REVIEW: Captain America- Civil War

Out of all of the myriad entries in the monolithic money-machine that is the Marvel Cinematic Universe, I honestly think my personal favorites may be the Captain America movies. Joe Johnston's Captain America: The First Avenger was a delightfully pulpy period piece that, despite its flaws, still wins me over by way of sheer atmosphere and gumption. 2014's The Winter Soldier quickly established itself as the absolute best film the MCU had to offer (a title that has yet to be usurped). Two years later, the Russo brothers are back with Captain America: Civil War. While Winter Soldier continues to be the pinnacle of Marvel excellence, it must be said that Civil War is a strong contender for my personal favorite superhero film to date.

After the collective collateral damage of the Avengers' exploits garners criticism from the world community, legislation is brought to the table that would transfer control of the heroes to a United Nations subcommittee. Naturally, this sows dissent amongst the do-gooders; Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) is struck with a hefty dose of  guilt, especially following his involvement in the creation of Ultron, and champions the cause for registration. Meanwhile, Captain America (Chris Evans) has little faith in bureaucracy following the events of Winter Soldier, maintaining the firm belief that red-tape and hidden agendas will lead to corruption and injustice. The former friends find themselves on opposing sides of the law, and the situation is made all the more complicated by the resurfacing of Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan). Naturally, Cap wants to protect his old friend, which puts him at odds from the authorities hunting him down. The conflict steadily escalates from a question of ideals to a full-on clash of allegiances, where lines are drawn and alliances are both made and shattered.

To the casual observer, this could easily be mistaken for another Avengers film rather than a Captain America sequel. Everyone short of Thor and the Hulk are present and accounted for, and that's not even counting the new additions of Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman) and Spider-Man (Tom Holland). In terms of scale, this is a much, MUCH larger film than Winter Soldier; though the pacing and tonal shifts can err on the somewhat clunky side, the fact that this film manages to do as much as it does as well as it does is something definitely worthy of praise. As far as Marvel blockbusters go, this is easily a contender for the densest entry yet. For it to end up not only coherent, but also compelling is a testament to the Russo brothers' strengths as filmmakers. 

As Winter Soldier proved, the Russos especially excel when it comes to directing action. Within the first five minutes of Civil War, all I could think was how this movie was immediately superior to last year's Avengers: Age of Ultron. The fight choreography on display here is airtight; as cool as it was to see the Avengers storm a HYDRA fortress or for Iron Man to don the Hulkbuster armor, it's a simple fact that well-directed combat between physical actors will manage to out-wow even the flashiest CG effect. The blows are as heavy-hitting as they are fast, and each setpiece displays wonderfully creative examples of each hero's powerset in ways that are sure to make fanboys like myself go giddy with childish delight. The excessive shaky-cam may not sit well with some, but I found the frenetic energy flowed off the screen and into my veins, leaving my heart pounding as the credits rolled. Of course, flashy action is more or less meaningless if we don't care about the people inside the super-suits. Which is why I'm glad to report that Civil War is quite possibly the most emotionally compelling Marvel film to date.

Marvel Studios has always had a knack for strong casting, so it's to be expected that everyone here does a good job. Even with such a talented cast, even with such powerful and endearing chemistry, there are still those who manage to go above and beyond. It feels as though Robert Downey Jr has become comfortable in the role of Tony Stark in recent years; Civil War provides the emotional shake-up that the character so desperately needed. RDJ steps outside of his comfort zone on this one and thrives, imbuing Tony with an intensity not matched since the very first Iron Man film. While the addition of Spider-Man felt somewhat superfluous, Tom Holland gives what is easily one of the best performances in the film; I don't hesitate in the slightest in saying that Holland's portrayal of Peter Parker does the character justice better than any I've ever seen. As much of a Spidey fan as I am, I was surprised to find that the show was stolen not by the webhead, but rather by Chadwick Boseman in his role as T'challa, the Black Panther. Motivated by revenge, T'challa brings an air of intensity and dignity not found in the majority of Marvel protagonists; he carries himself like royalty and doesn't waste his time spitting out one-liners. He's a man on a mission of pride, and he commands the viewer's attention whenever he's on screen. I wouldn't necessarily say I was "excited" or "hyped" for The Black Panther before seeing Civil War, but I certainly am now.

With all the bombastic conflict and in-fighting, it may come as a surprise to some viewers that the film does have an actual villain; filling the role of Helmut Zemo, we have Daniel Brühl. Zemo presents an interesting facet to the film. On one hand, I felt as though he was under-utilized (despite dutifully serving his purpose to the overall plot). The fact that this character is also a far cry from the Baron Zemo of the comics is something that is sure to rub readers the wrong way, at least initially. That said, despite his minimal screentime, he certainly plays a major role in the plot and is truthfully a contender for the best (or at the very least, most effective) villain Marvel has ever put out. The Marvel films very often have a problem with providing effective or interesting antagonists, and Zemo manages to be both, despite having little connection to his inspiration from the source material and next to  no direct interaction with Cap and the gang until the climax.

Speaking of complexity, I would be remiss not to praise the tact with which the film handled the primary conflict. One would expect that, despite moviegoers being asked to choose between #TEAMCAP and #TEAMIRONMAN, one side (likely the one led by the titular hero) would clearly be portrayed as being in the right. In reality, the situation isn't nearly so black and white. I went into the theater waving the flag for Team Rogers, ready to follow Captain America into the jaws of doom. By the end of it all... my allegiances admittedly hadn't changed, but I was far less critical of the Stark side of things. There is no character assassination at play here; both of our protagonists have naturally reached this point in their respective arcs over the course of several movies, and it's in Civil War that it all comes to a head. Both make good points and bad decisions, and it's ultimately up to the viewer to decide who's right and who's wrong. Cap and Tony don't disagree and immediately start wailing on each other; there's a genuine air of reluctance and discomfort hanging over the whole thing, the feeling that comes with political disagreements between friends. When punches and repulsor blasts are eventually exchanged, it feels as though it's something our heroes feel they need to do, rather than something they want to do. This unfortunately plays into an occasional feeling of tonal dissonance; as much as I love the extended Leipzig Airport fight, the upbeat tone of the sequence feels completely different from nearly everything else happening in the story. It's a contender for the best action sequence ever featured in a superhero film and I was grinning like an idiot the entire time, but I'd be lying if I said it didn't clash somewhat with the more dour subject matter which surrounded it.

Captain America: Civil War is an organic, grass-fed steak of a film. By which I of course mean it is both natural and substantial. The conflict builds and builds until it boils over into an emotional crescendo that is sure to affect films to come; make no mistake, this is no mere stepping stone on the ever-shrinking road to Thanos. This is a movie that feels like a standalone chapter in the Marvel Universe, something that was built to over the course of previous films and delivers a satisfying payoff. While the pacing and tone consistency do suffer at times as a result of just how much the film has to feature, it still stands that the overwhelming majority of what's here is pure quality. If you're looking for a superhero movie that will make you feel something, I'm hard pressed to name a better candidate than Civil War.