Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

Adventures of Captain Marvel Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf September 1, 2017

These days, it’s impossible to go a season without the release of a comic book movie. They’re big business these days, perhaps the one sure thing in Hollywood right now, and the industry shows no signs of slowing down the productions, endeavoring to dazzle fans with big-budgeted, snugly costumed fury, often scripted with plans to generate entire “universes” to fully milk source materials for everything they’ve got. In this day and age of three “Spider-Man” franchises created and released in 15 years, it’s hard to consider a time when moguls had no idea what to do with the heroic antics of ink and paint titans. 1941’s “Adventures of Captain Marvel” is largely credited as the first big screen attempt to do something significant with a comic book creation, using the serial format (12 chapters in total) to detail feats of strength, survival, and sleuthing, with emphasis on broad fantasy to supply proper weekly escapism and trigger ongoing interest in the fate of a beefy superhero in a tiny cape.

“Adventures of Captain Marvel” explores the supernatural awakening of young Billy (Frank Coghlan, Jr.), a plucky member of a special expedition heading into the Valley of the Tombs. Instead of unearthing critical archaeological discoveries, the gang is mesmerized by a special Golden Scorpion stature fitted with unique lenses capable of turning rock into valuable gold. Realizing the power of such a find, expedition members divvy up the lenses for safe keeping, while Billy finds himself exposed to the powers of Shazam, making contact with an ancient wizard who tasks the young man with protection of the potentially destructive Golden Scorpion. When trouble arises in the form of the Scorpion, a dastardly hooded villain out to collect the lenses, Billy springs into action, using his newfound gifts to transform into Captain Marvel (Tom Tyler), a hero gifted Geek god abilities to pound evil into place, protecting Billy’s friends as the hunt begins for the Scorpion’s true identity.

“Adventures of Captain Marvel” doesn’t make any radical moves to subvert its serial form, maintaining a certain look and feel of the tradition, which wasn’t known for its big budgets or depth of logic. It’s freewheeling heroism, and one rooted in dark magic, with Shazam the wizard presenting Billy with “Shazam!” the transformative call, permitting the scrawny guy to become the bulky, caped Captain Marvel, whose primary mission is to retrieve the Golden Scorpion, making sure the destructive device doesn’t remain in the wrong hands for long. Captain Marvel is endowed with super-strength and flight, making repeated use of his abilities throughout the chapters. Special effects aren’t high-tech, but they’re effective, showcasing plenty of reverse photography and model work, while flying is achieved with the help of rear-projection techniques and a paper mache dummy on a wire, which, through the help of attentive editing, doesn’t look as bad as it sounds.

“Adventures of Captain Marvel” doesn’t offer the most profound tale of interrogation and theft, and the strain of storytelling is felt over the chapters, which tend to follow a routine of pursuit and pummeling, while a mild mystery brews concerning the true identity of the Scorpion, keeping Billy busy with suspects as he looks to the members of the initial expedition for answers. Thankfully, the serial is action-oriented, offering crude stunt choreography or simply nothing at all, viewed during fistfights, which largely oversees two actors rolling around a set, making sure to hit as much breakaway furniture as possible. While the Scorpion is a bad guy, out to control the Golden Scorpion and take over the world, it’s Captain Marvel who surprises with his ferocity, refusing to take challenges from the Scorpion’s stooges lightly. Captain Marvel is a superhero who freely kills during the chapters, and while he’s disposing of goons, he does it rather viciously, pitching bodies off buildings and cliffs, even slugging some opponents into the afterlife. Reflecting a different time of costumed nobility, “Adventures of Captain Marvel” is quite a contrast to today’s “Batman doesn’t kill” mentality, celebrating the character’s no-nonsense attitude as he crushes his way through any physical barrier that’s put in front of him.

The Chapters

1 - “Curse of the Scorpion” (30:11)
2 - “The Guillotine” (16:35)
3 - “Time Bomb” (17:53)
4 - “Death Takes the Wheel” (16:50)
5 - “The Scorpion Strikes” (16:46)
6 - “Lens of Death” (17:27)
7 - “Human Targets” (17:07)
8 - “Boomerang” (17:15)
9 - “Dead Man’s Trap” (16:42)
10 - “Doom Ship” (16:48)
11 - “Valley of Death” (16:52)
12 - “Captain Marvel’s Secret” (16:48)

Adventures of Captain Marvel Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Listed as "Newly Re-mastered from a 4K Scan from Paramount Pictures Archives," the AVC encoded image (1.37:1 aspect ratio) presentation doesn't immediately back this claim up, with a lower-res source used for part of the main titles. Clarity soon emerges in full, offering some intriguingly crisp imagery, which becomes valuable for special effects sequences, opening them up for study, including flying stunts, where cables are easily spotted. Facial particulars are also defined to satisfaction, along with set construction, with activity in the Valley of the Tombs the most textured and cinematic section of the serial. Delineation is comfortable, while whites are stable. Grain is filmic. Minor compression issues creep into view throughout, with banding the most prominent. Source hasn't been subjected to an exhaustive restoration, showing considerable wear and tear with scratches, speckling, rough reel changes, and chemical damage.

Adventures of Captain Marvel Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix delivers a basic listening experience for the 1941 serial, largely capturing comic book tone with excitable dialogue exchanges. Performance choices are easy to follow, and while there's obvious age, intelligibility isn't a major issue. There are mild fluctuations in volume throughout the serial, but the most concentrated area of concern is found in chapter 12, around the 8:00 mark, where damage is most prevalent for a few minutes of screen time. Scoring is inherently dull but not lost, supporting the action with adequate instrumentation. Sound effects enjoy more exciting clarity, including gun shots.

Adventures of Captain Marvel Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Booklet (10 pages) offers an essay by journalist Matt Singer.

• Commentary features film historians Jerry Beck, Chris Eberle, Shane Kelly, Boyd Magers, Leonard Maltin, Adam Murdough, Constantine Nasr, Donnie Waddell, Tom Weaver, and J.D. Witney.

Adventures of Captain Marvel Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Keeping up with serial standards, "Adventures of Captain Marvel" arranges all sorts of cliffhangers to keep audiences interested in the seemingly doomed fates of the characters. There's a bridge explosion, a mined car, melted rockslides, a volcano, and, my personal favorite, a special electrified hallway that stuns the victim before rolling them underneath a large guillotine. The fun factor of the serial is learning just how Captain Marvel is going to survive disaster or prevent others from perishing, often doing so with last-minute ferocity. 12 chapters is a long time to spend with "Adventures of Captain Marvel," at least from a narrative perspective, as there's not much dramatic meat on these bones. However, as an example of early comic book-inspired imagination and adaptation, there's plenty to enjoy about the production, which finds interesting ways to translate impossible feats of power and flight, creating a cinematic space where exaggerated heroism is allowed to come alive for fans and newcomers.