Does Captain America: Civil War live up to the hype? Is it as good or better than the winter soldier?
The answer to both questions is yes. Not only does Marvel continue to churn out critically and commercially successfull films, but they continously find ways to keep these characters fresh, interesting and fun. This film, is by far the most crowded in the marvel cinematic universe and it manages to balance out every character. Writers Christopher Markus and Stephen Mcfeely should be given alot of credit here. I imagine the amount of character dynamics, sub plots and overall narrative structure must have been exhausting. They do a good job at keeping us emotionally invested in these characters, all while providing lots of fun action sequences, humor, all while being backed up by a cohesive story. All of this could not have been pulled off had marvel not layed the groundwork for the past nine years.
Losely based on the 2006 Marvel Comics event of partially the same name, we find our heroes under alot of scrutiny due to the collateral damage caused in previous events, (New York, Washington DC, and Sokovia ). This causes the United Nations to call for regulation. Which causes a split of two factions at odds due to differing ideologies, All the while a new enemy, named Helmut Zemo, emerges and is operating in the shadows.
Captain America: Civil War features some of the best action sequences, and best performances by RDJ and Chris Evans in their respective roles. Watching this film, i sensed and great deal of resentment between Iron man and Cap. Both Actors do a great job at making you root for either one to succeed. But the performances dont stop there. Chadwick Boseman was fantastic as T'Challa/Black Panther. This man stole almost evey single scene in this film. Suprisingly though he is given a great story arc that works well in the context of this movie. Tom Holland, on the other hand, kills it as Spiderman. He is funny, likable, smart, he embodies every aspect of the character ive been waiting to see on the big screen. He doesnt have alot of screentime, but i felt it was just enough to keep spidey fans wanting more. The rest of the cast, are great. Not one bad performance. Even Hawkeye, my least favorite avenger was given alot to do here.
Overall, this movie surpassed my expectations. It is everything a summer blockbuster should be. It has something for everyone to enjoy. The upcoming movies on phase 3 have alot to live up to.
FINAL VERDICT: