MCU Rewind #13 - Captain America: Civil War- Review
Release date (US): May 6th, 2016
Directed By: Joe and Anthony Russo
Rating: PG-13
Starring: Chris Evans, Robert Downey, Jr., Sebastian Stan, Scarlett Johansson, Don Cheadle, Anthony Mackie, Elizabeth Olsen, Chadwick Boseman, Jeremy Renner, Paul Bettany, Paul Rudd, Tom HOlland, Emily VanCamp, Daniel Bruhl, Martin Freeman, Frank Grillo, William Hurt, Marisa Tomei
MCU REWIND REVIEW EXPLANATION: In these reviews, I will be going back to all the Marvel Cinematic Universe Films that have been released to date, reviewing each one in a retrospective manner. Expectations and background will detail how I felt about the film before the repeat viewing. This review will contain spoilers for these movies. You have been warned.
Previous Rating: 9.7/10
Expectations/Background: Being my favorite movie in the MCU, this film had some lofty expectations to meet. I had no doubt, however, that it would meet them because I had seen this film many times, and each time it was nearly as good, if not better, sometimes slightly worse, but always nearly the same. So for me, going into this film, I had no doubt that I was going to enjoy this film immensely.
The Movie: And I was not wrong - it still amazes me how well this film holds up, and just how well the Russos are able to balance the characters. From Hawkeye to Vision (though less so for him) to Captain America himself, this film finds time to give each one their moment while having a focused storyline baffles me in the best way possible.
Positives: What impressed me the most this time around was how this film took all the Avengers, but aside form the title had all the elements of an Avengers film, this film is purely a film about Captain America. It uses Iron Man as a sort of catalyst/driving force AGAINST Captain America, but at its core, I was so amazed that the Russos kept the main focus on Captain America the entire time.
And what can be said about the action that hasn't been said before? We were all blown away by the action in Winter Soldier, and I thought that there was no way they could top that before I saw the film for the first time, but watching the film and seeing it again, the action simply blows everything else from the MCU out of the water. The airport scene is just 20ish minutes of pure adrenaline. Every single time the scene begins, with Captain America walking towards the tarmac of the airport, I get these chills that I rarely get for any other scenes.
The introductions of Black Panther and Spider-Man are incredible as well. There is a review for this film up on this site, so I won't talk too in-depth at the moment about them, but I feel that their integration is very organic (for the most part). Black Panther feels more organic than Spider-Man, but when both of them are in the film, it doesn't feel as if the film is trying to shoehorn them into the story, like some other films try.
One of the more controversial opinions that I have about the film is regarding the villain, which I will touch upon later, but I will say that the CHARACTER (more on him later) is good. I enjoyed Zemo's motivations, mannerisms, and the way he went about his business, which made for a compelling, down-to-earth, but cold, calculating person.
To finish out the positives, I think one of the best things about the film is the balance (Thanos?). I think the way that the Russos are able to balance humor (I won't touch on this very much, but the abundance of humor surprisingly works most of the time), action, but most importantly, heart and soul is what sets this film apart form all the others. It shows that the Russos really know how to take a story, good, well-developed characters, and put them in a place where they can grow, and that is something to be commended.
Negatives: Heading back to the villain for a second, like I said, I believe that the character on the whole is one of the best defined, motivated, and realistic villains. THAT BEING SAID - his plan makes no sense and relies so heavily on coincidence and plot convenience past the point of having to suspend your disbelief. The way his plan hinges on the fact that he's able to infiltrate a government holding cell to interview Bucky Barnes without any second thoughts is rather ridiculous.
Another minor nit-pick I have with the film is the color palette; I can't help feeling that some specific scenes would have looked so much better had there been a real depth. That's the one thing about the airport scene that makes it a little dry and dull.
Other than that? Nothing really to complain about - this film is something special.
The Verdict: Having already reviewed the film on this site, I didn't go too far in depth about the film, but the fact of the matter is that I love this film. It is my favorite Marvel film, and while perhaps Infinity War is more fulfilling of an experience simply because it's the culmination, I believe that this is one of the best ones that they've cranked out.Letter Grade: A+ Number Score: 9.6/10
Should I Skip?: Absolutely not.
**IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER**: Letter grades and Number grades do not mean the same thing. Just because I give a film an A does not mean it gets a 9.5 or above. They do not line up like a traditional school grading system To see specifics, see below.
A- to A+: Amazing
B- to B+: Enjoyable, but Flawed
C- to C+: Redeemable in some cases, but heavily Flawed
D- to D+: Nothing but Flaws
F: A Failure of a Film
9-10: Nearly Perfect
8-9: Very Good
7-8: Good
6-7: Okay
5-6: Average/Mediocre
4-5: Apparently Flawed
3-4: Heavily Flawed
2-3: A complete and utter mess
0-2: A Failure of a Film
