Directed by Julius Onah
Written by Rob Edwards and Malcolm Spellman & Dalan Musson and Julius Onah & Peter Glanz
When Marvel’s 11 year run of dominance concluded with Avengers: Endgame in 2019, I couldn’t quite believe what they had managed to accomplish. While each individual film along the way varies in quality to some degree, Kevin Feige and his team perfected bringing comic books to the big screen. Each film felt big and important, while avoiding being at the highest stakes possible each outing (though they certainly pushed the boundary a few times on this one), each building upon the last as a series of comic book issues in a singular arc. However, since Avengers: Endgame was released, the studio have struggled to find their footing in what to do next. After reaching the mountaintop, it’s hard to maintain that position, so much so that Marvel has effectively reset after a barren schedule in 2024 that saw only Deadpool & Wolverine released. Captain America: Brave New World sets up as the relaunch of the franchise that will hopefully set Marvel back on track.
Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) is back in action as Captain America, with potential sidekick Joaquin Torres (Danny Ramirez) by his side. After the two help recover Japan’s Adamantium from Serpent’s top henchman Sidewinder (Giancarlo Esposito), they are invited to the White House at the request of newly elected President Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross (Harrison Ford). But when Sam’s guest, fellow/former Captain America Isaiah Bradley (Carl Lumbly), shockingly attempts to assassinate Ross, a plot begins to develop that seems to have America and Japan headed directly to war. Wilson and Ross’ head of security Ruth Bat-Seraph (Shira Haas) must work together to find who is really the man behind the curtain pulling the strings in this international conspiracy.
Anthony Mackie is the perfect fit to be the next Captain America, and even if you missed his ascendance in the Disney+ series Falcon and the Winter Soldier, they handle the transition nicely here. I don’t think anyone would bat an eye at Sam being anointed the next American super soldier, even if he didn’t ever take the serum. Harrison Ford too is a nice addition to the universe, replacing William Hurt as Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross. The Marvel team even goes a little smaller with this story than they have in recent movies, which is a refreshing approach. There is no intergalactic force (unless you count Celestial Island I suppose, which they don’t talk much about), and the stakes are US v. Japan, not the world v. annihilation. They are moving in the right direction with all of these decisions, making Brave New World feel very much like a throwback to the early MCU films which built the foundation for the success of the series.
Despite the many gains and good decisions, there were plenty of things that didn’t go well here either. The choice of villain (or lack of clarity of who the real villain is) muddies the waters in a few ways. Firstly, the film ends up feeling much more like a Hulk movie than Captain America movie (it should be no spoiler that Ross is Red Hulk, since it’s in the trailer). But what a shame for Mackie’s first flagship film as Cap to seemingly take a backseat narratively to the Hulk lore. But the real man behind the curtain (which I will avoid spoiling) makes for the most disappointing plot decision. Not only is it a callback to a character from an older, less popular movie, they’re so not there in this movie, kept in the dark too long and never really let out, perhaps because it’s not that interesting!
When Marvel is at its best it often dips its toe into the genre waters, and the first half or so of this film does a really good job of that courtesy of director Julius Onah who gives us the tone and visual style of a good political thriller with twists, turns and investigations, leaving the viewer with all the right questions about what might really be going on. This is by far when the movie is working at its best. And there are plenty of really cool easter eggs throughout, like learning about Isaiah Bradley (I didn’t know) and the real background of Ruth. But the fact this movie saw massive reshoots and rewrites is evident, not only in the credits with five total credited writers, but also on the screen with at times odd dialogue, choppy narrative and yearning for past Marvel success that really helps sink the overall quality of the film. I can see where they go from this one, especially with the recent trailer for Thunderbolts*, but I know most fans will not quickly put this entry as a top MCU experience.
Corndog Chats 