2013 was a huge year for super hero movies.  Though no movie topped 2012’2 ‘The Avengers’ at the box office, ‘Iron Man 3‘ still rode that movie’s coattails to become the fourth highest grossing movie of all time and ‘Thor: The Dark World’ zipped past the first ‘Thor’ movie in ticket sales.  But 2013 is now officially over and it’s time to look forward to a new slate of super movies.

‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ should easily surpass the first film and there are plenty of factors that should contribute to its success.  Above, you see film legend Robert Redford in the role of Alexander Pierce, a high ranking S.H.I.E.L.D. commander.  (Although some fans are speculating that his character has a darker secret.)  This is  pretty interesting, because Redford typically shies away from commercial roles.  (He founded the indie-celebrating Sundance Film Festival, after all.)  It’s interesting that he took a role in a popcorn super hero movie.  What would entice him to do so?

‘The Winter Soldier’ is really banking on the success of ‘The Avengers’ by including Scarlett Johansson reprising her role as the Black Widow alongside Chris Evans as the title hero.  That part is cool, but… that’s some bad hair.  Seriously, that seems to be an ongoing problem with female super heroes in movies.  I mean, has Halle Berry ever looked right with her bad white Storm wigs?  A little volumizer, is all I’m saying, ScarJo.

Next we have a glimpse of Anthony Mackie in the role of Sam Wilson/The Falcon.  The contraption on his back pops open so that the hero has his signature wings in order to fly.  He’s wearing a fairly drab camouflage military uniform, but hopefully at some point he gets something closer to his comic book costume.

Finally, we get a shot of the villain Crossbones/Brock Rumlow portrayed by Frank Grillo.  Like The Falcon, he looks fairly normal here.  Hopefully at some point he will bulk up and more closely resemble the villain from the comics.

So already the movie is packed… even without mentioning the returns of Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, Cobie Smulders as Maria Hill, Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier, Hayley Atwell as Peggy Carter, Dominic Cooper as Howard Stark and the additions of Emily Van Camp as Agent 13 (rumored to be Sharon Carter, Peggy’s daughter), Georges St. Pierre as Batroc Ze Leaper and Maximiliano Hernandez as Jasper Sitwell (crossing over from the ‘Agents off S.H.I.E.L.D. TV show).

But Marvel has made few missteps in its cinematic universe and I expect nothing less of this film.  It should be fun seeing the old fashioned Cap playing off of a bunch of modern characters including the new villains… and what will happen when he comes face to face with his former best friend-turned assassin?

‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ opens on April 4th, 2014.

Source Cinema Blend