Captain America: Civil War sets off the “Phase Three” of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and it shakes things up in a major way. The film follows the fallout of an Avengers mission in Lagos, Nigeria. Captain America (Chris Evans) and his team manage to stop a terrorist plot to steal a biological weapon, but not without collateral damage. The backlash from this event pushes the world’s leaders to come together for an international agreement that would put the Avengers under the control of a special United Nations committee.
This creates a rift in the middle of the team, one that is only exacerbated by the apparent resurfacing of Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), the Winter Soldier. While the world is ready to crucify Barnes for all of his crimes as the Winter Soldier, Steve Rogers seeks to protect his old friend, and bring out the good man he once knew. Captain America and Iron Man find themselves on opposite sides of an ideological divide, and they each gather allies in what eventually becomes a very personal battle between the two.
There’s a lot more going on in this movie. It introduces a bunch of new characters to this cinematic universe, while also weaving in several established characters into a single narrative. That this story manages to move so fluidly is a minor narrative miracle. It helps to be so deep into the larger story already, to already have so much context for all these characters. Even with the new characters, the movie doesn’t provide lengthy backstories that explain every last bit of where these people came from. It instead focuses on giving them motivations within the context of this world and this story. So much has already happened, and the film fully takes advantage of all that rich history.
It is little strange to be watching what is essentially just another chapter in a massive ongoing serial, but this is the movie landscape as it is now. And unlike many of the movies in Phase Two, this installment provides a massive shift in the universe. By the end of this film, things have radically changed, much of it owed to really smart writing of these characters. The film makes it really to understand why these good guys are fighting, what it is inside them that put them at odds. Because as big and explosive as this movie gets, it’s also a very personal story. This is a big superhero movie about friendship and regret, about things that normal human beings feel every day.
And this makes all the difference. This is still a very fun movie with a bunch of fun fights. It feels like the action choreography has been taken up a notch. And the movie just has a bunch of fun things happen. But what separates it from empty spectacle is the beating heart that lurks beneath each of these characters. It all makes sense. The actors are as good as they’ve ever been. Chris Evans and Robert Downey Jr. just have these characters down pat. And the new members of this ever-growing cast immediately make an impact. Chadwick Boseman and Tom Holland are fine additions to this world. And Daniel Bruhl might have stolen the show with a terrifically underplayed performance.
Captain America: Civil War is kind of astonishing. It is such a weird film in some ways. It relies so much on what has already come before, and it ends at a point where most movies can’t, knowing that there will be future installments to resolve the lingering issues between the characters. But it handles all this with aplomb. It is a film that manages to be bombastic and thoughtful at the same time, balancing its action with emotional content that actually means something. It is both entertaining and affecting. It is the height of what a blockbuster superhero movie can be at this point.
My Rating:
