Or as Marvel Calls It, Falcon and The Winter Soldier... Lite
Well here we are, a new year, and the start of Marvel’s latest attempt at reminding us they still make movies has arrived, and the results? Decidedly mixed. Now lets get one thing very clear, Captain America: Brave New World isn’t the total disaster most of these "critics' say it is, but it also isn’t the bold, groundbreaking shake-up its title implies. Instead, we get a film that’s part political thriller, part standard-issue Marvel spectacle, and part “wait, haven’t we done this before?”
Let’s start with the good news—Anthony Mackie absolutely owns the shield. If anyone was still questioning whether Sam Wilson deserves to be Captain America (seriously, why are we still debating this?), Brave New World puts that argument to bed. Mackie brings charm, heart, and actual character depth to a film that occasionally forgets to have much of either. His Sam Wilson isn’t Steve Rogers 2.0—he’s a man trying to define what Cap should be in a world that’s a lot grayer than it used to be. It’s an interesting dynamic… when the movie actually lets it breathe.
Now, the bad news—everything else is kind of a mess.
The film kick things off with an obligatory Marvel opening mission, where Sam, Joaquin Torres (Danny Ramirez), and Isaiah Bradley (Carl Lumbly) tangle with the new villain Sidewinder ( ), who is menacing but underutilized. Then, an assassination attempt at the White House shakes things up, leading to a conspiracy, betrayal, and—you guessed it—more super-powered chaos. The stakes? Something-something government secrets, something-something shadowy villains, something-something “can Sam really be Captain America without super-serum?”
If that sounds a lot like The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, well… yeah. The film desperately wants to be its cooler, older brother, but instead of an intricate spy-thriller, we get a checklist of MCU tropes: A political crisis that never really gets explored...check. A reluctant alliance with a government figure (Harrison Ford as President Ross)...check. A surprise villain reveal that is not, in fact, surprising, check. And a mid-air battle because it's a contractually required Marvel spectacle... you guessed it, check.
Harrison Ford’s President Ross: Here for a Good Time, Not a Developed Time
Speaking of Harrison Ford, he plays President Thunderbolt Ross, a man whose distrust of superhero es makes him exactly the type of guy you don’t want in charge when the Avengers are inevitably needed again. Ross wants Sam to work with him, but Sam isn’t sure if this is a genuine call for unity or just another government power grab. Meanwhile, Ross himself is busy having daddy issues with his estranged daughter Betty (Liv Tyler, remember her?).
Oh, and in case Marvel’s marketing team hadn’t already spoiled it: Ross eventually Hulks out. That’s right—Red Hulk is here! Except, he shows up way too late, doesn’t do much, and exists mostly to remind you that Marvel still likes its big CGI battles. It’s not so much a game-changing moment as it is a "well, that happened" moment.
No shocker, as we all know that Marvel has a villain problem, and Brave New World does nothing to fix it. Giancarlo Esposito as Sidewinder should be an instant win, but he’s barely in the movie. The Leader (yes, he’s here too) also exists, technically, but in a way that makes you wish Marvel had just committed to one good villain instead of spreading them thin. It’s like the movie set up multiple bad guys and then forgot to actually do anything interesting with them.
The action sequences are solid. And even though it's expected, there’s an especially cool mid-air fight that makes great use of Sam’s flying skills, emphasizing his role as a peacemaker rather than a war machine. But the emotional core of the movie lies in Sam’s relationship with Isaiah Bradley, the super-soldier-turned-tragic-historical-footnote, and his mentorship of Joaquin Torres. These moments should be the heart of the film, but they keep getting interrupted by generic Marvel shenanigans. It’s like the movie keeps nudging you and saying, “Hey, isn’t it cool that we’re kind of deep? Okay, never mind, here’s another explosion"
Brave New World isn’t the worst MCU film, but it’s also nowhere near the best. It flirts with big ideas but never commits to any of them. Mackie is fantastic, the action is fun, and Harrison Ford grumbles his way through the role like a man who just remembered he owns multiple ranches and doesn’t need this job. But the movie plays it too safe, and in a post-Endgame world, Marvel can’t afford to be this predictable anymore.
Like a superhero movie on autopilot—entertaining, occasionally exciting, but mostly just cruising on the goodwill of better films. So with that I give this new venture into the MCU a 3 out of 5 Byrans. In other words, its like a knockoff vibranium shield—shiny, functional, but nowhere near as strong as the original.
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