Joe and Anthony Russo, the directors of Captain America: Winter Soldier, are back once again and have raised the bar higher than any of us thought possible with Captain America: Civil War. The third installment in the Captain America franchise has the potential to be the greatest Marvel film to date. From start to finish, the audience is in for one hell of a ride and is forced to make a choice by the end of the film. That alone makes Civil War one of the more emotional Marvel films since it delves into the conflict between our heroes.
Serving as a sequel to both Captain America: Winter Soldier and Avengers: Age of Ultron, this superhero "team-up" film is very different than what we've seen before. After a mission goes awry in Africa and costs the lives of many civilians, the team is now a controversial entity. Do they have too much power? Should they operate unilaterally? These are questions that hope to be addressed by the Sokovia Accords. The document states that the Avengers will essentially be government employees, working under a UN panel, and told when and when not to engage in certain situations. Tony Stark, along with Vision, Black Widow, and War Machine are for the new restrictions. Captain America, Falcon and Scarlett Witch? Not so much.
But, where does Bucky Barnes factor into all of this? We've seen him in the trailers and know he is on Captain's side. Well, after a terrorist attack takes out a notable figure in the film during a high profile meeting in Vienna, Bucky is framed for the attack. Under the Sokovia Accords, Captain America cannot interfere in this matter, but he does anyway to help his life-long friend, making him a fugitive. After learning who was behind the attack and what's coming next, Captain America sets out to find the person responsible. Now, the Civil War begins.
When all of our heroes meet, ideologically opposed, we are given, arguably, the greatest action sequence of all time. Each character showcases what they can do, and there is one moment in particular which made the audience erupt in applause. Also, we finally get a chance to see Black Panther in action, played by Chadwick Boseman, as well as Spider-Man, played by Tom Holland. Boseman showcases the strength and speed of Black Panther, but also the regal and intelligent persona of T'challa. Now, to avoid spoilers, I will just say that Tom Holland's performance as Peter Parker/Spider-Man is everything we hoped for. He perfectly captures the teenage personality of the web-slinger and gives us no reason to be worried about Spider-Man: Homecoming, which will feature Robert Downey, Jr.
Now, the ending of this film is the most emotional of any Marvel film. We learn that the pasts of two characters collide in such a way that it may test your allegiance to Team Iron-Man or Team Cap. While the previous films have ended with a bombastic battle, whether it be in New York, D.C., or Sokovia, Civil War takes a different approach and absolutely nails it. It's an intimate ending that forces the characters involved to own the path they've chosen.
Captain America: Civil War is a cinematic masterpiece. Each character serves a purpose in the story and isn't just shoehorned in for the action sequences. We get to see these characters interact in a way that we really haven't seen before. In previous films, there may have been minor disagreements between members of the Avengers, but we've never seen them so ideologically opposed as we do in this film. Also, no scene feels out of place in this movie. Each scene fed the next and subsequently raises the stakes for the whole team. But, the greatest accomplishment of this film was its perfect blend of humor, action and emotion. That is a testament to the abilities of Joe and Anthony Russo to deliver an enjoyable movie, while also furthering the development of these characters for the future films.
Rating: 4.8/5
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