After three years of troubled production, reshoots, rewrites and controversy, Anthony Mackie’s star spangled man with a plan has returned in “Captain America: Brave New World”…
…and it was pretty good.
Brave New World takes the franchise back to the spy/espionage/action roots seen in “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” with it’s grounded tone (or… as grounded as you get in the Marvel Universe) and snappy pacing after the first 20 minutes or so, if you’re looking for a fun film to watch with your special someone or the guys this Friday, Captain America CBTM (could be the move)
A majority of reviews stem from pre-existing biased made up from the marketing material feeling very same-y and the political nature of the film.
THE GOOD
If you’re a fan of the 2021 Disney+ limited series “The Falcon and The Winter Soldier”, then the film is a must watch. All the highlights of the series- the action, the camera work, the characters, the visuals- they are all brought back and turned up to ten. The action scenes are great making use of Cap’s new tools like his wings and drones, and the Top Gun-esque dog fights in the air are really awe-inspiring with their speed and verticality, yet realistic.
Wilson is by far the most charismatic he’s been in the MCU yet, especially with Danny Ramirez’s character Torres, the youthful energetic opposite to the Bucky Barnes straight-man that we’re used to. Anthony Mackie, if you weren’t sold before absolutely is believable in the Captain America mantle and pulls it off well.
Harrison Ford gave his all to Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross with a performance that almost distracts from the rest of the film because I haven’t seen him act with this much passion in YEARS.
THE BAD
Now, while if you enjoyed the predecessor series, the thing that truly distracts from the movie is the fact most of the first act is spent recapping and reminding you of the events of the series and 2008’s Incredible Hulk. If you’re like me and rewatched the series before the film, you will quickly regret it because it just shoves the plot points and exposition down your throat as hard as possible before it moves on. It got old quick.
Similarly, because it does act as a shortened and adapted version of what could’ve been a second season, a majority of the plotlines feel rushed and forced to come together by the end, with some of the ends of each piece not fitting together so nicely. The plot threads by the end of act 2 feel really convoluted and if your paying attention to the movie it might not work out… so enjoy the popcorn.
The CGI was iffy but that’s not really a issue unless your annoying.
The performances from a majority of the side characters land flat, and Giancarlo Esposito as Sidewinder is really uninspired to me and it didn’t feel like he has a lot to do.
EDIT: Additionally, the film centers around a mystery of who will end up controlling who by the end of the story. Because of the marketing being based on previous iterations of the film and it having to work with what’s left, it falls very flat but that is hopefully just for me.
THE VERDICT
All in all, if your looking for something to get you hooked into the MCU again, this isn’t it. This is for the die-hard Captain America or MCU fans that want another adventure. Fun action, weird story, mixed acting:
The final grade is a 78% or a C+.
