you will almost certainly have a great time watching it. This movie was the first to suggest that the fun factor of DC films seems to be on the up and they had dropped the dour tone of their Batman/Superman stories set up by Zack Snyder. It seems now that they seem to have almost totally abandoned the idea of following in Marvel’s footsteps of tying movies together in order to lead up to a team up blockbuster altogether and this movie was an early sign of that. That move was for the best and was what they should have been doing from the start rather than trying to win a losing battle and play catch up with a franchise that has been building for an entire decade at that point.

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Review – Polar (Movie) (2019)

22nd December 2025

Review – Polar (Movie) (2019) Directed by: Jonas Åkerlund Produced by: Mads Mikkelsen & Jeremy Bolt Written by: Jayson Rothwell Starring: Mads Mikkelsen, Vanessa Hudgens & Matt Lucas Release Date: January 25th 2019 (UK) Wow, what a train wreck this turned out to be. Think diet John Wick meets an immature, garish comic book full of pantomime villains and you have Polar. Sometimes you see a movie and can’t help but wonder, “What the hell were they thinking?” Unfortunately this is one of those times. There are folks out there that have crafted a solid script and are struggling to get their movie funded and made, meanwhile there is low level trash like this being paid for and distributed by a huge platform like Netflix?! It is an outrageous and pretty sad state of affairs. Without a doubt the worst part of this thing is the god awful assortment of villains. They are so annoying and infuriating in every scene they are in and only get worse as the movie goes on. Half the movie is spent following this massively irritating group as they hunt for Mads Mikkelsen’s character and they are so unlikable, but not in the way that they are supposed to be. They all work for the main villain, who is inexplicably played by Matt Lucas from Little Britain. That’s right; Vicky Pollard is this movie’s main antagonist. He is god awful here and I genuinely don’t even know what they were attempting to do with this character. Every scene that he is in feels like a discarded Little Britain sketch. The one bright spot in the film is Mads Mikkelsen’s turn as Duncan, the ex-hitman being hunted throughout the film by his ex-employers who serves as our main protagonist. I love seeing Mads in anything he appears in, so I actually found the scenes with him in them pretty enjoyable, and frankly they were the only thing that stopped this movie from receiving the lowest score possible. Overall, this is total mess. It is the worst type of comic book movie and doesn’t seem appealing to anyone over the age of 12. Please don’t waste your time with this garbage, there are much better movies out there based on graphic novels that don’t only cater to horny, brain-dead teenagers. Polar Volume 1: Came From the Cold (HC): ? [Victor Santos – Polar Vol 1] Polar Volume 0: The Black Kaiser: ? [Polar: The Black Kaiser Graphic Novel] The Complete Series: ? [Polar Volume 2: Eye for an Eye] or [Polar Volume 4: The Kaiser Falls]

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