There is no better way to spend a rainy afternoon than sitting nearly alone in a country movie theater with a small box of popcorn, some water, and my 3-D glasses. I grew up reading the comics, they inspired me to be a writer in many ways, and I am fascinated by the evolution of the blockbuster Graphic Novel Film, of which the newest “Captain America” is one of the better ones.

I was initially uneasy about this genre – too long, too loud, too unbelievable – and all of these things are true of “Captain America.” But the comic-inspired movie has become acceptable, even respectable,  and I will happily concede, pretty damn good. The cliché lives and grows and prospers. This movie is classy and thoughtful and relevant.

(Maria doesn’t love two-hour action movies, she made a beautiful quilt instead.)

I think Director Anthony Russo had our twisted political system in mind when he put this film together, it is all about division and polarization. I don’t know if he meant the film to be timely, but it is.

“Captain America” is on the high-end of superhero movies. The plot is, as usual, ludicrous and makes absolutely no sense.  The Avengers are roaming the world, killing and ferreting out terrorists, blowing up buildings and killing bystanders in the process, as usual.  The movie opens in Lagos, Nigeria, and spans the world.

But the United Nations is finally troubled at the notion that these “enhanced” human beings are running around the planet wreaking havoc and taking out some civilians along with the evildoers. Captain America sees this collateral damage as a sad but inevitable byproduct of saving the world, much as many police offers see it as a regrettable but inevitable product of more conventional police work.

The nations of the world band together and demand that the Avengers sign an agreement to bring them in from the cold and put them under the supervision of America’s Secretary Of State, who, of course, is an evil and two-faced coward and villain with his own agenda. I think there has never been a good or honest general or political figure in the entire history of the comics.

Heroes need villains, and the politicians are joined by the usual mysterious evildoers working out of remote and ice-covered hideouts in the distant corners of the world. Captain America, played by Chris Evans, is an all-American goody-goody who refuses to submit to the authority of the United Nations, and thus becomes a wanted criminal.

Robert Downey’s Iron Man takes the other sign and signs the agreement, and he and Captain America are suddenly on opposite sides. The Avengers are all caught in a painful civil, sparked by different notions of government authority and personal responsibility.

The movie is two-and-a-half hours long, and that is a long time to be watching explosions, karate-kicks and superheroes walking through walls, changing size and shape, joining in thousand-car chases all over the world. But it went quickly, I was neither bored nor tired at the end.

We could have easily lost a half hour of this movie, but it turned out to be one of the more reflective superhero movies, examining not only the role of the superhero, but permitting the characters to explain themselves and try to understand their own complex impact on the world around them. I can’t recall a superhero movie actually exploring issues of power and its limits in a connected world.

Superhero movies are not well know for introspection, but this one actually makes you think, when Captain America is not tossing his shield through the air and Iron Man is not cracking wise with the computer inside of his head. It is a blockbuster in the best sense of the world, witty and compelling and surprisingly human. I won’t give away the details, but there is even a surprising appearance by a Spiderman.I recommend the movie.

I will offer the usual reservation about the plot, even though nobody else is much bothered by plotting. Captain America makes absolutely no sense beyond the conflict of its two heroes, and I wouldn’t even try to follow the plot if you see the movie.

This is a movie you can just sit back and enjoy the movie, taking refuge in the fact that there is finally an action-movie that is serious-minded, even gripping,  but never forgets not to take itself too seriously to have fun. It is actually lots of fun.