Captain America: Brave New World (2025) - Film Review

      Captain America: Brave New World, 2025.

      Directed by Julius Onah.

      Featuring Anthony Mackie, Harrison Ford, Danny Ramirez, Shira Haas, Carl Lumbly, Tim Blake Nelson, Giancarlo Esposito, Xosha Roquemore, Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson, William Mark McCullough, Takehiro Hira, Harsh Nayyar, Alan Boell, John Cihangir, Eric Mbanda, Josh Robin, Sharon Tazewell, and Pete Burris.

      SYNOPSIS:

      Sam Wilson, the new Captain America, finds himself entangled in an international crisis and must uncover the motivations behind a malevolent global scheme.

      At the beginning of the utterly unnecessary overload of characters, plotlines, and action that constitutes the forgettable Captain America: Brave New World, U.S. President Thaddeus Ross (now portrayed by Harrison Ford, taking over from the late William Hurt who originally played a military officer) pulls Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) aside to address political disagreements before expressing a desire for him to form a new Avengers team.

      Given what we know is approaching (with Robert Downey Jr. confirmed to return to the franchise as Victor von Doom) and the hints of other heroes and villains throughout post-credits scenes, creating a film primarily aimed at setting the stage for this progression isn't a bad idea. This would also provide an opportunity to explore Sam Wilson’s character more deeply, examining the type of leader he hopes to become and what qualities he seeks in potential recruits. Such development could allow Marvel's cinematic universe overseer Kevin Feige to move forward and begin constructing a narrative that might restore the grand event feel to these blockbuster films.

      As the mention of Thaddeus Ross suggests, Captain America: Brave New World acts as a sequel to The Incredible Hulk and also serves as a continuation of the Disney+ series Falcon and the Winter Soldier, with expected allusions to Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Avengers: Endgame. Once characters begin speaking, it's clear that even Kevin Feige recognizes a significant portion of the audience may not be familiar with prior entries, resulting in a screenplay (written by the overcrowded team of director Julius Onah, Rob Edwards, Malcolm Spellman, Dalan Musson, and Peter Glanz) filled with cumbersome exposition recalling past events and summarizing character backgrounds, experiences, emotions, and future intentions.

      This approach not only makes for a messy narrative but also detracts from the film's focus on assembling a new team. Instead, this installment of the MCU centers on uncovering the truth behind an assassination attempt on Thaddeus Ross, with the tortured original super soldier Isaiah Bradley (played again by Carl Lumbly) as the vengeful prime suspect. Due to the bond between Sam Wilson and Isaiah, Thaddeus Ross excludes the new Captain America from the investigation. Naturally, Sam defies this directive, convinced alongside his Falcon protégé Joaquin Torres (Danny Ramirez) that someone is orchestrating events from behind the scenes.

      They stumble upon something sinister during their investigation—which I won't spoil. Meanwhile, Thaddeus Ross is engaged in negotiations over a Celestial Island treaty (and forgotten here is the fact that this is also a sequel to Eternals), where adamantium has supposedly been discovered. Furthermore, Giancarlo Esposito’s mercenary Sidewinder is initially trying to steal and sell a portion of it to an unknown buyer, but this introductory segment feels disjointed, seemingly repurposed from another storyline due to script rewrites forcing connections to the adamantium subplot. There’s a noticeable patchwork quality to the film that its creators appear to hope will go unnoticed amid the excessive, insubstantial action.

      These numerous battles test Sam Wilson, making him contemplate whether he should have taken the super soldier serum to simplify his superhero responsibilities or whether he is correct in pursuing his own vision of Captain America. This aligns with Thaddeus Ross’ arc, as he hopes his daughter Betty Ross (played by Liv Tyler in The Incredible Hulk) will recognize his efforts to improve as a person and forget his past. However, aside from his desire to reassess his previous opposition to augmented superheroes, little is offered to understand what kind of individual or president he has become. The remainder of his storyline is shrouded in a mystery that isn’t particularly engaging, as, despite my constraints on revealing key plot details, the heavy promotional trailers have already foreshadowed the direction the story takes in the concluding 20 minutes.

      It’s frustrating to wait indefinitely for this reveal. Moreover, it highlights a broader issue: Marvel is so eager to reclaim box office success that it spoils critical plot points within its marketing. While a few minor surprises remain, nothing particularly thrilling occurs. Even the action sequences, though plentiful, lack purpose and seem included solely as distractions from the excessively complicated narrative. The one exception is the CGI-driven destruction