{"id":54955,"date":"2025-02-27T16:28:11","date_gmt":"2025-02-27T14:28:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/?p=54955"},"modified":"2025-02-27T16:28:11","modified_gmt":"2025-02-27T14:28:11","slug":"captain-america-brave-new-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/?p=54955","title":{"rendered":"Captain America: Brave New World"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
Captain America: Brave New World\/Photo courtesy of PR<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re not Steve Rogers\u201d \u2013 that is what Thaddeus Ross, President of the United States, tells the new Captain America (Anthony Mackie), and that, in many ways is the theme of this latest addition to the Marvel Universe. We all, fictional characters and audience members alike, need to figure out this new configuration and how we feel about it. For those of us, like myself, who loved the Steve Rogers character, the transition is not easy. Yes, we knew him as the Falcon, but now he\u2019s the title character \u2013 and it makes a difference. As the new Captain America, Mackie faces a huge challenge, as Steve Rogers\u2019 origin story is one of the best films in the Marvel Universe, with a tight, compelling, narrative and an incredibly likeable hero. Not every Marvel film can attain the impact of Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), nor do I expect it to. Yet Sam Wilson imbues Captain America with a different quality. Unlike Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson is not serum-enhanced, he\u2019s a mere human, relying on his determination, endurance, and technology (vibranium wings and shield). As he does battle with the bad guys in one of the film\u2019s early scenes, his opponent comments \u201cI heard your rib go.\u201d Mackie, as Wilson, expresses the human vulnerability of Captain America, bringing a different kind of suspense to the fight scenes, and an interesting philosophical twist to the superhero series.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Harrison Ford and Anthony Mackie in Captain America: Brave New World<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Harrison Ford is terrific as Thaddeus \u201cThunderbolt\u201d Ross. Newly elected as U.S. President, Ross seems eager to mend past rifts, both political and personal. He appears sincere in his conversation with Captain America and invites the viewer\u2019s empathy in his grief over his wife, and regrets over his estrangement with daughter Betty (Liv Tyler). However, he\u2019s also a politician. In the spirit of new beginnings, Captain America wants his friend and former super soldier Isaiah Bradley (Carl Lumbley), who was imprisoned by the government and experimented on for 30 years, to come with him to the White House. Isaiah, as one might imagine, is rather skeptical, telling Sam, \u201cAnswering to Ross doesn\u2019t sit right with me.\u201d As it turns out, Isaiah was right, and events at the White House go horribly wrong. And when mayhem erupts, President Ross scrambles for control.<\/p>\n

Captain America is charged with finding out who\u2019s responsible, and at his side is the new Falcon, Joaquin Torres (Danny Ramirez). The Falcon\u2019s youthful enthusiasm is the perfect contrast to Wilson\u2019s thoughtful depth. Shira Haas is another welcome newcomer to this universe, as Ruth Bat-Seraph, the President\u2019s Head of Security. Cool and tough in her portrayal of Bat-Seraph, Haas radiates a fierce confidence, she\u2019s someone you want as your friend, not your enemy.<\/p>\n

I am of two minds about this film. In general, I found the plot to be intricate in a way that was somewhat frustrating and distracting as I watched and tried to put the pieces together. There was also some foreshadowing \u2013 right from the start \u2013 hinting at a problem, that I felt was a bit heavy handed. But then, the film delivers a powerful climax, visceral in its impact, that also reverberates with the issues raised through different characters evoking both human frailty and strength.<\/p>\n

Captain America: Brave New World<\/em><\/p>\n

Director: Julius Onah; Screenplay: Rob Edwards, Macolm Spellman, Dalan Musson, Julius Onah, Petr Glanz; Cinematography: Kramer Morgenthau; Editors: Matthew Schmidt, Madeleine Gavin; Music: Laura Karpman; Cast: Anthony Mackie, Harrison Ford, Danny Ramirez, Shira Haas, Carl Lumbley, Tim Blake Nelson, Giancarlo Esposito, Xosha Roquemore, J\u00f3hannes Haukur J\u00f3hannesson<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cYou\u2019re not Steve Rogers\u201d \u2013 that is what Thaddeus Ross, President of the United States, tells the new Captain America (Anthony Mackie), and that, in many ways is the theme of this latest addition to the Marvel Universe. We all, fictional characters and audience members alike, need to figure out this new configuration and how […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":54956,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[568,569,96,227,228],"class_list":["post-54955","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-film","tag-captain-america","tag-falcon","tag-film","tag-marvel","tag-superhero"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54955","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=54955"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54955\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/54956"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=54955"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=54955"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=54955"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}