But all is not lost for this patriotic American, he is given an opportunity to participate in a top secret experiment, which sees him go from zero to hero in no time flat.
Now all that extraordinary courage, smarts and conscience have a heavily muscled, all American hero's body to flow from.
It can come as no surprise that the story of Marvel's first super hero, Captain America (who has been around since the 1940s) is one that stresses patriotism, heroism and has a strong focus on self sacrifice.
It is the first showdown between stereotypical good and stereotypical evil in the Marvel comic world. The villains just want to rule/destroy the world and our hero just wants his friends, love interest and all the citizens of the free world protected.
Now some people might argue that it's all been done before, that the comic remakes are old news and it's time for something new. But I think Captain America is an excellent example of 'if it's not broke, don't fix it.'
Just sit back and enjoy the ride. Cheer for the hero, boo the villain and sigh over the predictable, but still entertaining romantic elements.
'Captain America: The First Avenger' is not only your typical action packed big blockbuster, it also has some fantastic dry humour delivered by Tommy Lee Jones as Colonel Phillips, and some powerful bittersweet moments between the lead characters.
Unlike 'Thor', there was a more concerted effort put into character development. It was obvious to see that the writers wanted you to understand what motivated Steve Rogers and what events at the beginning of his time as Captain America shaped him into 'The Avenger' he is in the present day.
Surprisingly, for a movie that sees a lot of focus on the military, the language is fairly clean, with no strong profanity used throughout the movie.
There is however quite a bit of violence, hand to hand combat right through to potential weapons of mass destruction. The gore is fairly minimal in comparison to many movies that depict battle scenes from WW2, but it is noticeable in places.
Alcohol is consumed, but there is no smoking. Also sexual references are practically non-existent, we have a couple of kisses and that's about all.
Overall I really enjoyed this film. I had a great time watching it, and although it hasn't changed my life or 'rocked my world', I am certainly looking forward to seeing Steve Rogers team up with Thor and Ironman in the 'Avengers' movie due to be released in 2012.
I rate Captain America 3.5 out 5
Language Mild
Violence High
Gore Medium-High
Sexual references Light
Drugs Light
Fantasy themes Medium