As the MCU is about to close out Phase Five, they have a lot to prove to audiences that they can go out with a bang and set us up for what’s to come with The Avengers, Fantastic 4, and (eventually), the X-Men. Captain America: Brave New World mostly gets the job done, but it feels much more like a “best of” Marvel clip show instead of something fresh in and of itself.
Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) has taken center stage as the new Captain America and he, along with the new Falcon, Joaquin Torres (Danny Ramirez) is doing his best to live up to Steve Rogers’ legacy. The curveball is that the new president – and his boss – is none other than Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross (Harrison Ford) who has had a tempestuous relationship at best with the Avengers and their allies. Having understood the error of his ways, Ross is dedicated to reforming himself and bringing unity to the world. He hopes to accomplish this by proposing a peace treaty among the nations, dividing up the raw and powerful materials that the dead Celestial left behind in The Eternals. When a specter of his past reemerges and threatens to scuttle his benevolent plan, it’s up to Cap and The Falcon to uncover this mystery and keep the world’s powers from waging war.
Brave New World wants to bring us back to a simpler time and remind us of when the Marvel movies were, well, fun. It’s like they took Captain America: The First Avenger and The Winter Soldier, tossed them into a blender, threw in some new VFX, and then poured out a smoothie to see if we would like it. It’s a tasty smoothie, no doubt, but there’s a slightly stale aftertaste as if the ingredients had been on the shelf for a bit too long and are getting close to their expiration dates.
Beyond that, the film doesn’t stand on its own and seems to exist as a springboard to what is going to come in Phase Six. The story is entertaining, but it feels like they purposely cut things out to save them for what’s coming in the future. Considering the number of screenwriters it had, it could just be that constant rewrites got the best of the story, but it still leaves you feeling unsatisfied.
I don’t want people to think I’m talking down on this, because I’m not. It is a legitimately fun and engaging film, and I thoroughly enjoyed most of it. Anthony Mackie nails it as the new, self-doubting Cap who has no idea how to be this great leader and is just trying to figure out how he is supposed to escape from Rogers’ shadow. It’s also great to see Harrison Ford not only staying in action but easily holding his own against the younger actors and eclipsing them. Danny Ramirez is delightful as the new comic relief, and while he doesn’t quite live up to Michael Pena’s Luis from Ant-Man, he comes damn close. And I would be remiss not to mention Carl Lumbly, whose Isaiah Bradley not only acts as a moral compass for the whole thing but also its greatest tragedy as a reminder of the sins of the past.
Again, I want to reiterate that this is not a bad film. It’s some of the best Marvel we’ve had in a while outside of the D+ shows, and it’s held aloft by the fantastic actors who get to shine throughout. However, I’m getting tired of reminiscing about the past and want to see what’s happening in the present without worrying about how it’s setting up the future. I do know I can’t wait to see more of these characters and how Sam Wilson is going to end up leading The Avengers 2.0. I was just hoping to possibly get more glimpses of that now rather than having to wait another year (or more) for Doomsday.