CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD (2025)

It’s hard to believe the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is now in its seventeenth year. Iron Man (2008) was once a bright new superhero on the block, becoming the first of many glossy, big-budget action movies from producer Kevin Feige. Over the years, the majority of Marvel’s films have been hugely successful blockbusters, right up to Avengers: Endgame (2019). However, since then, the MCU’s hit rate has been far from consistent.

This, it could be argued, is because audience interest has waned in superheroes, but the other reason is simply because the overall quality of MCU films just hasn’t been up to par. Unfortunately, while Captain America: Brave New World—the fourth instalment in the Captain America saga, and a big-screen continuation of the Disney+ 2021 miniseries The Falcon and the Winter Soldier—is no outright disaster, it certainly falls well below the MCU’s best.

Brave New World starts well enough as we see newly appointed ‘Cap’ Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) in the middle of a covert mission in Mexico with his Falcon-in-training Joaquin Torres (Danny Ramirez), both trying to intercept an illegal sale of adamantium stolen from Japan by the Serpent Society and its leader Sidewinder (Giancarlo Esposito). Cue lots of fighting and one-liners that end with Wilson and Joaquin successfully completing the mission. We soon learn that President Thaddeus Ross (Harrison Ford) is keen on setting up an international trade deal for this metal, but after he’s nearly assassinated by one of Wilson’s friends—1950s super-soldier Isaiah Bradley (Carl Lumbly)—Wilson’s forced to embark on a new mission to try and free Bradley and investigate some murky goings-on at hidden black site Camp Echo One.

So far, so good, but about 45 minutes in the film’s pacing starts running out of steam, with the narrative becoming episodic and slow; much like its TV predecessor. And while there are interesting scenes throughout, they’re too sporadic to give the film any sort of real cohesion. You can see what the screenwriters were trying to do here, in taking the franchise back to more serious roots with themes of political intrigue and general skulduggery on a global scale, much like Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014). But, unlike that tight-as-a-drum masterpiece, here the frankly inferior screenplay purposefully ties plot elements together from The Incredible Hulk (2008) in an attempt to introduce something new and exciting into this comic-book universe, and yet the end result is a film that comes off feeling a little flat and, dare I say it, a bit boring at times.

Talking of Hulk… yes, the scenes with President Ross’s Red Hulk alter-ego are entertaining to watch, but compared to past Hulk antics, there’s nothing here we haven’t seen before—and the main standoff and fight has been teased too much in the trailers to have any real impact. And it’s a shame when you consider how much VFX work has been utilised in this sequence.

Aside from the writing, extensive reshoots following mediocre test screenings can perhaps be blamed for the movie’s general bagginess. It’s not that the editing is bad, but as the story progresses one can definitely start to detect tonal jumps, with a clunky plot that never quite hits its mark.

Despite all the negative points, the whole affair is far from a disaster. Anthony Mackie is a one-man charisma machine whose committed performance as Sam Wilson pushes the film through to the finishing line. From the get-go, you know you’re in good hands with him as the new Cap, and every scene he’s in benefits from his presence.

Following closely on Mackie’s heels is his new buddy Joaquin Torres. Actor Danny Ramirez, last seen as Lt. Mickey “Fanboy” Garcia in Top Gun: Maverick (2022), more than holds his own against Mackie, and the pair have great bromance chemistry together, with plenty of back-and-forth banter. Carl Lumbly is also excellent as Wilson’s friend Isaiah Bradley, continuing his veteran super-soldier part from the Disney+ miniseries with an understated, yet still powerful, performance.

And then there’s Hollywood legend Harrison Ford (Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny). After Mackie, Ford’s President Thaddeus ‘Thunderbolt’ Ross commands attention whenever he’s on screen, and it’s not hyperbole to say that Ford’s combination of gravitas and powerhouse acting provides much of the heavy lifting in making the film as watchable as it is—despite its shortcomings. Seeing him struggle as he starts to transform into Red Hulk is truly terrifying; this contrasts massively whenever he attempts to rekindle his relationship with his daughter, Betty Ross (an underused, underwritten Liv Tyler), showing regret and hope effortlessly on that famously gruff exterior.

One last acting performance worth mentioning is from Israeli actress Shira Haas (Unorthodox), as Ross’s head of security, Black Widow assassin Ruth Bat-Seraph. Haas may look petite and fragile, yet she proves to be anything but when things go south, and makes for an interesting character, even though her comic-book origins as a Mossad-trained mutant aren’t shown here.

Technically, Captain America: Brave New World is fine: Kramer Morgenthau’s cinematography nicely presents the action with plenty of colour and light, and director Julius Onah (The Cloverfield Paradox) keeps things going at a quick pace—for the most part—with an absolute belter of a scene towards the end involving fighter jets and good ol’ Captain America taking them on. What’s most frustrating is that you can see glimpses of a solid action film that’s been lost in the creative chaos. It’s watchable and entertaining at times, but ultimately rather forgettable. And that’s a pity, as given the MCU’s recent past failures, the upcoming Thunderbolts* now has even more to do in order to keep this franchise on track.

USA | 2025 | 118 MINUTES | COLOUR | ENGLISH

Cast & Crew

director: Julius Onah.
writers: Rob Edwards, Malcolm Spellman, Dalan Musson, Julius Onah & Peter Gianz (story by Rob Edwards, Malcolm Spellman & Dalan Musson; based on Marvel Comics).
starring: Anthony Mackie, Danny Ramirez, Shira Haas, Carl Lumbly, Xosha Roquemore, Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson, Giancarlo Esposito, Tim Blake Nelson & Harrison Ford.