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Captain America Timeline

When should this film take place?

  • 1940-1950: Real time origin, battles, freezing

  • 50/50: Half of the film in the past and half of the film in the present

  • Present Day: with him being awakened and having a clip or two of the past (think Austin Powers)

  • Near Future: Already awake, a scene explaining backstory


Results are only viewable after voting.

Asteroid-Man

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Should this movie take place in the time of WWII (we see his origin happen in real time) and end it with Cap presumed dead?

Should the film have a small prologue about his last battle and then awakening him in the present day to fight the Red Skull or start of with him waking up and then he tells them the story of his last battle and his origin?

Should the film take place years after he was awaken and little by little we see flashes of his origin, last battle and awakening?

Should the film be half and half?

Personally, I'd like to see this movie take place in the 40's-50's and then end the movie with him presumed dead and maybe after the credits we see him frozen underwater in a block of ice and he's fished out by something/someone then in the Avengers film, SHIELD already has him and part way through the film they realize they need Cap and so they go after Banner so he can revive Captain America.

What are your thoughts?
 
Half and half. The story line that has always interested me in the character is reawakening in our time and seeing how he reacts. I'm currently writing a screenplay due to the summer of serious heroes and the structure and inspiration I am mainly drawing from is 'FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS.'
 
As I posted in the other thread:

A Captain America film has to cover both his origin in World War II and his re-emergence in the modern era; there are two ways to do that: linear and non-linear. From what’s been said, it seems they’ll be doing a linear approach, but I think it would be better to do a non-linear story: my idea would open with the plane crash and Cap being frozen, which he wakes up from (as a nightmare); he’s been in the present for a little bit, and we get further flashbacks that go into his origin in the war, cued to various developments in the present (going to the White House in the present recalls him meeting FDR, for example; there’s a really awesome scene from the mid-90s "Sentinel of Liberty" I’d love to see adapted). In the present, the story would be Rogers’ increasing conviction that his World War II nemesis, the Red Skull, is still alive, and behind a series of terrorist attacks occurring around the world. SHIELD would have a fairly large role in this, since they’re usually a key part of Cap’s series, and major supporting plays like Sharon Carter and Nick Fury work for it (probably Sam/Falcon too; I’m not sure if he’d be a superhero in this version, or just a SHIELD agent).

There are a couple of reasons I think the all-40s approach isn't viable. First, it puts on The Avengers the burden of covering his arrival in the 21st century, which would severely slant the film, or else mean that the transition is given short shrift.

Second, the 40s just have Cap, really; all of the cool supporting players I want to see in the film, like Sam and Sharon, are in the 21st century. Cap's story has been about the modern era since his debut/return in Avengers #4, so that's where I want the emphasis.
 
What do you mean by Linear and Non-Linear? :huh:
Linear storytelling means you follow a straight line from Steve volunteering for the project, becoming Cap, serving in the war, getting frozen, being thawed out, greeting the new century, and thwarting the Red Skull again; like Spider-Man.

Non-linear means, as I outlined, you start in the present, and relate his origin in flashbacks; like Citizen Kane (or, to a degree, Iron Man, which opens with Tony in Afghanistan, then flashes back to detail his past life and various key supporting characters, before returning to Afghanistan).
 
What do you mean by Linear and Non-Linear? :huh:

In the case of Captain America, a linear story would follow Cap chronologically (WWII --> modern day) while a non-linear story would have Cap in the present with the WWII angle being told (probably by flashbacks) sporadically throughout the film.
 
Non-linear would work, but I'd say keep that restrained to the first part of the film. Start off with him already as Captain America then flash back on occasion to the past. The audience needs to see Captain America first. Then have modern day linear.
 
It would be cool if the movie centered in Captain America and his rivalry with Red Skull.

Captain fights a big conspiracy of the Nazis and end the movie being frozen after impeach a atomic bomb to fall in London. After credits scene show a group of biologists taking him of ice, and whe hear the leader saying:

- Finally. Whe found him. Call Nick Fury.
 
This is how I would open the movie, putting it in spoiler tags because it's also the opening scene for the CAPTAIN AMERICA screenplay I'm writing this summer and will premiere on SHH.

OPEN TO:

A UNIVERSAL NEWSREEL; white bold titles over a pitch-black screen: CAPTAIN AMERICA SAVES THE DAY.

EXT. TRENCH WARFARE- STOCK FOOTAGE

American soldiers fight in trenched warfare. Explosions send dusts of smoke and debris into the air.

EXT. AERIAL WARFARE- STOCK FOOTAGE

American fighter planes soar through the skies heading off to war.

EXT. WAR ZONE- STOCK FOOTAGE

Gunfire. Explosions. An intense battle rages onwards. Soldiers on both sides are fighting for their lives. CAPTAIN AMERICA (30) walks straight through the war zone, with his head pointed towards the sky, holding tightly onto a star spangled shield reflecting the bullets.

NARRATOR
Captain America has risked his life, time and time again, to protect our country from the evil mastermind of aggression and his stooges of war.

Dozens of newspaper headlines fly straight towards the screen: CAPTAIN AMERICA PREVENTS DAM EXPLOSION. SABOTEURS FAIL IN FACTORY PLOT WITH CAPTAIN AMERICA ON SCENE. NAZI VICTIMS RESCUED BY CAPTAIN AMERICA.

EXT. AMERICAN MILITARY COMPOUND- DAY- STOCK FOOTAGE

Captain America guides refugees from the Prison Camps onto the grounds of an American Military Compound. The refugees thank him over and over again for his kindness. Captain America beams with pride.

NARRATOR
Born from the super soldier project of Operation Rebirth, spear headed by Doctor Abraham Erksine.

EXT. PRESS CONFERENCE- DAY - STOCK FOOTAGE

Captain America stands on a stage overlooking a wide expansive audience. Propaganda posters are plastered against the walls behind him. A couple of the posters promote the purchasing of war bonds. Captain America is the poster boy for it all.

NARRATOR
Captain America has continued to aid troops in the ongoing war against the Nazi party.

Captain America raises his star spangled shield.

CAPTAIN AMERICA
Doctor Erksin is dead. And his formula died with him. So there can be no more like me. But I will champion the fight for freedom and justice wherever tyranny prevails!

Captain America throws the shield through the air. The audience erupts into a thunderous applause. The shield flies back into his hands. A final newspaper article spins towards the screen: WHO IS CAPTAIN AMERICA?

Just like Favreau said about IRON MAN. You have to find a way to stir the pot a little. Mix things up. With Captain America, there's plenty of opportunities to do that.
 
Tone down the propaganda newsreel/footage. That's exactly what people overseas hate: the over-glorification of the American cause. If it's about Nazi propaganda newsreel (like the ones in Indiana Jones and The Rocketeer) then people are fine with it.

Captain America fights for the ideals, which is in fact not just American but Universal ideals of freedom & justice. It's best to show somewhere in the film Cap goes against the corrupt Bush-like administration influenced by the Red Skull instead of giving in as its puppet. That way everybody around the world will cheer that Cap is not just an American hero, but hero for all people. America is just a name

As for the timeline, I propose:
  • 1930-1945 vs the Red Skull & German Supersoldiers
  • Current Time with the Falcon vs Baron Zemo + Hydra
  • Current Time with Black Widow, Bucky/Winter Soldier vs Neo Red Skull & lackeys (hire Ed Brubaker as writer on this)
 
I voted for all WW2, but thinking about it (and I'm no expert so help me out here), won't that be expensive (set pieces, costumes?).

Seriously, I'm not from the US and while I nor my country have any issues with the US, we do hear quite a bit of dislike and I'm sorry but I do think overseas sentiment will play a role in this films' BO. So just saying that to minimise the risks, try make it as cost effective as possible. Won't that affect the decision of when to base it?

Hearing some of your ideas, I'm starting to think that a current time with flashbacks should work too. I just preferred that his readjustment into the 'current time' should be part of the difficulties of him leading the avengers...
 
Tone down the propaganda newsreel/footage. That's exactly what people overseas hate: the over-glorification of the American cause. If it's about Nazi propaganda newsreel (like the ones in Indiana Jones and The Rocketeer) then people are fine with it.

I'd actually personally hate if they cheapened out like that. Captain AMERICA. Not Captain INTERNATIONAL. We already gave 'Truth, Justice, and all that stuff.' The beginning is all very American poster boy image as it should be. Captain America was initially created for the troops to give support and also as propaganda, with 'buy issued war bonds.' Very Uncle Sam.

Btw, I'm against the Bush administration and Cap isn't going to be a puppet, he was used as a 'poster boy' for WWII at Marvel though and that's an important aspect to focus on- Captain America representing America. Once he comes to modern day, well that's a different story.

captain_america_.jpg
 
I'd actually personally hate if they cheapened out like that. Captain AMERICA. Not Captain INTERNATIONAL. We already gave 'Truth, Justice, and all that stuff.' The beginning is all very American poster boy image as it should be. Captain America was initially created for the troops to give support and also as propaganda, with 'buy issued war bonds.' Very Uncle Sam.

Btw, I'm against the Bush administration and Cap isn't going to be a puppet, he was used as a 'poster boy' for WWII at Marvel though and that's an important aspect to focus on- Captain America representing America. Once he comes to modern day, well that's a different story.

captain_america_.jpg

Catering for the International markets you need to bite the reality or you'll get a potential flop. Besides there's no difference between American & International values in terms of the basic tenet of humanity. Captain America is not just gonna be the US gov't puppet when they're wrong and he won't gloat to the world when he's right.

Of course, if Marvel wants to just market for the US only, Yankee Doodle Dandy all the way from 0 to 120 minute.
 
Actually you're misinterpreting. Captain America during WORLD WAR II is the poster boy for the war. Almost everybody, except skin heads, sees the United States and it's allies during WWII as HEROES. There's no way people would be against that. Portraying America as some corrupt place during WWII would be doing damage to the iconic image of Captain America and veterans who are considered heroes.

Once he comes to modern day, that's when the Bush administration comes in and Captain America hates the fact that the America he used to fight for is gone.

In order to present that contrast you need to show the differences in time periods. WORLD WAR II everyone believed in the war. Heroes were made from the war, hell even look at the guys who raised the flag. Today's war not that many people believe in, I don't believe in the Bush administration.

But, in order to do a Captain America movie justice you have to have WORLD WAR II be a time of heroes and American spirit fighting and kicking Nazi ass. Modern day, mid-point of the film, is a different story.

This is one hero who will flop domestically if you do stray as far as, "truth, justice and all that stuff." He stands for the American ideals of World War II. That's why he was created in the first place. But, similar to the comics, those ideals sometimes don't correlate with modern day. So he's a man out of time.
 
You gotta see Captain America from a point of view of someone who knows little about Captain America and it just so happens he's not an American.

He doesn't care about an alternate reality WW2 where there's a guy-mascot doing the dirty jobs against the Nazi. If that's so fine, but don't over glorify the hero/American achievement in a propaganda reel. What's important for him is how universal is the heroic of Captain America and in the Comics, Cap's devotion to freedom & justice is universal. America is just Steve Rogers' nation but when his country is wrong he would not take any part or going against it. This is what the world viewer wants - Captain America that goes beyond the boundary, because when he does that, he's the hero of all people.
 
Why do I want the entire film to take place in the past besides an after credits scene? Because the flashback scenes or cutting to the future has been done OVER AND OVER AND OVER. In Spider-Man, X-Men, X-Men Evolution and in Ultimate Avengers. I suggest we get something new. So you know the movie Ultimate Avengers? Have Cap's Origin and WWII life and freezing in one entire film as opposed to just a prologue then start the Avengers film with Cap frozen in solid and already found by SHIELD (after credits scene from CA) then after the Avengers first mission, SHIELD realizes they need a leader. Then Cap is unfrozen.
 
Coming from an American, I'm keeping Captain America. AMERICA. Not Captain World or Captain Foreigner and hopefully MARVEL doesn't 'sell out' like Warner Brothers did with Superman Returns.

You don't go and change the roots of the characters just to appease some foreign viewer. Captain America was the MARVEL Poster Boy of World War II. He was created specifically for Americans during the time of World War II. That's who this character is and it's an essential quality about the character. During the time when soldiers and Americans needed hope, Captain America provided that. He was, more or less, the cooler more hip version of Uncle Sam. He was Uncle Sam that kicked ass.

captainamericacomics1xd2.jpg


Captain America would be over glorified because of what he represents. He gives the people hope when they need it the most. People back home need to see Captain America kicking ass and always being there to save the day. There would be press junkets and autograph seekers going after him. He would be a celebrity of the war. Very much like the Flag Raisers. He's more of a symbol than a soldier.

So during World War Two the essentials of the character: Used as a POSTER BOY. He's a CELEBRITY. He's a HERO. Hell, they could even make it that the Captain America comic books are based off of the "real guy."

This is the only way to capture Captain America during World War II. Any selling-out for foreign audience would be disrespectful and a disgrace to the character's origins. You thought "all that stuff" made people angry and then the rumor or fact, I don't know, that G.I. Joe was going to be international instead gardnered major bad reactions. Captain America doing the same would be asking for trouble, it would be bad press before the movie even goes into production.

What the film needs is a patriotic world war II and a turning of the tides once he arrives in the modern world, showing that his principles are not just American because when America goes against those principles he goes against America because the America he fought for in WWII ceases to exist. That's part of the reason why he's a man out of his time and something the whole world and certainly many Americans can relate to. How there once were wars worth fighting for back in the day, that unfortunately isn't around any longer. Could even call it pro/anti war film: WWII/ Modern Day with no real stance on war times today other than it being mixed (going one way or another would again cause bad reactions, thus it's important to have it be ambiguous).

Flag_Iwo_Jima_Febr_23_1945.jpg


Besides, you don't necessarily need to have Steve Rogers basking in the glory. He'd rather get out there and fight than be a poster boy. Which is one of the things I'm playing around with now.

FLAG OF OUR FATHERS:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiOMtdneUVc

This movie is actually the closest model to what I believe a Captain America film should be.
 
I've made it clear on my opinion of the Timeline and I say in the first one, make him an all-American hero but in the Avengers, he should be able to adapt to our more open society.
 
Exactly. All-American in WWII. Flexible in modern day. There's also a storyline I found for the film that wouldn't have to cause a 'for war or anti-war' controversy that still reflects on the times and a very scary possibility if certain weapons got into the wrong hands. Not going to go further than that other than to say my CAPTAIN AMERICA will premiere this summer. Maybe in July or August. Same universe as IRON MAN and INCREDIBLE HULK.
 
I wouldn't say half past-half present. More like 1/3 past-2/3 present. We do need to see a set-up of Cap in the past. Aside from not having his origin, Ultimates did it very well. Throw his origin in, perhaps even by way of flashback, and that would be perfect.
 
/\ That actually sounds about right. I'd say, in terms of Iron Man time, from the beginning to the time he escapes... that's enough time to set everything up. Roughly 35-45 minutes.
 
I personally feel that the 50/50 option is the best. You alternate back-and-forth between the two, showing Captain America's origin in WWII, then meanwhile in modern day he is brought back to fight a gigantic threat (Red Skull or something). I think it could be perfect, and would satisfy both legions of fans who want it either way.
 
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