Dysfunctional families don’t usually fight like this
Captain America: Civil War
***1/2/****
By Jason Wiese
Chris Evans’ superhuman World War II veteran keeps getting all the good movies. How have I come to this subjective conclusion? Allow me to rank my favorite films of the still progressing Marvel Cinematic Universe from favorite to least favorite (Note: I have not yet seen 2008’s The Incredible Hulk, nor have I seen either standalone Thor film and I am still debating if I would rather keep it that way).
- Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
- Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
- Captain America: Civil War (2016)
- Iron Man (2008)
- The Avengers (2012)
- Ant-Man (2015)
- Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
- Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
- Iron Man 2 (2010)
- Iron Man 3 (2013)
With the exception of Captain America’s (née Steve Rogers) flawed introductory standalone film, directors Anthony and Joe Russo have crafted now two of the smartest and most exciting films in the franchise with Evans at the forefront. But what makes Civil War stand out among the rest is that, despite Cap’s top billing, the film is a shared experience among every character introduced in the universe so far (excluding Chris Hemsworth’s Thor and Mark Ruffalo’s Bruce Banner/Hulk) and new characters (Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa/Black Panther and the British Tom Holland, the latest actor to play Peter Parker/Spider-Man) as our heroes face revelations of the potential dangers that they are to society and to each other.
After a mission that results in unexpected tragedy, the Avengers, having been led by Cap since the events of Age of Ultron convinced many of them to retire, are divided on a proposal to make the heroes a government-regulated organization. Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), struggling with the fatal consequences of his bouts as Iron Man, believes he and his colleagues should be kept in check and fellow Avengers, such as James Rhodes/War Machine (Don Cheadle) or Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), agree. The strongest opinion against this proposal is Cap.
The divide only worsens when the prime suspect of the assassination of T’Challa’s father, African king T’Chaka, turns out to be Cap’s childhood friend Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), known best as the brainwashed, metal-arm-equipped Winter Soldier. T’Challa wants blood and, as the hunt begins, Cap makes the decision to fight against the law to protect his friend, whom he believes is innocent.
Cap enlists Sam Wilson/Falcon (Anthony Mackie), Clint Barton/Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch (Emily Olsen) and Scott Lang/Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) for help, but run into an opposing team, featuring Black Widow, Black Panther, War Machine, cybernetic organism Vision (Paul Bettany) and young rookie Spider-Man, led by Iron Man. Thus, initiating the darkest, most exciting and special effects driven dysfunctional family story to ever hit the screen.
Civil War raises questions about the current state of superheroes, a commentary that exists both onscreen and off. It addresses the repercussions that the existence of superheroes has on the world, while also incorporating much needed poking fun at the innumerable flaws the genre has suffered for years for moments of satisfying comic relief. I found myself applauding each meta joke and saying to myself, “Thank you for understanding your fans, Russo Brothers.”
The most refreshing element of the plot, however, is the absence of a stereotypical, otherworldly force acting as the villain. The conflict rests on the crumbling relationship between the world’s most powerful beings and the question of what is most important to a superhero: what they fight for or who could suffer as a result of their actions.
Once again, the Russo Brothers have cleverly inserted a psychological political thriller disguised as a superhero movie into the MCU with the appropriate shade of darkness balanced with humor. Considering their next venture is the two-part Avengers: Infinity War, it may be their last. But am I looking forward to how they will apply their vision to a film that may require a dramatic shift in tone from their previous installments in the franchise?
Affirmative.
Published on Newstime Friday, May 6, 2016
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