If you’ve followed our coverage of Marvel Junkets in the past (Iron Man 2, Thor) then you know that those press events and I have a long and useless history. Generally speaking, everyone spends a lot of time learning very little, and sometimes things break and fall down.
It seems as though Marvel may be on the upswing in terms of getting these junkets really pumping out information – or maybe we journalists are asking better questions – who the heck really knows why it happened, but somehow the Captain America junket was interesting and had stuff to learn you might actually care about.
So much so, in fact, that I’ve got 15 cool tidbits right here.
15. Joe Johnston Strangely Gets No Love, Deserves it.
There was some concern from the internet when Johnston was announced as the director, despite him helming some awesome films like The Rocketeer and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. Seems even after the excellent Captain America, not all critics are willing to accept him – while the Marvel executives walked in to applause, the clapping oddly stopped when Johnston was announced. Until Kevin Feige started it back up. Me? I love the guy.
14. Marvel’s Secret to Success is…
Hiring great writers and directors, according to Kevin Feige. While that seems like, and most likely is, a canned answer, Marvel is making a lot of great movies, so they’re obviously on to something.
13. Joe Johnston is Definitely not a Nazi Sympathizer
His quote, word for word: “Nazis are the universal villain. You can kill Nazis with impunity.”
12. Chris Evans Bested a Dozen other Captains
According to Johnston, somewhere between 12 and 15 different actors screen-tested for the role, with Evans bringing the best balance of acting and physicality.
11. Captain America Goes Solo
When questioned about the Captain’s ability to hold his own movie, Feige said that the Marvel plan for films was to follow that of the comics: introduce them in their own ventures first, before crafting a super team. The Marvel Head Honcho also reaffirmed his opinion, which will be proved this weekend, that Captain America can easily hold his own film.
10. He’s Not Captain Propaganda
Some like to pick on Captain America – after all, he wears the flag, got his great body from steroids, and seems like a superficial propaganda tool. Not so, says Johnston. Captain America is just a guy who wants to do the right thing. He is given these tools because of who he is. And, after all, in the comics we do meet Captain Britain, so other countries get flag waiving superheroes too.
9. Tommy Lee Jones is Scary
Unless you laugh at him. With a widely known sour disposition, dealing with Tommy Lee Jones can be difficult. Director Joe Johnston found the best approach was just to laugh at the performance to reinforce it, because most people are too afraid of Jones to laugh even when he’s joking.
8. The Time Period Is Essential, Open
It was hard for writers Markus and McFeely to write a script that took place in World War II, won the war, and ended in the present day, but still leave the door open for more sequels. But they did it! See the movie to find out how!
7. Shot in 2D but for 3D. No, really.
Johnston shot the film in 2D always knowing that, after some tests, it was destined for 3D. To get the best results, most everything was shot a second time to provide the “left eye pass” needed to give the depth to the image. It works.
6. The Answer is Nothing.
The question, posed by Joe Johnston: What’s hotter than a woman that knows how to use a machine gun?
5. Want to Read the Comic Inspirations?
Then search out the early runs from Ed Brubaker. While a little bit was taken from many different storylines, his critically acclaimed run was the biggest starting point for the writers.
4. Captain America is Similar to the Greatest Films of All Time
According to Kevin Feige, if you look at a list of the greatest films of all time, you’ll find dozens of period pieces – so there was never any hesitation or doubt about putting Steve Rogers where he belongs: World War II.
3. Sebastian Stan Didn’t Know about Bucky
Which is a good thing, considering what he learned covered all of Bucky’s history which, recently, turns him into a wet-work badass specialist rather than a young boy in a Lone Ranger costume.
2. Anything is Possible for a Sequel
The writers made sure to keep the movie open and spaced out enough to leave room for a sequel that could take place either in World War II or modern day. In fact, the movie actually takes place over a period of 2–3 years, with a lot of the middle years shown only in a montage. Supporting actors Sebastian Stan and Hayley Atwell both confirmed they could show up in a sequel, but that nothing was planned yet.
1. The Red Dress Moment Almost Never Was
Hayley Atwell’s Peggy Carter is a bad ass chick wearing a uniform during most of her screen time – and it would have been all of it, if not for a costume designer who decided that she needed a moment to be a stunning woman. Enter the red dress, when a non-uniformed Carter enters a bar full of soldiers, dropping jaws everywhere.
Well, there you go – a Marvel Junket that wasn’t a total waste of time. Don’t get me wrong, or kicked out of future junkets, it’s just that in the past they yielded no information and nothing but frustration, though I do blame most of that on shitty questions from our side of the table. But not this one! How about that. Well, I hope you enjoyed learning about Captain America: The First Avenger as much as I enjoyed the complimentary Captain America action figure, valued at $7.99.
Suckers.
Related Topics: Chris Evans
