'Captain America' returns with more action and effects

The directors, brothers Anthony and Joe Russo, have created a film that is both a spy story and a superhero story, with a splendid cast and a great display of technical means.

From the hand of Marvel Studios comes the long-awaited Captain America: The Winter Soldier, which resumes the big screen adventures of Steven Rogers, aka Captain America.

The film, based on the popular comic book collection that was first published in 1941, picks up the story of Chris Evans (Captain America: The First Avenger, The Vengadmarvel flowers) in the iconic role of Superhero Steve Rogers/Captain America alongside Scarlett Johansson (Marvel's Avengers, Iron Man 2) as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow.

The film is directed by Anthony and Joe Russo from a screenplay adapted by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely. Kevin Feige, president of Marvel, produces the film. The project's executive producers are Louis D'Esposito, Alan Fine, Victoria Alonso, Michael Grillo and Stan Lee. The film's production team consists of director of photography Trent Opaloch (Elysium, District 9), production designer Peter Wenham, editors Jeffrey Ford, A.C.E. (Iron Man 3, Marvel's Avengers) y Matthew Schmidt (Iron Man 3, Marvel's Avengers), and three-time Oscar-nominated costume designer Judianna Makovsky (The Hunger Games, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone).

“In our meetings with the Russo brothers, I had a feeling that they had something that could add a lot of value to one of our products,” says producer Kevin Feige. "They loved the idea we presented to them: a political thriller from the 70s, a much more contemporary, more realistic Superhero story. And they made it their own, improved it and in my opinion they have made an action film in its purest form, the best we have made so far."

To the Russo brothers, executive producers and directors of the award-winning television series Arrested Development y Community, they loved immersing themselves in the Marvel Universe. “It was a fantastic moment for two reasons,” Anthony Russo recalls. "The first because we had always liked the decisions that Marvel had made in the past and the second because we were on the list without having applied to be on it. Marvel showed us that, on the creative side, it does not hesitate to give opportunities to names that do not seem so obvious."

Although the history of Captain America: The Winter Soldier It takes place in the present day, the tone of the script and the story are reminiscent of a good retro thriller. “We wanted the film to have a cinéma vérité style that makes you feel like you're standing next to Captain America,” says Anthony Russo. “We wanted the story and style to be very intimate and realistic, a fundamental characteristic of the 1970s thrillers that inspired this film.”

“The first installment of a saga is to introduce the heroes and the second is to put the heroes on the ropes,” adds director Joe Russo. "This movie is a much bolder story than anything Marvel has done to date. We wanted to try something different. We understood that our job was to add something to the Marvel universe that they could use as a tool to move into Phase 2."

Filming

The filming of Captain America: The Winter Soldier Marvel premiered on April 1, 2013 at Manhattan Beach Studios. But for the film's actors the action began many weeks before. They had to prepare for the fascinating elevator fight sequence that was going to be shot in the first few days. In the scene, several agents attack Steve Rogers in a crowded elevator. The intense fight sequence would become a trailer for the film and highlights the extremely hard training that Chris Evans and all his co-stars underwent to make this film.

“It was very important that all the actors trained to the maximum for the film because we wanted the audience to see our actors performing the action scenes,” says Anthony Russo. “Audiences want to feel that energy and see fluid fighting technique on the screen.”

“So almost all of our actors trained really hard for the movie,” says Joe Russo. "Many of them did it for several weeks to do specific scenes, so the viewer will see the actor doing the fight scenes and stunts. Of course, we had a wonderful team of stuntmen who worked with them, and the actors had doubles when things got too aggressive or dangerous, but almost all of the fight scenes are done by the real cast of the film."

After wrapping the first week of filming, the cast and crew got their first look at Captain America's new costume. For Evans, the suit was much better than Marvel's Avengers. “The new suit is great, I love it,” says Evans. "It's a beautiful navy blue color, it's very practical and it moves very well. That makes filming much easier and more enjoyable."

"The best thing about Marvel is that they are incredibly effective. They have a fantastic design team led by Ryan Meinerding who works closely with the costume department," says Joe Russo. "Judianna Makovsky, our costume designer, has done an incredible job on this film. It was very important to us that the costumes had the maximum texture and that they were as close to reality as possible."

“We wanted Captain America's suit to have ballistic properties that would protect him, like a shield that was a fully functional military uniform,” adds Anthony Russo.

Another challenge that the filmmakers had to face was creating the look and design of Halcón, their new Superhero. Falcon is an old and beloved comic book character, but the filmmakers knew they had to update him.

For directors Anthony and Joe Russo, the look and feel of Falcon's suit was a very important element in fitting the character into the film. “In the story, the upper echelons of power are corrupt and that's the problem Captain America faces at the beginning of the movie,” says Joe Russo. “So he finds a character who is very far removed from those spheres, which is Sam Wilson, an ordinary man who has a very specific and unique talent and a very interesting approach to technology.”

“The hidden personality of this character was very important and we wanted the technology in his suit to be plausible and as realistic as possible,” adds Anthony Russo. "So the suit isn't special, it's Sam who becomes someone special."

Filming in the Capitol

On May 13, 2013, the production team headed east to Washington, D.C. to film Steve Rogers, Black Widow and Falcon in scenes set in some of the most emblematic places in the United States such as the Jefferson Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial, the National Air and Space Museum, the Capitol Building, the National Mall, the Western Restaurant of the Willard Hotel, the DuPont Circle area and the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge, which the production closed for the first time in its history to film a blockbuster.

Since the film is set in Washington, D.C., the filmmakers were forced to shoot in the streets with the actors performing in historical monuments in the nation's capital. For the actors, filming on the streets of Washington, D.C. It meant facing the crowds, including many children who stood on the streets dressed as Captain America, waiting to meet Captain America himself. Chris Evans did not stop taking photos with these very young fans.

“I loved seeing all those kids on the National Mall and on the streets of Washington, D.C.,” Evans says. "It reminds you that when you play a role like Captain America or another Super Hero, kids notice you and you have to be aware of what you mean to them and make sure your actions live up to their expectations. One of the great virtues of Steve Rogers is being selfless and putting the needs of others first. That applies to all facets, so if I can be even a little like Steve Rogers, it means I'm doing the right thing."

After successfully completing filming in Washington D.C., the filmmakers headed to the northwest of the United States, more specifically to Cleveland, Ohio. There they spent six weeks filming the film's big action sequences. Thanks to that trip, directors Anthony and Joe Russo returned to the city where they grew up and where they began their film careers.

For Marvel and the filmmakers, filming in the city offered many advantages. Executive producer Louis D'Esposito comments: "Cleveland was certainly a good stand-in for New York in 'Marvel's Avengers,' but it was even better at replicating Washington, D.C., as many downtown buildings are similar in height to those in the capital and the style of architecture is also similar. This allowed the production team to have the city blocks they needed for the car chases and fight sequences."

In the script there were two big outdoor action scenes that could only be shot in Cleveland. One was the intense car chase with Nick Fury, and the other was the dizzying climax sequence of the second act in which Captain America, Black Widow and Falcon confront the Winter Soldier.

The team filmed in the streets with two full units of cast and crew, forcing the closure of many arteries in the city center. It was also necessary to close five kilometers of the Cleveland Memorial Shoreway, one of the highways that cross the city, for three weeks in a row and in the middle of the summer season. The Cleveland authorities did a magnificent job of coordinating it to make it work and, as Kevin Feige points out: “I am tremendously grateful to all the entities that made an operation of this magnitude possible, something that had never been done in the city.”

After finishing work in Cleveland and heading to Los Angeles for the final weeks of filming, the directors reflected on the creative experience they had had. “We are tremendously proud of this film,” says Joe Russo. "It has been an exceptional team effort collaborating with extremely talented people. As comic fans we are very happy to bring to the screen what we like most about that genre and we hope that audiences around the world will recognize it."

“We wanted to make a very intense movie,” summarizes Anthony Russo. "I love experiencing strong emotions, feeling that what I'm seeing on the screen captures me to the point of forgetting to eat the popcorn until halfway through the movie. For me, those are the best movies. You sit in your seat and immerse yourself in a journey in which you forget everything. So I hope we have managed to convey that feeling, a perfect combination of a Superhero movie and a gritty, gripping political thriller."