Brie Larson on playing 'Captain Marvel'

Our reporter Alexa sat down with Brie Larson, star of the highly anticipated Captain Marvel, to talk about being the first female actor to headline a Marvel film, the difficult decisions required to take the role, and the journey of the film itself. Check out the interview below.

The latest entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe takes us back in time to mid-90s America, providing a fun look back at a world once filled with Blockbuster video stores, dial-up internet and the use of CD-Rom drives. Captain Marvel is a humorous superhero film looking at the origin story of Carol Danvers, a fighter pilot who becomes one of the universe's most powerful heroes when Earth is caught in the middle of a galactic war between two alien races.

Alexa reviews Captain Marvel

A film under a great deal of scrutiny from the second it was announced, Captain Marvel takes this commentary in its stride and is unapologetically unique. Silly, heart warming and empowering - this is a movie that's been a long time coming for Marvel and they finally have succeeded in triumphantly bringing a woman to the forefront of their films. 

"Higher, Further, Faster Baby" is a pretty good summary of this film's intentions. Brie Larson's portrayal of Captain Marvel finally takes a female character in the MCU to new heights with a developed, honest and, frankly, bad-ass performance. Her friendship with Maria (Lashana Lynch) adds a much-needed vulnerability to Larson's character - their relationship is incredibly sincere and was where some of the most empowering moments came from. It's also incredibly fun seeing these two taking on very stereotypically male roles in the air force in a surprisingly realistic fashion. We see them overcome adversity and support each other through it - a sensible portrayal not often seen and much needed in today's media. 

As always with Marvel films, the stakes are notably high but, in this instance, the character development brings them back to reality. Every time the fate of the world is at stake, we are reminded of a character's personal stake in the drama making the action more personal and poignant. Ben Mendelsohn deserves a lot of credit for his role in keeping this film grounded - despite his green appearance, his performance is realistic and intensely powerful. 

The film's major fall down is its need to bring in the typical "smashy-smashy" elements of a Marvel film in a unique way. It leaves the film feeling ultimately a bit Star Wars-esque with some big battles bordering on too CGI heavy and therefore undermining some impressive character development. I also have a lot of love for a certain ginger feline named Goose who, whilst often acting as some necessary comic relief, was occasionally over used to the extent that it took me out of the action and reduced my investment in it. However, his chemistry with Fury (Samuel L Jackson) was so hilarious that it makes up for any issues I had with it and I shall continue to advocate for more cats in Marvel films.

This film truly triumphs when it accepts its role as an origin story and focuses on the emotions of characters. It's some of Marvel's most impressive character work to date. Empowering without rubbing it in your face and exciting whilst distinctly funny - if this is the direction that Marvel's heading in, especially after the nods to the upcoming Avengers: Endgame in this film, I'm incredibly excited to see what's next for Captain Marvel and the MCU.