Captain America: Brave New World Movie Review

If you’re looking for a fun time, you won’t be disappointed in this action-packed film.

I just wanted more. Not to say it wasn’t good, because it is good. But “Brave New World” isn’t Marvel’s best Captain America film.

Anthony Mackie first entered the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Sam Wilson, becoming Falcon, and now he’s our Captain America. His start was in “Captain America: The Winter Soldier.” You may prefer your Captain America as Steve Rogers, played by Chris Evans, but when you see the strength behind the United States Air Force veteran buzz by you, his patriotic wings stretched out wide, you’ll embrace Sam Wilson and forget Falcon ever existed. Wilson is caring, intelligent, powerful, and loves his country.

As Steve Rogers did, he makes you feel we can all get through anything if we stick together. Rogers would be proud of his proxy. Mackie is an adequate replacement, giving you every reason to trust him with the character and the franchise. Sadly, for this worthy actor, the script ultimately wanders around aimlessly, itself curious as to the direction it is meant to go.

Carl Lumbly reprises the character of Isaiah Bradly from the three episodes in which he starred in the TV Mini-Series “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.” If you haven’t seen that, try to squeeze it in soon. Wilson’s good friend Bradley, freshly freed from prison, enjoys seeing his friend, Sam, but doesn’t trust his country anymore, with good reason. He was tortured and experimented on and cannot easily forgive. The dialogue centered around him, and Sam is very fulfilling and helps pull you into the dark side of the story.

Giancarlo Esposito (Breaking Bad) as Sidewinder and Tim Blake Nelson as Samuel Sterns will do this, too. But focusing on who and why you should be wary of is hard. There are too many bad guys; the more you meet, the less interesting you find them. There were a lot of writers working on this film, possibly, too many cooks in the kitchen. The script went all over the place; it seems they should have focused on less is more, offering us a chance to absorb what we were taking in and zero in on what was happening before our eyes. Almost every character, good and evil (even the main characters), was complex yet challenging to care about because of the storyline.

When I walked out of the theater, I couldn’t quite put my finger on how I felt about the film. So, I went home and thought about it for a while, and after the examination, I felt that it wasn’t their best effort, but I did enjoy myself. How could it be bad with Harrison Ford in the movie?! His President, Thaddeus Ross, is someone to loathe, but maybe not as much as his daughter Better (Live Tyler) does. His face, always the hero, works well as Ross shows who he truly is deep inside. You can’t turn away from the work in this VFX-heavy movie. The cast is incredible; however, they can’t even put this up higher on my list of Captain America movies. The action is top-notch, and the movie is lousy with fight sequences; who doesn’t want that?! Still, it’s just passable.

Sam is hit with Ross, asking him to help bring the Avengers back together. Then, a strangely acting Bradley attacks President Ross. What?? Mysterious stirrings are about and must be ferreted out. There’s almost constant tension and a good build-up of what’s to come next. The politics was good, but there was too much of it to ask of a moviegoer looking for action from, The Red Hulk. He’s sensational. Waiting for him to show up is worth every moment. His fight with Sam is colossal. Your issues will be pampered when you see these two go at it. They’re brutal towards one another, and it’s magnificent. The scene solidifies Sam as Captain America. He is now your knight in shining armor, slinging that shield very well. Is he your “Cap?” He will be.

Keep in mind that if you see this, you will have a good time. You won’t feel the two hours, enjoy new and old characters, and approve of the story’s direction overall. The movie could have been better, I have to be honest, but it meandered around before it gave you what you really wanted. Samuel Sterns’s entire subplot could have gone away, and you would not have missed him. Getting to the point without him would have helped highlight why the audience is spellbound by what did work. Regardless of anything I just said, the kids will love the action, which, for them, there is plenty of. Seeing their eyes light up will bring a smile to your face.