Captain America: Brave New World Review

Directed By: Julius Onah
Written By: Rob Edwards, Malcolm Spellman, Dalan Musson, Julius Onah, and Peter Glanz; Based on the Marvel comics and characters
Runtime: 118 minutes
MPA Rating: Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, and some strong language.

Anthony Mackie – Sam Wilson/Captain America
Harrison Ford – Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross/Red Hulk
Danny Ramirez – Joaquin Torres/The Falcon
Tim Blake Nelson – Samuel Sterns
Giancarlo Esposito – Sidewinder
Carl Lumbly – Isaiah Bradley
Shira Haas – Ruth Bat-Seraph
Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson – Copperhead
Takehiro Hira – Prime Minister Ozaki

Sam Wilson (Mackie) takes center stage in a new Marvel Cinematic Universe solo adventure, Captain America: Brave New World. Following the events of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, Sam has taken the shield as the new Sentinel of Liberty. However, Sam finds himself embroiled in a tenuous global stage, where the enemies are not always clear. Although Brave New World includes some decently entertaining Marvel moments and characters, the movie fails to come together as a cohesive whole, despite its lofty political-thriller goals.

The prologue of Brave New World finds longtime Avengers detractor Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross (Ford) winning the presidency, promising unity and preaching a message of togetherness at a time when the world is reeling from Thanos snapping half the population out of existence and a Celestial being rising out of the ocean. It now falls on Sam Wilson to lead the way as the new Captain America, along with assistance from his new sidekick, Joaquin Torres, who assumes Sam’s old superhero gimmick as The Falcon. President Ross offers Wilson an olive branch, seeking to sweep past grudges aside and form a new alliance. However, a new, malignant threat arises, threatening to upend President Ross’ proposed peace treaty, that could endanger innocent lives, including Wilson’s friends.

The evolution of Sam Wilson in the MCU has proven fascinating to watch. His journey as the new Captain America symbolically represents the narrative’s beating heart. Sam takes the weight of the world upon his shoulders by carrying the shield and Captain America, and it’s a weight that Mackie gracefully demonstrates throughout his performance. Sam does not possess the Super Soldier serum or enhanced abilities of Steve Rogers, nor does he command the immediate respect that Rogers receives whenever he enters a room. Mackie’s performance showcases the mounting pressure of Sam Wilson’s new responsibilities, and Sam’s more introspective moments are compelling.

Parallel to Sam Wilson’s journey as Captain America is Harrison Ford, who replaces the late William Hurt as Thaddeus Ross. It’s certainly not Ford’s strongest performance, but at least he appears to put in some effort throughout the film. Considering the groundwork for Thaddeus Ross was laid down in other films by a different actor, Ford delivers an adequate performance. Ford’s President Ross showcases a sobering self-awareness of his past mistakes, as his current legislation appears the inverse of his more aggressive past. Ford also seeks to make amends with his estranged daughter, Betty Ross, since the events in The Incredible Hulk.

The emerging threat in Brave New World derives heavily from The Incredible Hulk, so the story functions as a partial sequel to a film that came out almost 17 years ago. Brave New World utilizes a very satisfying payoff for one character in particular from The Incredible Hulk. That said, it’s strange to have so many subplots and characters from The Incredible Hulk family, yet Bruce Banner/Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) is nowhere in sight. Nevertheless, the returning actor in question finally fulfills some of that promise hinted at in the past MCU adventure.

Brave New World suffers from a patchwork script and viewing experience. The film has five credited screenwriters, including director Julius Onah, which is rarely a good sign. Significant swaths of the film lack cohesion, and the Serpent Society acts as a minor menace and secondary adversary to Cap and Falcon. Brave New World depicts the Serpent Society as nefarious, two-bit, paramilitary mercenaries led by Sidewinder (Esposito). Utilizing Esposito as such a minor menace is a waste of his exceptional talents. The writers seek to pepper Sidewinder throughout the film since Esposito landed the role late into the production during extensive reshoots. However, his role amounts to little more than nu-Batroc.

The action in Brave New World appears very hit-and-miss, with the action and fight scenes looking clunkier and more labored than in the past. The patchwork scenes and reshoots are evident from poor CG work and background integration in the final act, breaking the immersion. The best action sequence happens midway in the film, when Cap and Falcon enter an aerial dogfight with opposing fighter jets, seeking to de-escalate a potential international incident.

Trailers and marketing material for the sequel make it clear that Brave New World finally addresses the existence of the partially emerged Celestial, as seen in the 2021 film The Eternals. The Celestial Island offers a valuable new resource that the entire world wants, which longtime Marvel aficionados will recognize. Despite Brave New World utilizing some familiar Marvel concepts, they do not have any meaningful payoff. The themes are not adequately integrated into the film and only seem to exist within the plot as potential sequel bait. It’s difficult to get excited about the characters discussing their ideas without further exploring their grander implications. It would almost be preferable if the concepts introduced in Brave New World were not present since they offer little to the larger plot and only act as frustrating dangling carrots.

The cat is already out of the bag regarding President Ross’ transformation into Red Hulk. Brave New World stages an interesting fight with Sam that works logically well from a narrative standpoint, but poor visuals and CG integration detract from the experience. In the film and director Julius Onah’s defense, the production dealt with two strike deadlines and comprehensive reshoots. The film comes together as a somewhat watchable Marvel superhero event, led by a strong, anchoring performance by Anthony Mackie. Brave New World is not a complete disaster but fails to reach the heights of the previous films it wants to emulate.

6.0

The final score: review Average

The 411

Captain America: Brave New World features some respectable moments and performances, especially Anthony Mackie's, but the film suffers from a patchwork script and changes due to extensive reshoots. It leads to a choppy, messy film with poor integration of various events and ideas from other Marvel adventures. The plot tries to bait audiences with big teases, references, and ideas without sufficiently addressing them. That was fine ten years ago when the path forward was clear. With such a murky path, it's hard to get excited about these minor references that do not receive adequate exploration. Clunky fight scenes and patchwork visuals from various reshoots are evident. The film's heart is in the right place, but the execution is not.