Captain America: The First Avenger

Col. Chester Phillips:
General Patton has said that wars are fought with weapons, but they are won by men. We are going to win this war because we have the best men. And because they are going to get better. Much better. The Strategic Scientific Reserve is an Allied effort made up of the best minds in the free world. Our goal is to create the best army in history. But every army starts with one man. At the end of this week, we will choose that man. He will be the first in a new breed of super-soldier. And they will personally escort Adolf Hitler to the gates of Hell.

Johann Schmidt/Red Skull:
[Schmidt stands before his army] Tomorrow, HYDRA will stand master of the world, borne to victory on the wings of the Valkyrie. Our enemies' weapons will be powerless against us. If they shoot down one plane, hundreds more will rain fire upon them! If they cut off one head, two more shall take its place. Hail HYDRA.

Johann Schmidt/Red Skull:
You are deluded, Captain. You pretend to be a simple soldier, but in reality you are just afraid to admit that we have left humanity behind! Unlike you, I embrace it proudly. Without fear!

Johann Schmidt/Red Skull:
[berserk] YOU ARE FAILING! We are close to an offensive that will shake the planet, and yet we are continually delayed because you cannot outwit a simpleton with a shield!

[Steve attempts to enlist yet again. He is in the middle of his physical Dr. Abraham Erskine walks in]

Dr. Abraham Erskine:
So, you want to go overseas. Kill some Nazis.

Steve Rogers:
Excuse me?

Erskine:
Dr. Abraham Erskine. I represent the Strategic Scientific Reserve.

Rogers:
Steve Rogers [introduces himself and shakes his hand] Where are you from?

Erskine:
Queens. 73rd Street and Utopia Parkway. Before that, Germany. This troubles you?

Rogers:
No.

Erskine:
[he looks into his files] Where are you from, Mr. Rogers? Is it New Haven? Or Paramus? Five exams in five different cities.

Rogers:
That might not be the right file.

Erskine:
No, It's not the exams I'm interested in. It's the five tries. But you didn't answer my question. Do you want to kill Nazis?

Rogers:
Is this a test?

Erskine:
Yes.

Rogers:
I don't want to kill anyone. I don't like bullies. I don't care where they're from.

Erskine:
Well, there are already so many big men fighting this war. Maybe what we need now is a little guy. I can offer you a chance. Only a chance.

Rogers:
I'll take it.

Erskine:
Good. So where is the little guy from? Actually?

Rogers:
Brooklyn.

Erskine:
[he stamps his form with 1-A] Congratulations, soldier.

[Col. Phillips argues with Dr. Erskine over Steve Rogers' selection]

Col. Chester Phillips:
You don't win wars with niceness, Doctor. [he takes a grenade and pulls the pin] You win wars with guts. [tosses it to where the candidates are training] Grenade!

Steve Rogers:
[dives on grenade as soldiers scatter] Get away! Get back! [they soon realize it is a dud grenade and are amazed at Steve's bravery] Is this a test?

Phillips:
He's still skinny. [walks away]

Steve Rogers:
Why me?

Abraham Erskine:
I suppose that is the only question that matters. [Displaying a bottle of schnapps] This is from Augsburg, my city. So many people forget that the first country the Nazis invaded was their own. You know, after the last war, my people struggled. they felt weak... they felt small. And then Hitler comes along with the marching, and the big show, and the flags, and the, and the... and he hears of me, and my work, and he finds me, and he says "You. You will make us strong." Well, I am not interested. So he sends the head of Hydra, his research division, a brilliant scientist by the name of Johann Schmidt. Now Schmidt is a member of the inner circle and he is ambitious. He and Hitler share a passion for occult power and Teutonic myth. Hitler uses his fantasies to inspire his followers. But for Schmidt, it is not fantasy. For him, it is real. He has become convinced there is a great power hidden in the earth, left here by the gods, waiting to be seized by a superior man. So when he hears about my formula and what it can do, he cannot resist. Schmidt must become that superior man.

Rogers:
Did it make him stronger?

Erskine:
Yeah, but... there were other effects. The serum was not ready. But more important, the man. The serum amplifies everything inside, so good becomes great; bad becomes worse. This is why you were chosen. Because the strong man who has known power all his life, may lose respect for that power, but a weak man knows the value of strength, and knows... compassion.

Rogers:
Thanks. I think.

Erskine:
[Gesturing toward the schnapps] Get it, get it. Whatever happens tomorrow, you must promise me one thing. You will stay who you are, not a perfect soldier, but a good man.

Rogers:
To the little guys.

Erskine:
[just realising the schnapps could sabotage the test] No no, wait wait. What Am I doing? No, You have procedure tomorrow. No fluids.

Rogers:
Okay, we'll drink it after.

Erskine:
[pouring Steves schnapps into his own glass] No, I don't have procedure tomorrow. Drink it after? Drink it now.

[After Steve catches Nazi spy Heinz Kruger]

Steve Rogers:
Who the hell are you?

Heinz Kruger:
The first of many. Cut off one head, [bites down a cyanide pill] two more shall take its place. Hail HYDRA!

[After swallowing the cyanide pill, Kruger starts foaming his mouth before he dies.]

[Three SS officers visit Schmidt's HYDRA facility, but he is slighted by their constant complaints]

SS Officer 1:
The Führer is not accustomed to being ignored, Herr Schmidt. He funds your research because you promised him weapons.

SS Officer 2:
You serve at his pleasure. He gave you this facility as a reward for your...injuries.

Johann Schmidt:
A reward?! Call it what it is...exile! I no longer reflect his vision of Aryan perfection!

SS Officer 1:
You think this is about appearances? Your HYDRA division has failed to produce so much as a rifle in over a year, and we have learned through local intelligence you had mounted a full-scale incursion into Norway!

SS Officer 2:
The Führer feels- how does he put it?- the Red Skull has been indulged long enough!

Johann Schmidt:
Gentlemen, you have come to see the results of our work. Let me show you. [shows them to his lab] Hitler speaks of a 1,000-year Reich, but he cannot feed his armies for a month. His troops spill their blood across every field in Europe, but still he is no closer to achieving his goals. [pulls sheet off Tesseract-powered laser cannon]

SS Officer 1:
And I suppose you still aim to win this war through magic?

Schmidt:
Science. But I understand your confusion. Great power has always baffled primitive men. HYDRA is assembling an arsenal to destroy my enemies in one stroke, wherever they are, regardless of how many forces they possess, all in a matter of hours.

SS Officer 2:
Your enemies?

Schmidt:
My weapons contain enough destructive power to decimate every hostile capital on Earth. Quite simply, gentlemen, I have harnessed the power of the gods.

SS Officer 2:
Thank you, Schmidt.

Schmidt:
For what?

SS Officer 2:
For making it clear how obviously mad you are.

SS Officer 3:
[studies a map of all European capitals to be targeted, and sees one particular place] Berlin is on this map!

Schmidt:
So it is. [aims cannon at the SS officers]

SS Officer 3:
You will be punished for your insolence! You will be brought before the FÅ«hrer himself! [Schmidt kills him and Officer 2]

SS Officer 1:
[cornered at the locked door] Schmidt! [he then finally shoots and obliterates him]

Schmidt:
My apologies, Doctor, but we both knew HYDRA could grow no further in Hitler's shadow. Hail HYDRA.

HYDRA Officers:
Hail HYDRA!

Dr. Arnim Zola:
[Schmidt looks to him and Dr. Zola reluctantly says] Hail HYDRA!

[Steve meets Col Phillips in Italy. He is not pleased to see him]

Col. Chester Phillips:
Well if it isn't the Star-Spangled Man With A Plan. What is your plan today?

Steve Rogers:
I need the casualty list from Azzano.

Phillips:
You don't get to give me orders, son.

Rogers:
I just need one name, Sergeant James Barnes from the 107th.

Phillips:
[to Peggy] You and I are gonna have a conversation later that you won't enjoy.

Rogers:
Please tell me if he's alive, sir. B-A-R-

Phillips:
I can spell. I have signed more of these condolence letters today than I would care to count. But the name does sound familiar. I'm sorry.

Rogers:
What about the others? Are you planning a rescue mission?

Phillips:
Yes, it's called "winning the war."

Rogers:
But if you know where they are, why not at least...

Phillips:
They're 30 miles behind the lines through some of the most heavily fortified territory in Europe. We'd lose more men than we'd save. But I don't expect you to understand that because you're a chorus girl.

Rogers:
I think I understand just fine.

Phillips:
Well then, understand it somewhere else. If I read the posters correctly, you got someplace to be in 30 minutes.

Rogers:
[looks on the map to see where the HYDRA base is located] Yes, sir, I do.

[Rogers is captured by HYDRA and brought before Schmidt]

Johann Schmidt:
Arrogance may not be a uniquely American trait, but I must say, you do it better than anyone. But there are limits to what even you can do, Captain? Or did Erskine tell you otherwise?

Steve Rogers:
He told me you were insane.

Johann Schmidt:
He resented my genius and tried to deny me what was rightfully mine. But he gave you everything. So, what made you so special?

Steve Rogers:
Nothing. I'm just a kid from Brooklyn. [unmoved by beatdown] I can do this all day.

Johann Schmidt:
Of course you can, of course. But, unfortunately, I am on a tight schedule. [he puts a gun to Rogers' head, but the Howling Commandos break in through the windows]

Steve Rogers:
So am I! [breaks free of his guards and attacks Schmidt]

[Steve enters the control room of the Red Skull's plane. He moves toward the controls, but turns around to block a shot from Red skull]

Johann Schmidt:
You don't give up, do you?

Steve Rodgers:
Nope! [They fight. Steve eventually loses his shield and takes cover from Schmidt's shots]

Johann Schmidt:
You could have the power of the gods! Yet you wear a flag on your chest and think you fight a battle of nations! I have seen the future, Captain! There are no flags!

Steve Rodgers:
Not my future!

[Steve takes control of the Red Skull's plane and peaks over the radio]

Steve Rogers:
Come in. This is Captain Rogers. Do you read me?

Jim Morita:
Captain Rogers, what is your...[Peggy interrupts]

Peggy Carter:
Steve, is that you? Are you alright?

Rogers:
Peggy, Schmidt's dead!

Carter:
What about the plane?

Rogers:
That's a little bit tougher to explain.

Carter:
Give your coordinates. I'll find you a safe landing site.

Rogers:
There's not gonna be a safe landing. But I can try and force it down.

Carter:
I'll get Howard on the line. He'll know what to do.

Rogers:
There's not enough time. This thing's moving too fast and it's heading for New York. I got to put her in the water.

Carter:
Please, don't do this. We have time. We can work it out.

Rogers:
Right now I'm in the middle of nowhere. If I wait any longer, a lot of people are gonna die. Peggy, this is my choice. [he puts his compass with her picture on one of the controls as he steers the ship down to the ice below] Peggy?

Carter:
I'm here.

Rogers:
I'm gonna to need a rain check on that dance.

Carter:
All right. A week, next Saturday, at the Stork Club.

Rogers:
You got it.

Carter:
8:00 on the dot. Don't you dare be late. Understood?

Rogers:
You know, I still don't know how to dance.

Carter:
I'll show you how. Just be there.

Rogers:
We'll have the band play something slow. I'd hate to step on your-[radio goes to static]

Carter:
Steve? Steve? [Colonel Phillips is nearby as a tear drops down Peggy's face] Steve?

[Upon discovering where he is, Steve runs out into modern day Times Square and is very shocked and confused. He is approached by Nick Fury and many S.H.I.E.L.D. agents]

Nick Fury:
At ease, soldier! Look, I'm sorry about that little show back there, but we thought it best to break it to you slowly.

Steve Rogers:
Break what?

Fury:
You've been asleep, Cap. For almost 70 years. [Steve is silent with shock] You gonna be okay?

Rogers:
Yeah. Yeah, I just... I had a date.

Discover the origin of the first avenger.

Avenge.

[Upon discovering where he is, Steve runs out into modern-day Times Square and is very shocked and confused; he is approached by Nick Fury and many S.H.I.E.L.D. agents]

Nick Fury:
At ease, soldier!

Steve Rogers:
Who are you?

Fury:
Colonel Nick Fury, Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. You would have known us as the Strategic Scientific Reserve.

Rogers:
Where am I?

Fury:
46th and Broadway. Look, I'm sorry about that little show back there, but we didn't know what your mental state might be, so we thought it best to break it to you slowly.

Rogers:
Break what?

Fury:
You've been asleep, Cap. For almost 70 years.

Rogers:
How am I alive?

Fury:
Well, to be honest with you, we don't really know. My docs say it was suspended animation. Could be Dr. Erskine's formula, the extreme cold. I don't know.

Rogers:
What about the war? Did we win?

Fury:
Hell, yes. Unconditional surrender. Taking down HYDRA was a big part of that. But the world hasn't changed all that much. There's still a lot of work to be done. A soldier's work. The world can still use a man like you, Cap. There's a place here for you. [Steve is silent with shock] You gonna be okay?

Rogers:
Yeah. Yeah, I just...I had a date.

[Post-credits scene:
Steve is pummeling a punching bag in a gym and in anger knocks it off its chain, sending it flying across the room when Fury enters the gym]

Fury:
Trouble sleeping?

Rogers:
You're here with a mission, sir?

Fury:
I am.

Rogers:
Trying to get me back in the world?

Fury:
Trying to save it.

Steve Rogers / Captain America:
I can do this all day. [First says after being repeatedly knocked down by a bully]

Steve Rogers / Captain America:
Nothing. I'm just a kid from Brooklyn. [When the Red Skull asks what's so special about him]

[HYDRA spy Heinz Kruger takes a boy hostage; throws him into the harbor. Steve, chasing the spy, hesitates.]

Hostage child:
Go get 'im! I can swim.

Johann Schmidt/Red Skull:
YOU ARE FAILING!!!

Johann Schmidt/Red Skull:
Evidently not.