The Incredible Hulk II: A Hyperbole Free Review of Captain America 4
I went into Captain America Brave New World with little expectations. Well, I love the MCU and haven’t felt the perceived decline as some other fans have. I must admit that some excitement has gone away from the prospect of a new Marvel movie some 16 years in. However, I was excited to see the movie in the theater with my son. What I didn't expect to enjoy the movie as much as I did.
I also never expected to see a sequel to The Incredible Hulk. make no mistake. Captain America Brave New World is a direct sequel to the Incredible Hulk, the first movie in the MCU, while people forget this movie. It is definitely MCU Cannon, and it certainly is now. I was always a fan of that movie and the sequel made me like it even more.
Captain America Brave New World is the first outing featuring Sam Wilson, played by Anthony Mackie as the new Captain America. He has big shoes to fill as Chris Evans, who played Steve Rogers, was a beloved character. As the MCU moves on, it's time to pass the shield. Sam got the shield at the end of the endgame, and we saw him struggle with the promotion in the TV series Falcon and the Winter Soldier. In Captain America, Brave New World, Sam Wilson has been serving as Captain America for a while and is kicking ass. Harrison Ford replaces the late William Hurt and the role of Thunderbolt Ross, who we learn is now the President of the United States.
The setup for this movie is that the celestial Island, first seen in the Eternals, well seen by a few, very few, is home to a new element called adamantium. and every country has a led claim to the island of this new element. President Ross is trying to get a treaty signed that will give fair access to the adamantium. His relationship with Wilson’s Captain America has cooled, and in fact, he asked him to restart the Avengers.
What I like about this movie is it's not a world ending threat they're facing. It's not an Avengers level threat, but certainly, the stakes are high. It's more of an espionage thriller, like The Winter Soldier or a mission. Impossible movie just was superheroes.
The action is top-notch, and the fight scenes are very well done. Since I went into the movie not knowing much, I was surprised that it wasn’t very predictable, and I was having fun as the story unfolded. The villains here, the Leader, Sidewinder, and eventually Red Hulk, are all great.
Things fall apart a little at the end. The final scene after the final fight looks terrible for some reason. I'm not sure if it was a reshoot on a green screen, but it looks awful. The score was forgettable. And there is a narrative choice at the end of the movie that doesn't make any sense. There was a clear way to handle things that, for some reason, the writers in the room just completely overlooked. Despite this obvious misstep, Captain America, Brave New World, not only serves as an excellent sequel to The Incredible Hulk but also as a full circle resolution to Ross’s storyline, which has been a thread throughout the entire MCU. Harrison Ford Ford is incredible in this role, and I hope we get a few more movies with him playing Ross.
Ignore the reviews, forget the fanboy vitriol, put on your Captain America shirt, and go have a good time with this movie. Check out my son’s review of the movie here.
