Captain America: Brave New World - the ugly old Marvel that even Chris Evans couldn't save (REVIEW)

It's not a question of whether Marvel is in trouble, it's a question of when it will finally dig itself out of it. The comic book studio has been making one weak film and series after another since the premiere of Avengers: Endgame, with success arriving only here and there (like with Deadpool and Wolverine). Unsurprisingly, even sure bets like the fourth Captain America movie, Brave New World, weren't working.

The role of "Cap" after Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) retired was taken over by Sam Wilson, who until recently was a hero named Falcon, which changed in Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

The new president is the Red Hulk

The Captain's help is enlisted by newly elected President Thaddeus Ross (Harrison Ford). He seeks to forge an international treaty that will give all nations an equal claim to the rarest and most powerful metal on Earth - adamantium (Wolverine, for example, has it). This was discovered on what is known as Celestial Island, or Celestial Island, which is actually the dead part of the protruding body of Celestial that was left sticking out of the planet after the events of Eternals.

The redistribution of this metal causes an international conflict, which the main villain, Leader (Tim Blake Nelson), tries to instigate. Viewers may remember him from 2008's The Incredible Hulk. It was Leader, proper name Samuel Sterns, who created the villain Abomination. Brave New World is both a continuation of Captain America's story from the aforementioned series, but is also a direct sequel to The Incredible Hulk.

In addition to Leader, Ross' daughter Betty (Liv Tyler) will also appear in the film, and the Red Hulk played by Harrison Ford is a big attraction. He may only show up for a few minutes at the very end where he fights the Captain, but it's worth it in terms of gimmicks and action-packed battles. It will make audiences remember what they miss about the current version of the Hulk from recent years - the animal aggression and destruction.

But not much else in the film is worth it. Director Julius Onah (The Cloverfield Paradox) has made a more serious Marvel movie with a minimum of humor. He spices up the story with interesting lines at times, but it's very shallow and nothing spectacular happens. This would have been fine if the filmmakers made up for it by focusing on deep characterization of the characters, but that didn't happen. Thus, when the film ends, the viewer realizes that they don't really know why the film was made in the first place.

The lacklustre plot just recycles the story from the series

The plot doesn't actually engage much, recycling several major themes from the Falcon and the Winter Soldier series. So Sam revisits what makes his hero a true hero, whether he needs the super-soldier serum that Bucky (Winter Soldier) and Steve (former Captain America) have, and whether he should fight under the US flag.

Unfortunately, the movie answers this question even more shallowly than the series. It's just that it had more plot-rich and meaningful themes and dialogue than the film, whose creators are afraid to address racism. You see it in the show, in the movie, in the larger geopolitical context, and in every discussion on social media.

Most often in these, people post that Anthony Mackie is not their Captain America, followed by other racist comments. It doesn't matter if Disney, Marvel or the creators themselves didn't want to get involved. The film and its themes begged for it and the story loses its appeal and meaning without it. Ultimately, that makes it kind of pointless.

Its events could have been summed up in five minutes in another movie. The geopolitical situation is pretty much the same at the end as it was at the beginning, the Avengers still don't exist, and Sam Wilson still has doubts about his role. The illogic is especially with the Avengers.

We still have no idea who is actually on the Avengers team

After the events of Endgame, they have quasi disbanded, and even though a new, spectacular Avengers movie is due out next year, audiences still don't know who the Avengers actually are after the new one. The absence of Bucky, Sam's best friend who would have greatly helped him with what he's fighting against in this film, doesn't make sense either.

In addition to him, a better villain is also missing. Tim Blake Nelson plays one of the least interesting bad guys in cinematic history. His motivations are clichéd and stale, his mannerisms are generic, formulaic and boring. He has absolutely no charisma, and even Nelson's acting is stiff and unengaging.

Acting wise, it's so dragged out by Harrison Ford and Anthony Mackie, who is a great Captain America, but unfortunately in a very weak film. It is pulled out of its misery by the occasional action scenes. However, the film lacks a better story, more distinct characters or any kind of tension, which is completely absent here as it is extremely predictable.

The chemistry and dynamics between the characters that Sam has with Steve or Bucky, for example, are also noticeably lacking. Without them, he just beats up one goon after another in a stylish costume with wings and a shield, but it never reaches the exciting moments that fans of this hero have come to expect. 5/10