directed by Anthony and Joe Russo
written by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely
When I found of that Marvel Studios planned to adapt the 2007 miniseries Civil War into a film I honestly felt a little nervous; though that series was a bestseller for Marvel Comics at the time it was published, it was still a ham-handed commentary on the Patriot Act, and an inherently flawed piece of narrative. It also posed a number of challenges for the filmmakers looking to adapt it. For one thing, the Civil War comics essentially splits, right down the middle, the somewhat massive community of superheroes in the Marvel (printed) Universe, with the question of whether or not they should sign the Superhuman Registration Act, while the movie only has about a dozen or so to work with, even factoring in the inclusion of a couple of new characters. Not only that, but the ending is a bit of a downer, with Captain America going to jail. I feared Marvel had painted themselves into a bit of a corner.
I was pleasantly surprised, then, to discover that this was not entirely the case.
Rather than the explosion in Stamford Connecticut caused by the New Warriors, this film kicks off when an operation in Lagos, Nigeria, in which the Avengers' mission to stop Brock Rumlow (Frank Grillo, last seen in Captain America: The Winter Soldier) from stealing a pathogen that could easily be weaponized, goes horribly wrong, leaving several visiting Wakandans dead. After the destruction of New York, Washington D.C. and Sokovia in previous films, this proves to be the last straw, and United States Secretary of State Ross (William Hurt, last seen in The Incredible Hulk as General Ross) presents the Avengers with the Sokovia Accords, signed by 117 member of the United Nations and demanding that the Avengers make themselves accountable. Tony Stark aka Iron Man (Robert Downey, Jr.), whose hubris was responsible for the creation of Ultron and, indirectly, the destruction of Sokovia and the deaths of thousands, is the first to sign the document, having been confronted by Miriam (Alfre Woodard) an American whose son was doing volunteer work in Sokovia when the city was destroyed, and who was killed in the resulting chaos. Steve Rogers aka Captain America (Chris Evans), however, still has issues with authority figures, having only just taken down superspy organization S.H.I.E.L.D. after learning that it was, in fact, being run by his HYDRA, the Nazi-created organization he fought in World War II, and refuses to sign the Accords. Cap's friend Sam Wilson aka Falcon (Anthony Mackie) and Wanda Maximoff aka Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) also decline, while remaining Avengers Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow (Scarlett Johannson) James Rhodes aka War Machine (Don Cheadle) and recently-created android Vision (Paul Bettany) concur with the Accords. Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Bruce Banner aka Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), after the events of the last film, aren't around.
Regardless of how many Avengers sign or don't the document, however, the Sokovia Accords are set to be ratified in Vienna, Austria. In attendance are the King of Wakanda, T'Chaka (John Kani) and his son, crown prince T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman). However, catastrophe strikes the signing, and photographed, clear as day walking away from the chaos, is none other than the Winter Soldier himself, Steve's old pal Bucky (Sebastian Stan). A large-scale manhunt begins, with Stark, Black Widow, and the mysterious Black Panther at the forefront, but Cap senses something amiss, and decides to get to Bucky first, which puts him right in the crosshairs of his old teammates. The war is on, and each side recruits its own soldiers; Tony taps the shoulder of Peter Parker aka Spider-Man (Tom Holland) while Cap lures Clint Barton aka Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) out of retirement, and recruits new guy Scott Lang aka Ant-Man (Paul Rudd).
Meanwhile, in the background of all this tumult, a mysterious traveler named Zemo (Daniel Bruhl), operates silently, putting into motion a series of events that spells trouble for the Avengers.
While the film represents a significant departure from the comic book miniseries on which it was based, the heady themes of state control over superpowers versus freedom to operate unchecked still remain at the heart of this film, which gratifyingly explores the consequences of superheroes knocking over buildings and the human cost of all of the destruction their battles leave behind. Perhaps most interestingly the question of who is right, #TeamIronMan or #TeamCap, is never fully answered right up until the end, just like it wouldn't be in real life.
Also, while the film has a considerably smaller roster of superheroes than the comics did, the expertly-staged action sequences are certainly more spectacular than anything one could ever see on the printed page. There are multiple action set pieces here, each of which drives the story forward and showcases each of the featured character's talents in a fantastic way. Captain America: The Winter Soldier featured some of the most impressive hand-to-hand fight choreography outside of a Bourne movie or The Raid, and there's plenty of that here, too, but considering this film features combatants who are considerably more powerful than just a couple of super soldiers they've had to raise their game quite a bit, and the results are a wonder to behold. A minor issue I have, though, is that some of the Black Panther's appearances appear to have been digitally-manipulated. I can get why Spider-man's fighting would have to be generated by a computer (and it's fantastically done, by the way), but the Black Panther is basically just a very formidable fighter in the vein of Cap and Bucky, and perhaps even less so as, for all his skill, he doesn't have the super soldier serum (or some version of it) pumping through his veins, so the visible use of what appears to be "digifu" in at least one sequence seems a bit unwarranted, and even a little out-of-place amidst other, better-staged action shots.
Speaking of Black Panther and Spider-Man, I have to say they were easily the highlights of this movie for me, with Spider-Man being particularly impressive considering that when this script was being conceived there was no clear assurance that Marvel would be able to include him. Of the two, the Black Panther's inclusion is much more organic, probably since his arc was conceived and fleshed out before Marvel could secure the rights to feature Spider-Man in the film, and Boseman, whose screen presence is considerable, does an excellent job on the character both in and out of costume (I'll presume that was Boseman doing at least some of the fighting). Also, I rather liked his accent, which reminded me of Harry Belafonte (even though it isn't a Jamaican accent). I will happily get in line to see this character's solo movie in two years' time.
My affection for the Spider-Man character goes back four decades, so maybe I'm biased, but I can say without any hyperbole that the character's 20 minutes (or so) of screen time in this film completely outshines any of the five full-length features that came before. This is THE best iteration of this character that has ever been put up on the big screen. A large part of that is down to perfect casting; I had some trepidation about the casting of British actor Tom Holland given that I'd never seen his work, but these were swiftly put to rest when he first appeared onscreen. This is what the character has always needed; an actual teenager, rather than someone in their mid-twenties or early thirties, playing a teenager. Holland's earnestness is disarming, and he utterly nails the dichotomy between Peter Parker, nerd, and Spider-Man, motormouthed superhero, something neither Tobey Maguire nor Andrew Garfield ever really did. Sure, ILM rendered his avatar for most of the action sequence in which Spidey was featured (and, take note Sony Pictures, they did a great job), but Holland delivered what really matters about the character. And yes, I WILL be in line next year for his next solo movie, reboot though it may be.
Breakout characters and pyrotechnics aside, this is really a movie about some decidedly grounded themes, like relationships, accountability, and the pain of loss. Though this may nominally be a Captain America movie, it's Downey Jr. who flexes some serious dramatic muscles here, reminding audiences of why he was nominated for an Oscar at the tender age of 26. Truth be told, while Evans holds his own in a solid performance, honed over four previous films, Downey's pathos-fueled stance tends to advance his cause just a little more effectively, even though the script puts forward some pretty solid arguments for either side.
The running time is the longest any Marvel movie has ever had, but the film never drags. Still, some characters work better than others. Bruhl's Zemo, while a step up from forgettable villains like the ones that featured in Thor: The Dark World and Guardians of the Galaxy, is not at all the flamboyant second-generation Nazi his purple-masked comic-book counterpart is, and doesn't leave anywhere near the impression that Tom Hiddleston did as Loki. To be fair, he wasn't written to be a big bad guy at all. If I elaborate anymore I will spoil plot points, but suffice it to say there's room for improvement. Martin Freeman is somewhat wasted as Everett Ross, a G-man whose sole purpose seems to be to bark at the leading characters. Still, given that the character is most closely associated with the Black Panther, I imagine we'll see more of him in the solo film. It would be fun if Marvel could dream up an excuse for a Dr. Strange cameo in a movie featuring Ross so as to facilitate a reunion of the Sherlock co-stars Freeman and Benedict Cumberbatch, who plays Doctor Strange. Hurt successfully dusts the cobwebs off of "Thunderbolt" Ross (no relation to Everett) and imbues him with a new sense of purpose befitting his new role in the United States government. Of the supporting characters he got easily the most screen time, but that wasn't a whole lot either. Then again, that's a necessary casualty of a movie with a cast this big, especially an action movie: people will fall by the wayside.
One last very minor quibble for me was some pretty sloppy continuity in terms of editing. The film was, as most films are, clearly shot over several months, and it shows in Chris Evans' haircut, which fluctuates from scene to scene. With a huge, highly-anticipated Hollywood production like this, it seems a bit silly that something this insignificant but nonetheless conspicuous got left out. In fact, only movie nerds like me would notice this, though now I'm sure anyone who watches the movie after reading this review will too.
Funny haircuts, muted bad guys, underused characters and other flaws aside, this is really an excellent film in terms of conceptualization and execution. What makes this remarkable is that, even more than in any of the actual "Avengers" movie, this was a film that had so many moving parts that it could have gone horribly wrong, but the Russo brothers kept it all together and delivered a film that really ticks all the boxes. It doesn't quite have the subversive appeal of The Winter Soldier, but it definitely makes for some rock solid entertainment.
This truly bodes well for the next Avengers film.
8.6/10
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