Captain America: Brave New World (2025)

"Captain America: Brave New World" stars Anthony Mackie, Danny Ramirez, Shira Haas, Xosha Roquemore, Carl Lumbly, Giancarlo Esposito, Tim Blake Nelson, and Harrison Ford.  Released on February 14, 2025, the film has Sam Wilson getting caught in an international incident.

The film is directed by Julius Onah, who also directed "The Girl Is in Trouble", "The Cloverfield Paradox", and "Luce".  It is the fourth installment in the Captain America film series and the 35th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.  Steve Rogers has had one hell of a run as the super soldier Captain America.  He fought in World War II, traveled to the present, uncovered a conspiracy within S.H.I.E.L.D., and defied the Sokovia Accords.  If those weren't enough, he even led the largest group of superheroes ever assembled in the ultimate battle against Thanos.  In short, Steve had quite a legacy worthy of the title "Avenger".  However, even though Steve's journey concluded in "Avengers: Endgame", the Captain America name still lives to fight another day, as the mantle is now passed down to his trustworthy comrade, Sam Wilson, formerly known as Falcon.  But, as usual, this job isn't complete without another political conspiracy to uncover.  The Marvel Cinematic Universe continues to be in full swing after the massive success of "Deadpool & Wolverine" last year, especially with its mixed-bag Multiverse Saga being plagued by outside controversies.  Its latest installment, the first of many coming out in 2025, may not be exploring the multiverse further, but it does seem to be going back to the basics of a political thriller with superhero elements, which worked exceptionally well with the previous two Captain America films.  Was this brave new world able to deliver the same results regarding its storytelling and entertainment values?  Let's find out.

The story centers on Sam Wilson (Mackie), a former pararescueman who has taken over the mantle of Captain America.  As he works to honor Steve Rogers' legacy, Sam is hired to work for former U.S. Army general Thaddeus Ross (Ford), who was recently elected as the president of the United States.  Despite their past tensions, Ross hopes to cooperate with Sam to reform the Avengers and negotiate equal trade of the adamantium medal on Celestial Island.  However, those plans are put on hold when they're caught in the middle of an international incident involving the Serpent Society, led by Seth Voelker (Esposito), and the mysterious rise of former cellular biologist Samuel Sterns (Nelson).  Allied by first lieutenant Joaquin Torres (Ramirez), now taking on the mantle of Falcon, Sam journeys to expose this conspiracy before the villains' dangerous plan causes war between the countries. 

Amid the MCU's solo films, "Captain America" provided audiences with a trilogy that improved with each installment.  "The First Avenger" proved to be a solid action war film involving Steve battling Nazis.  However, it wasn't until "The Winter Soldier" and "Civil War" that the MCU upped the ante in the character's arc and the modern political themes.  I would consider "The Winter Soldier" to be the best of the trilogy regarding the Russo Brothers' direction, action sequences, and thrilling genre elements.  As for "Civil War", it was a strong Avengers-type conclusion to the trilogy that's also frustrating for the right reasons due to its character depth and emotional stakes.  Despite that, I still struggle to return to that movie without feeling the need to punch Tony Stark in the teeth for letting his emotions get the better of him.  With how well-received those movies were, this provided a variety of challenges for "Brave New World" to live up to those expectations regarding its plot and involvement in the MCU.

One of them is that this is another MCU installment that interconnects with one of its Disney+ shows, following "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness" continuing where "WandaVision" left off.  "Brave New World" serves as a continuation to not just the previous "Captain America" films, "The Incredible Hulk", and "Endgame" but also the Disney+ limited series "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier", which involved Sam's transition to Captain America.  So, there is some concern that those who haven't watched "Falcon and the Winter Soldier" may be less emotionally invested in the plot elements introduced in that show.  One such factor is Isaiah Bradley (Lumbly), a former Korean War veteran revealed to be the first black super soldier imprisoned and experimented on for 30 years, playing a key factor in the show's mature social commentary involving racial discrimination, injustice, and systemic oppression.  "Brave New World" continues Bradley's arc as he becomes a pawn in a villainous scheme that Sam must dispose of.  While that may be the case in some parts, the filmmakers ensured the importance of Isaiah and Sam's relationship was convincing enough to attract the newcomers amid its saving-the-world plot.

Instead of being a background cameo, Isaiah played a prominent role in the film's storyline.  Not only that, but it also allowed the spotlight to shine on the character's actor, Carl Lumbly, who reprised his role after starring in "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier".  You may have heard of Lumbly from other projects like the 90s superhero series M.A.N.T.I.S. and his roles in the DC Animated Universe, including Martian Manhunter.  "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier" and "Brave New World" are my first exposures to Lumbly's talents, and after seeing his commendable performance in both of those projects, I wouldn't mind seeing more of him in the future.  Lumbly's portrayal of the veteran's traumatic and fearful state was one of the many elements that elevated these projects in my eyes.  While "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier" did Isaiah more justice than "Brave New World" regarding the commentary, I'm still glad that they didn't forget about one of the key roles in Sam's journey to become Captain America for the latter.

But, regarding the story itself, does "Brave New World" live up to the legacy left behind by the previous "Captain America" installments?  Honestly, I would have to say no.  That goal was obviously an uphill battle right from the get-go, especially with how great the last two "Captain America" movies were and the current state of the franchise's "Multiverse Saga".  With a new director and a ton of screenwriters on board, along with some reshoots, "Brave New World" felt less of a shell of the trilogy and more of a middling display of modern blockbuster commercialism.  It retained the elements that made the "Captain America" movies fantastic, especially the mantle's representation of inspiration and hope and the complex political themes.  However, instead of combining them with a bold, innovative, and thought-provoking narrative, "Brave New World" used them as a bridge to provide more room for its superhero blockbuster antics and visual-heavy chaos to thrive.  This movie would've been a great opportunity to further examine Sam's doubts in his role as "Captain America" introduced in "Falcon and the Winter Soldier", mainly for him being compared to Steve Rogers.  While there were a couple of moments that explored this element, they struggled to reach those intended emotional heights due to the film's restrained structure and runtime.

However, regarding its entertainment value, "Brave New World" mostly compensates for its narrative issues with another agreeable addition to the overly-expanding MCU.  Understandably, it's far from perfect, given the circumstances of the film behind the scenes.  But, as long as it delivers something that leaves me with a mild satisfaction, I'd be willing to forgive an issue or two, but not all of them.  It's another flawed superhero movie, but it packs plenty of suitable thrills in the action scenes and political mystery amid the superhero-CGI fantasies.  Julius Onah had only directed three films before taking on a big-budget blockbuster like "Brave New World", with 2019's "Luce" being his best critically.  I only heard of Onah through "The Cloverfield Paradox", which I thought was serviceable but understandably flawed compared to the other "Cloverfield" installments.  So, this makes "Brave New World" a true test to see if Onah's vision could intrigue me enough to anticipate his future career.  He certainly has that proper vision regarding the movie's tribute to classic political thrillers, the cinematography, and the action scenes, with the latter being more like fun eye candy than emotionally driven.  However, I wouldn't say he was the best director for the job, which could be due to him being bound by the MCU's business methods.  Julius Onah gets some credit for bringing back the "political thriller" vibes of "The Winter Soldier" with a dash of Hulk callbacks to also identify it as a long-awaited sequel to "The Incredible Hulk".…without the green Hulk.  Unfortunately, he wasn't able to reach the similar heights the Russo Brothers achieved in the last two "Captain America" installments regarding the depth and intensity of the narratives and characters.

Part of the movie's entertainment value is due to the cast, whose chemistry and performances left a good enough spark to carry the characters' flawed arcs.  Anthony Mackie has been proving himself to be a remarkable addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe regarding his role as Sam Wilson, first introduced in "The Winter Soldier".  Despite being in supporting roles, Mackie offered plenty of delightful moments to make his character's presence worthwhile.  "Brave New World" sees Mackie leading the charge with Sam donning the Captain America identity, and the result is another decent turn for the actor.  Mackie's performance continues to embody Sam's perseverance and liberality with a sense of charisma and heart, emphasizing the character's underdog journey.  With the future already set in stone for Sam, I'm eager to see more of Mackie as Captain America in action.  Danny Ramirez was an enjoyable addition to the cast as Joaquin Torres, the new "Falcon", due to his enjoyable chemistry with Mackie.  It's far from memorable, but seeing the two interact with one another was another reason why I loved the previous two "Captain America" films: the chemistry between Captain America and the Falcon.  As for Harrison Ford as Thaddeus Ross, he was decent enough to portray the character the late William Hurt played before his death in 2022.  I would even say that Ross's redemption arc was the film's most interesting part due to Ford's performance.  Giancarlo Esposito and Tim Blake Nelson were also serviceable as the villains Seth Voelker and Samuel Sterns, respectively, although none of them could overcome the franchise's usual villain issue.

The visual effects have been one of the staples of the MCU's earlier entries, especially regarding the immersive action and production designs.  However, while some of the recent installments post-Endgame had some merits in their visual-heavy presentations, they also had some "questionable" choices that concern us about the studio's quantity-churning methods.  I can understand the issues involving CGI, but I'm also not entirely bothered by most of them, and the visuals in "Brave New World" are no exception.  Most of the visual effects weren't as bad as people make them out to be regarding the action sequences, with the Celestial Island sequence being the movie's highlight due to the flight scenes.  However, I would say that the CGI effects lost some of that appeal with its Red Hulk sequence due to its shoddy appearance.  But I will admit that the Red Hulk looked pretty cool design-wise.

Overall, "Captain America: Brave New World" delivers some agreeable entertainment through its superhero thrills and charm, but it doesn't feel brave in reflecting its political and character-driven themes on a bold and sentimental level.  For those seeking blockbuster escapism, the film is satisfactory in its political thriller aspect and blockbuster antics, mainly due to its cast and action scenes.  However, for those hoping for another masterpiece similar to the previous "Captain America" movies, it's a mildly disappointing and dry continuation that falls short of the trilogy's cinematic quality.  Regarding its middling screenplay, hit-and-miss visuals, and rough storytelling, the film lacks the push it needs to take the MCU's fifth phase to new heights.  It certainly doesn't hinder my interest in seeing more of Sam as Captain America, especially with its post-credit scene teasing something grand for him to tackle.  But regarding his big screen appearance with the mantle after "Falcon and the Winter Soldier", this wasn't the best first impression I hoped for.

C+