Captain America: Brave New World is lesser MCU… though this from a guy who hasn’t given any of the films a bad rating. I might be a bit of an MCU apologist (Hi, The Marvels) so take that into account when I say this one is… ok? It’s fine. It has significant problems but also significant good to counteract some of them.
The film picks up with Sam as winged Captain America after the events of Falcon and the Winter Soldier (or Endgame if you didn’t watch that show). Without superpowers, he tries to make good Cap’s mantle. When President Thunderbolt Ross (he of THe Hulk and the Sakovia Accords) asks for his help, he reluctantly agrees. But someone is out to assassinate the old guy.
Call it daring, call it perplexing, but this Captain America movie leans heavily on characters and backstory that are not top tier MCU films. Specifically, events at the end of both The Eternals and the Ed Norton Incredible Hulk movie. On the one hand, good on them for using that Celestial from Eternals and a “does anyone remember this guy?” from Hulk. On the other hand, they are asking a lot of us to remember and care about these less essential films (and the Falcon tv show).
These elements are part of the one really good thing this movie has going for it. It’s overall plot and mechanics. While the writing is bad and the directing pretty mediocre, the actual plot – the mystery, the mining of MCU storylines, and the political mess – are all very good. I kept admiring what they were trying to pull off… and kept wincing every time anyone opened their big super mouths and talked.
Yeah, this is a cringe-worthy script full of failed attempts at witty repartee and an over-abundance of expository hand-holding. It has five credited screenwriters and not a one of them had confidence in the audience or in themselves.
On top of that, there’s something underwhelming about the directing and editing. Awkward shot transitions and hand-to-hand action that feels a little too limp, especially when stacked up to all the previous Cap (and other MCU) films. There are some good actions scenes, at least, but none of them as good as they should be.
Maybe the mistake was hiring the guy who directed <checks notes> The Cloverfield Paradox. THE CLOVERFIELD PARADOX??!? How do you fail upwards like that?
I’m also sad to say that Harrison Ford taking over for the late William Hurt wasn’t a good choice. Ford feels wobbly and doesn’t do a great job with his emotional scenes. I kept hoping he’d just get to the point of his character so he could be off screen for awhile.
Also, the main secret villain… I love they brought him back but wow did they do a bad makeup on him. He looks silly, borderline stupid. I can see what they were trying to do and what they were trying to avoid, but their solution was lame.
This film is a bit too messy but its intentions and ambitions are strong. I liked all of its moving pieces, plot reveals, and revelations. I just didn’t like the dialog or filmmaking all that much.
Score: 78