1 of 5 | Anthony Mackie stars in "Captain America: Brave New World," in theaters Friday. Photo courtesy of Marvel
LOS ANGELES, Feb. 12 (UPI) -- Captain America: Brave New World, in theaters Friday, follows the Marvel formula to the letter. Yet, the film moves briskly enough to forgive some of its pitfalls.
Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) has taken over as Captain America following Steve Rogers' retirement in Avengers: Endgame and the failure of interim Captain America John Walker in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Since Sam is no longer Falcon, he is training Joaquin Torres (Danny Ramirez) to take over.
In addition, General Thaddeus Ross (Harrison Ford replacing the late William Hurt) has just won the presidential election. The beginning of the film clumsily reiterates the events of 2008's The Incredible Hulk, as the destruction from that film still impacts Ross' reputation.
Ross, who feuded with Sam and Steve in Captain America: Civil War, wants to mend fences with Sam in his new administration. This sours abruptly when there is an assassination attempt and Sam believes there is a conspiracy behind the attackers.
17 years into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, convoluted connections to previous films are part of the brand. Referencing The Incredible Hulk so directly is perhaps the oddest choice since making Thor: The Dark World an integral part of Avengers: Endgame.
Ross is also negotiating an international treaty to share resources from the Celestial Mass left behind in Eternals, another of the less successful Marvel entries, both financially and artistically.
The insistence on exposition to catch up the audience highlights a fundamental misunderstanding of storytelling. Building on mythology is engaging, but what happened in the previous movies and streaming series is not what's interesting now, and references that have to be explained aren't rewarding.
For example, Isaiah Bradley (Carl Lumbly) summarizes his story from Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Isaiah is a former Captain America supersoldier himself, so it is lazy and belittling to assume new audiences wouldn't be interested in him without stating his past adventures.
What makes the interconnection of comic books and comic book movies appealing is not that everyone does all the homework. Characters should make a memorable enough impression to interest fans beyond their previous appearances. Still, it's fun when Isaiah and Sam spar.
The macro plot is actually simple enough to facilitate a solid action film that manages to wrap up in under two hours. Captain America goes rogue, once again, when nefarious agents infiltrate the government.
The new Captain America uniform is a majestic hybrid of Sam's former Falcon identity and the traditional Captain America shield. It is said in the film that the country of Wakanda designed it for him.
At this point, every technology in Marvel movies is either trademarked by Iron Man Tony Stark or Black Panther's nation of Wakanda. It robs Marvel's roster of heroes when every suit has the same powers. Isn't the joy supposed to be each hero having unique powers?
Action scenes fill the entire IMAX frame, although these scenes still contain so many visual effects that it is not as visceral as Top Gun: Maverick photographing real planes in IMAX. Still, director Julius Onah keeps the action more clear than the Russo Brothers' shaky The Winter Soldier.
Even though the Red Hulk is in all the trailers and on the poster, Sam doesn't face him until the climax of the movie. There are hints of Red Hulk earlier in the film, but enough action that viewers are not just waiting for him to arrive.
Mackie carries his first movie as the headlining hero effectively. Even up against screen legends like Ford, it is clearly Captain America's movie.
Another standout is Shira Haas as Ross' security officer Ruth Bat-Seraph, an engaging action heroine who is unfortunately sidelined in the second half of the film. An unnecessary cameo comes in just for a motivational speech, further highlighting the spurious connections to previous films.
Despite succumbing to the baser instincts of the franchise, Captain America: Brave New World is never boring. It serves as an entertaining, if unmemorable, comic book movie.
Fred Topel, who attended film school at Ithaca College, is a UPI entertainment writer based in Los Angeles. He has been a professional film critic since 1999, a Rotten Tomatoes critic since 2001, and a member of the Television Critics Association since 2012 and the Critics Choice Association since 2023. Read more of his work in Entertainment.
