Captain America: Civil War review
What’s so civil about war anyways?
Captain America: Civil War is arguably Marvel’s busiest film but it has a great payoff. The Russo brothers (Captain America: The Winter Soldier) managed to make the best solo Captain America film, while also making a very satisfying Avengers film. One of the great things about this movie is that you could be rooting for one side, but you might just end up rooting for the other side by the end of the movie. Civil War is truly a definition of a superhero flick, one that is a poised result of 8 years of character and world building of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The premise of Civil War is simple enough to understand for a new viewer but more satisfying to a longtime MCU fan. The events of Captain America: the Winter Soldier, The Avengers, and Avengers: Age of Ultron finally caught up to our heroes and the world is looking for someone to be held accountable. A certain event in Civil War finally nailed the final nail in the coffin and the world’s government came up with the Sokovia Accords which is a government sanctioned document that forces superheroes (or any other enhanced being) to essentially be (for the lack of better term) put in probation and can only be acting on the government’s behalf. Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) truly believes in liberty and freedom and still sees the Avengers as necessary while Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) is visibly affected and traumatized by the events of Age of Ultron and believes the Avengers should be put in check.
Civil War is a unique entry to Marvel’s library of films because it forces heroes against heroes in a battle that doesn’t have a clear winner or loser. The fallout of said altercation is heavily emotional and gut wrenching while providing one of the more epic action sequences to date. Although this is essentially a pseudo Avengers considering the amount of Avengers (and future members) in it, it is still very much a Captain America-centric story. Without going into any explicit spoilers, a huge chunk of the storyline involves Roger’s best friend Bucky Barnes a.k.a The Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan) and the loyalty that Steve has for his best friend.
Aside from Captain America and Iron Man clashing heads over conflicting principles, Civil War introduces us to Black Panther and Spider-Man, to whom both characters I would personally say stole the show. For starters, Spider-Man (played by Tom Holland) proved to be the Spider-Man that we’ve all been looking for: young and energetic while having the motor mouth that we all love (or annoyed!). He played the web-slinger perfectly, despite being next to MCU veterans Chris Evans and Robert Downey Jr. and he is definitely a welcomed addition to the pantheon of heroes that the MCU has provided us with. Holland’s performance definitely peaked my interest in his future solo film Spider-Man: Homecoming and I am glad they integrated Spider-Man the way they did in the film. The fact he appears as absolutely small when compared to the rest of the gigantic, muscle-bound Avengers further accentuates the fact he’s just a teenage kid. If you’re not smiling the entire time he’s on screen, get some help because something has clearly killed your joy a long time ago!
Last but not least, T’Challa aka Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman) makes his way into the fold gracefully and regally (as it should be). Although Black Panther played a significant role in the film’s overall plot, I had hope for more Black Panther screen time. I wanted to see more from his world but the solo Black Panther film we will get exactly what we need. I’m very excited to see more of Boseman’s performance in future films, whether through his solo film or the next Avengers movie.
This movie also introduced Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) into the mix, to which his charming performance will completely make you fall in love with his offbeat character. I would say more but it would spoil his surprise! The rest of the Avengers function as you would see them in an actual Avengers film, and each character were given enough importance to make their inclusion worth it.
Marvel nailed it. They have spent years establishing these characters so that we have emotional investment in these characters and seeing them go against each other is just as personal to us as it is to the characters themselves. Seeing Cap and Iron Man’s friendship go up in flames is not easy to watch. It has been building up to this moment ever since we first saw them interact together in the first Avengers film. How ironic that Captain America is now opposing the law while Iron Man is now the shell-shocked soldier trying to keep him and his team safe. It took eight years to get to this point and the payoff is well deserved.
That’s not to say that there weren’t any problems with the film. It wasn’t a perfect movie by any means. There are parts that dragged and suffered the same issues that Age of Ultron had; pacing and plot holes. But for a film with such a large cast, it cruises along just fine. Yet, compared to other Marvel films, there is a lack of complete resolution in the film. But let’s not digress; Civil War’s climax leaves it in an interesting place which makes you think, “Where can they go from here?” It’s not a perfect film, but it’s a damn good film.
