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Spoiler level: 3 of 5
Plot: Political and moral differences between Captain America and Iron Man create a rift that severs the Avengers.
Review: Once again, Marvel delivers a high quality, well produced, big budget popcorn superhero film that delights and entertains. To the strictest of cinema aficionados, there is plenty to nitpick at and question, but there is heart at the core of this movie, and at times, it is surprisingly thought-provoking.
One of the best qualities of these Marvel movies is the sense of being out “on location.” Captain America: Civil War transports us to so many different parts of the globe that we apparently need giant fonts exploding on screen when we enter a new location so we’re really clear about where we are.
But by taking the action into the streets in the middle of living and breathing cities, it serves to ground these films. It gives them credibility when we see the Falcon and Ant-Man and a ton of other heroes flying around on screen doing their thing.
When the civil war battle ensues, we don’t feel like the actors are sitting on a soundstage at Pinewood Studios. It looks like they actually went to an airport and shot there.
The plot, similarly, is more reality-driven and less fantastical. Everywhere our heroes go, they are reminded of the loss caused as a result of saving lives.
It’s the push-pull of reality.
Newton’s Third Law: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
This is the theme that resonates throughout the entire movie.
It creates an interesting no-win scenario that makes for great conflict amongst the characters. Sacrificed, though, is the spirit of bravery, courage, and heroism that has been a staple of these Marvel movies, in favor of infighting and internal struggle.
Captain America and Iron Man are the anchors on each end of the rope of this tug-of-war between the two sides. Cap’s story is more simple and linear. He has his position and he’s going to stick by it.
Iron Man’s arc is a deeper journey. The physical and emotional toll taken by Tony Stark in this film is perhaps the biggest in all of his outings. He literally hurts throughout the entire movie. As a result, we get less of the wisecracking Stark in favor of deeper character exploration and it’s welcome.
While there are already more superheroes than we can count now, we’re introduced to even more players, most notably Spider-Man and Black Panther.
I liked what I saw with Spider-Man in particular. He’s much more wise-cracking and more witty than we’ve seen him from previous incarnations and this feels closer to the intention from the comics. He’s given some great moments.
His presence does feel a bit like product placement. Had Spider-Man not shown up, it probably wouldn’t have affected the outcome of the movie. An hour in, we find ourselves at Peter Parker‘s apartment having a conversation with he, a much younger Aunt May, portrayed by Marissa Tomei, and Tony Stark in the middle of all this Captain America drama. The pace grinds to a halt.
For a movie that already has a bloated 2 1/2 hour running time, clearly Spider-Man’s introduction is gratuitous. It’s enjoyable, but it’s there just for the sake of it.
And suddenly, it becomes apparent that one can have too much of a good thing. Black Panther seems like a cool character, but whether it’s Black Panther jumping from car to car, or Spider-Man, or Captain America, it all starts to feel about the same. Because there are so many superheroes vying for screen time, they all come across more watered down and less interesting.
There are some structural and tonal issues with this film as well. The biggest action set piece is the predictable confrontation between the two sides of heroes, and while it’s exciting, it plays out with whimsy and fun and humor. And yet, the majority of the film takes a much more somber tone. The biggest scene in the movie isn’t as impacting as it should because of the comic relief. It’s a needed break after so much seriousness, but if everything is supposed to come down to this moment, it ends up being anti-climactic.
I’d be fine with this if there was a stronger 3rd Act where the sh*t literally hits the fan. The 3rd act does get a bit grim by Marvel standards, but it’s hardly Batman vs. Bane from The Dark Knight Rises. So the film slowly fizzles out rather than ending with a bang. Nevertheless, there is clear struggle, a sense of loss, of hurt, and of no turning back.
It’s a great setup to Avengers 3, which will need something interesting to work with to kickstart it’s momentum.
Ultimately, I’m willing to forgive Captain America: Civil War for its flaws because it really does do its best, the production is high quality, the ensemble of actors is incredible, and it has more hits than misses. It is not an easy task to weave together so many different storylines and characters, especially when they are wearing tights, and to come up with something original and fresh amidst our current over-saturation of superhero movies.
The movie is confident in purpose and sets up a clear direction for the next installment.
It’s good fun.
Grade: B