Captain America: Brave New World

Were you around when the Coca-Cola company came out with New Coke in 1985? I was in high school and remembered it being the biggest flop of all time. New Coke was unapologetically trying to be like Pepsi Cola which had an amazing promotion called “The Pepsi Challenge” which was a basic tasting competition both on TV and in malls across America where consumers would be asked which cola they liked better… Pepsi or Coca Cola. Pepsi was winning this culture war so Coke decided to create a Pepsi-ish drink called New Coke. The rage and outcry was swift resulting in sagging Coke sales. Coke learned it’s lesson and switched back to the original formula within two months. The CEO of Pepsi was quoted saying, ““I think, by the end of their (Coke’s) nightmare, they figured out who they really are. Caretakers. They can’t change the taste of their flagship brand. They can’t change its imagery. All they can do is defend the heritage they nearly abandoned in 1985.”

The Marvel Universe has been caretakers of their hero’s and villain’s images since Iron Man graced our theaters in 2008 (and to a lesser extent with the previous Sam Raimi Spider-Man movies before 2008). Many of these characters remain very close to the comic book versions although some have had some gender and/or race swapping within the MCU. However, this is the first time a major MCU character has completely emptied itself only to be recreated, with permission by its former occupant, to be something totally different with the same name.

Of all the MCU characters, my favorite is Steve Roger’s Captain America with his character going from an extreme optimist in the original Avengers to suspicious and battle-weary in “Endgame” all without losing his enduring honor and drive. To fill that legacy with Sam Wilson’s Falcon character is a big swing. Does it pay off and soar or will it fly into a window with a thud?

Directed by Julius Onah, “Captain America: Brave New World” seems to be as much a Hulk sequel (the 2008 Edward Norton version) as it is a “Captain America” follow-up.

We are re-introduced to Thunderbolt Thaddeus Ross who was the mustachioed general in the MCU (played by the late William Hurt) but he is now President Ross (played by a clean-shaven Harrison Ford). President Ross has big plans. He wants to reform the Avengers using the new Captain America aka Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) as his driving force for a new super group that is owned and controlled by the government.

Sam Wilson became Captain America when an aged Steve Rogers gave over his shield in “Endgame.” Sam and Bucky Barnes had an MCU series (Falcon and Winter Soldier) where they stopped a terrorist organization and found out more about the Super Soldier program the government has been experimenting with since WW2. They met Isaiah Bradley (played by an intense Carl Lumbly) who was a previously experimented on super soldier in the 1940’s and 50’s but was discarded by the government because of his race. Isaiah resurfaces here as Sam allows him to train the new Falcon side-kick Joaquin Torres (Danny Ramirez).

They are all invited to the White House for a multi-national meeting focusing on Celestial Island (yes, the emerging and deceased Celestial in the Indian Ocean from 2021’s “Eternals”) which has yielded the miracle-metal adamantium. Of course it doesn’t go well, as Isaiah Bradley and a few other attendees mysteriously open fire on the president after being subjected to their flashing phone screens triggered by master criminal Samuel Sterns (aka the Leader who is played by Tim Blake Nelson and was seen last in the 2008 “Incredible Hulk”). Isaiah is jailed and Sam is on the journey to find out how this has happened and, more importantly, why.

Along the way we find out Sterns has been slowly poisoning President Ross with gamma radiation (you know where that leads if you have seen the trailers and posters) as well as creating a tense multi-national conflict over Celestial Island, especially between America and Japan. Sam and his sidekick Joaquin must track down clues and hints to uncover how far up the political ladder these dangerous plans go and how far Sterns will go for revenge for what has been done to him by Ross.

The character of Sam Wilson’s Captain America is one that carries over from Falcon and Winter Soldier which is a man who knows he is not able to fill the shoes of the shield’s previous occupant as well as not being able to fully trust the government which employs his services. He also is wary of how his race colors (no pun intended) his expectations of trust and goodwill from his government superiors. Anthony Mackie does a good job of looking conflicted throughout most of his scenes (the only time he looks at ease is when he is with Isaiah).

This Captain America has never taken the super soldier serum (which is lamented and considered many times in this film), so he must augment his skills with lots of MCU tech including vibranium wings and suit plus high-tech armaments and creative uses of the shield that makes him more like Iron Man than Cap in most respects.

There are a lot of places where you have to suspend belief as he throws his shield at missiles and lands in a super hero pose while traveling at the speed of sound without his legs turning to accordions. But hey, it’s the MCU, right?

Of course the highlight of the movie is his battle with the Red Hulk as we see how much high-tech it takes to fight a world shattering force.

This film was widely criticized for it’s re-shoots, re-scheduling, and re-casting, so it’s a little bit of a mess narratively and optically. There are some spots where the green screen is dismal and noticeable. Yet there are some really good effects in the film especially with the Red Hulk (his teeth look amazingly natural for some reason). I saw this in IMAX 3D, and the 3D effects looks very good as far as the depth of field and layering goes…

All the actors are good to very good with a surprisingly animated Harrison Ford not phoning it in. This is very much his film, it seems, as Anthony Mackie is pushed to the side as his CGI self takes over throughout much of the movie.

A too brief plot point of the Serpent Society mercenary group takes place in the beginning of the film which includes a great part from the always entertaining Giancarlo Esposito as Sidewinder. I wanted more Serpent Society, as this was one of the best, and least respected, super villain groups in comics. Maybe they will resurface somewhere down the line.

There is an end-of-credits stinger with another cameo from the 2008 Hulk movie plus a tip of the hat towards the upcoming Secret Wars story arc.

At a PG-13, there are many instances of killing and violence including stabbings, shootings, many explosions and peril… The language isn’t too bad for a PG-13 with the profanity consisting of a dozen SH**s, a handful of DA**s, two instances of using the Lord’s name in vain.

Younger viewers may not be interested in all the political intrigue but they will enjoy the ending fight scene with Red Hulk and the air battle over Celestial Island. However, most of the movie may not hold their interest all the way through, as it is exposition-heavy with characters that aren’t all that interesting.

There is a phrase that caught my attention when Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier, makes a cameo and says, “Steve gave them something to believe in, you give them something to aspire to.” Aspire means to direct one’s hope to achieving a higher goal. I think the idea is that Steve Rogers was so good, so pure that to become him was impossible but it inspired belief in something better in the world. Sam Wilson is not as good or pure as Steve is in a sense, but because Sam is down-to-earth it is easier to become like him and thus achieve much.

Apostle Peter makes the point,

“For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in His steps.” —1 Peter 2:21

Peter is saying yes, Jesus is the Christ and thus not able to be totally imitated, because He is God. Because Jesus is God we can believe in Him for our eternal existence. Yet Peter also says, despite not being able to totally imitate Him, we are called to aspire to be like Him and to follow in His steps. It’s a call to challenge us to model our lives; to be like Him and all the while to trust only in Him as the Christ for our eternal hope as God in the flesh.

So is the new “Captain America” like the ill-fated New Coke? Can the Sam Wilson character be a caretaker of the Steve Rogers legacy? I don’t think he can, personally. Not in his current iteration.

However, it’s not a bad thing to be different. I see Sam Wilson as Coke Zero… it’s pretty close but with a little more artificial flavorings. The good news is that as you get used to diet soda over time you tend not to miss the original so much. It just takes time and intake… and judging from the film slate that Marvel has coming out in the next few years I think we may get used to, and even appreciate, the New Cap.

• Violence: Moderate to Heavy— Characters stabbed and shot with bloody detail / Man suddenly shoots himself in the head / Massive explosions with details / Character breaks a man’s arm / Fist fights / Blazing gun fights
• Vulgar/Crude language: Moderate— Sh*t (many), B*tch (2), B*stard (2), A**, F-word mouthed on TV
• Profane language: Moderately Heavy— J*sus (1), G*d d*mn (1), H*ll (many), D*mn (6)
• Drugs/Alcohol: Mild
• Wokeism: Minor
• Nudity: Red Hulk rips off his shirt
• Sex: None
• Occult: None

• Positive
• Critics