Captain America: Civil War - Review - Shockingly Excellent

Captain America: Civil War successfully blends literally a dozen superheroes, complete with their own quirks and motivations, a coherent, relevant plot, and a massive overhaul of the MCU's structure moving forward. How does it manage to pull it all off?

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Essential to the idea of having two teams of 'heroes' clashing on a grand scale is a well-defined and coherent plot that clearly lays out an insurmountable difference of opinion that logically can only be overcome by the use of force. Introducing such an question of ethics in the superhero genre can be a slippery slope for a franchise because heroes, by their very nature, fight for what we, the audience, perceive as 'right'. If handled incorrectly, the battle between the two forces feels unearned with one side inhabiting the role of the good guys and the other becoming simply a road block. Fortunately, this question is handled with the requisite amount of time and effort by the Russo brothers, the same directors who brought us the last installment of Captain America.  It's clear that they understand what drives each character and they, along with screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, introduce a moral quandary that has no clear correct answer. 

Collateral damage has been a part of the conversation in a number of comic book adaptations but rarely is it handled as deftly as it is here. The problem of innocents getting caught up in the titanic encounters from the past Marvel films plays out as a natural extension of the world created thus far.  William Hurt reprises his role as Secretary-of-State Ross and explains that the Avengers will need to come under the oversight of the United Nations if they are to continue protecting humanity.  Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) embraces this change not so much because of a burning desire to be governed by a committee but rather because he is simply exhausted. Downey portrays a world-weary man who uses humor and levity to hide his own burden of guilt and sees the Sokovia Accords (after the bombastic climax of the Avengers 2) as a release valve for the destruction that has been caused. Meanwhile, Captain America (Chris Evans) can't accept that he would be told who and when to save someone. Saving people is something that comes naturally to him and by introducing a new batch of masters with their own personal agendas endangers his idea of heroism. Both sides of this argument are valid and create a space that allows for an unstoppable force to meet an immovable object.   

The divide between these two ideals grows larger when you introduce the film's understated villain, Helmut Zemo, played to perfection by Daniel Bruhl. Staying in the shadows, he begins to strum all the right chords to divide and conquer the Avengers. His motivations are unclear until the final act but when the curtain is pulled back from his nefarious plan, you find a devious yet sympathetic villain who has no designs on world domination but rather on the incurable, intimate sort of destruction that festers on an emotional level. The entire climax of the film introduces a truly surprising bait and switch that you know you should have seen coming but somehow didn't. Without a doubt, Civil War would have been a much lesser movie if it had relied on another, faceless Hydra acolyte bent on bringing the whole world to its knees. Thankfully, Helmut Zemo, with his subtlety and personal stake in his mission, was the perfect choice for a story based around internal conflict and collateral damage.

"Without a doubt, Civil War would have been a much lesser movie if it had relied on another, faceless Hydra acolyte bent on bringing the whole world to its knees."

One of the major upsides in having these massive collaborations of heroes is watching how they interact with one another and Civil War never disappoints on this level. The newborn friendship between Vision and Scarlet Witch is born out of the fear they engender in others and feels heartfelt and sweet. The Winter Soldier and Falcon bond over former animosity and shared loyalty for their friend (one of the best comedic scenes in the film comes from these two vying for more leg room in a car). From the camaraderie of Iron Man and War Machine (Don Cheadle) to friendship of Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Captain America, nothing feels out of place here.

Now, once all the motivations are clear and the stage is set correctly, there's only one thing left to do: rip-roaring, balls-to-the-wall, no-holds-bar, (insert your cliche here) fight scenes. Civil War kicks off with a pair of small-scale chase scenes that are frenetically edited and reminiscent of the Bourne series except with less masterful choreography. The first occurs with Captain America and friends hunting down the last vestiges of Hydra who are trying to steal a biological weapon. Not the most original set up admittedly but fortunately, the trademark battlefield humor of the Marvel brand elevates it. The action itself is tolerable and punctuated by exciting one-shot scenes but as they descend through a long staircase, I couldn't help wishing that the choreographers from the Netflix series of Daredevil had been hired. The second chase scene introduces the intimidating Black Panther in spectacular fashion demonstrating that the new guy on the block ain't nothing to f*** with. Again, these two scenes feel a little choppy with the shaky cam and the frequent cuts but, with multiple movies of investment in the characters and the effective use of a tension-defusing joke, they're never boring. 

Finally, we reach the climactic airport brawl that is, without a doubt, the best superhero crossover fight scene ever to grace the cinema. Each hero has their own moment to shine and continually tops itself as the scene evolves. The best word to describe the mayhem is 'fun' as Spiderman (a scene-stealing Tom Holland) wittily banters with Falcon (Anthony Mackey) and Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan) while webbing them up and Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) and The Vision (Paul Bettany) hurl magic to and fro. The best part of the scene involves the ever-funny Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) in an thoroughly unexpected change of events that I'm not going to spoil here. While a few quick cuts are evident, the directors slow down the camera allowing the audience to absorb the awesomeness that they are witnessing. 

The climax, while not as breathtaking visually as the airport, hits an emotional high-note and brings the full weight of the story to bear. The performances here are raw and full of emotional poignancy, something that is rather rare in the average Marvel beat-em-up. In the aftermath, a new world order has taken hold and the changes that it brings to future Marvel outings is delicious food for thought. Captain America: Civil War capitalizes on all of the promises of the past delivering a spectacular and also, almost paradoxically, intimate experience that any movie goer, especially those versed in Marvel lore, will adore.   

 Final Verdict: 9.5/10