What’s It About? In Captain America: Civil War, we learn that with great power comes a great deal of government supervision. Team Iron Man is ok with that; Team Cap, not so much. And so the scene is set for two of the lynchpins of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to face off.
Verdict: Captain America: Civil War certainly has a lot of plates to keep spinning, between being the third instalment in a Captain America trilogy, a sort of sequel to Age of Ultron, an introduction to several new superheroes, and an Avengers movie in everything other than name. And directors Anthony and Joe Russo and screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely deftly keep those plates in pretty magnificent motion throughout.
The chemistry between the movie’s many actors and the connection you feel to their characters has been slowly and steadily cooking for a number of years now, and Civil War makes the very most of that. At the heart of the movie are powerful, pitch-perfect performances from Chris Evans and Robert Downey Jr. Each actor is so obviously at ease in their roles and has developed their respective characters of Steve Rogers and Tony Stark so well over the course of numerous films that it’s a real pleasure to watch them as they battle not only each other but their own inner conflicts.
And it’s fantastic seeing the welcome return of so many other familiar faces. Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow, Anthony Mackie’s Falcon, Don Cheadle’s War Machine, and Jeremy Renner’s Hawkeye all get their moments in and out of battle, though inevitably some get more time to enjoy the spotlight than others. Sebastian Stan is superb as Bucky Barnes aka The Winter Soldier and his rapport with on-screen best friend Chris Evans feels wonderfully real.
As the mysterious Zemo, Daniel Brühl gives a nicely grounded, understated performance. Paul Bettany continues the fine work as Vision he started in Age of Ultron, and he and Elizabeth Olsen (Scarlet Witch) get some delightful scenes together, which both actors cleverly underplay as they build their characters in intriguing ways.
Paul Rudd’s arrival as Ant-Man is a real joy and he contributes some great moments to the movie. I also really like Emily VanCamp as Sharon Carter, aka Agent 13, and though her role is a smaller supporting one compared to the movie’s many superheroes, she does get more to do in this movie. However, one particular moment between Carter and Captain America feels lacking in credible build-up. And, as Everett K. Ross, Martin Freeman feels rather wasted.
Right from the very start, the action is full-on, with plenty of wonderfully choreographed and shot scenes that show the influence of movies including The Raid and Bourne franchises and demand your attention at every twist and turn of the camera. And there’s one particular action sequence that’s utterly spectacular, and is right up there with the very best superhero action scenes ever.
The movie contains a wealth of humour too which comes from a variety of sources including Tony Stark, though he’s necessarily more subdued than usual. Falcon, Vision, Ant-Man, and new superhero kid on the block, Spider-Man, also add a hell of a lot in the comedy department.
Speaking of Spider-Man and Peter Parker, his scenes are an absolute treat! As the latest actor to sport the Spidey spandex, Tom Holland is simply outstanding, really embodying the youthful spirit of the character. Spider-Man has always been one of my favourite comic book characters, and I cannot wait to see Holland continue the great groundwork he’s laid for the character here in his own film, Homecoming, next year.
As for, Black Panther, our other new super-arrival, actor Chadwick Boseman makes a great first impression in the role, playing some really interesting character-driven moments as well as standing out in plenty of acrobatic action-filled scenes. Based on this movie, I’m certainly looking forward to his first solo outing in 2018. And Stan Lee gets the most fabulous cameo, which is now one of my favourites.
Blu-ray Extras: United We Stand, Divided We Fall – The Making of Captain America: Civil War Part 1 & Part 2; Captain America: The Road to Civil War; Iron Man: The Road to Civil War; Gag Reel; Deleted & Extended Scenes; Audio Commentary from directors Anthony and Joe Russo and screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely; Open Your Mind: Marvel’s Doctor Strange – Exclusive Sneak Peek.
Final Words: Captain America: Civil War is a compelling piece of cinema and one of the MCU’s best movies so far, which for me means it’s up there with the first Iron Man movie, the first Avengers outing, The Winter Soldier, and Guardians of the Galaxy. Its action scenes are a breathless pleasure, its humour is on point, its cast is a delight to watch, and its wealth of Easter Eggs is enough to send you to nerdvana. It’s a movie that deserves repeated viewings.
Captain America: Civil War is available on 3D Blu-ray, Blu-ray & DVD on 5 September 2016, and on digital download now.
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