कैप्टन अमेरिका: ब्रेव न्यू वर्ल्ड

Man, I remember a time when the MCU was good. Like, really good. Now, I feel nothing. This film got nothing out of me. Not hatred, not love, not even a whiff. Just nothing. Let's get this over with.

The performances were alright. Harrison Ford was definitely the standout in this film. I was expecting him to just phone it in, but he actually puts in the work. Not his best work, but enough to make me like his version of Thaddeus Ross. Anthony Mackie is great as always, but is honestly given very little. I'm not entirely sure Sam had a character arc outside of one scene late into the film and even that is just rehashing what happened in a D+ show. Giancarlo Esposito was absolutely wasted. Clearly added in later and could easily be cut.

As for the plot, there's nothing new here I'm afraid. It feels like this film's only purpose was to introduce Adamantium to the MCU. The antagonist is terrible, they try to connect it to earlier MCU entries but no one is really going to remember. This film was clearly altered from what it originally was. It's difficult to talk about honestly, because it feels like there's nothing here. The film wants to be an espionage thriller like Winter Soldier, but lacks the tonal consistency, tight pacing and writing to even come close.

But what about the action? It isn't great. The hand to hand combat looks sluggish and poorly edited. There's a good amount of that throughout. The CGI ranges from decent to downright terrible. It all rings hollow.

So yeah, it's probably not the worst thing the MCU has put out, but it certainly isn't far above it. I can't bring myself to hate this film, because it is ultimately nothing. A waste of time.

I found myself extremely disappointed. Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson and Harrison Ford as Ross, both fails to capture the essence that made its predecessors compelling.

Although Ford is better than the charismatic vaccum that is "Do Better" Cap.

The narrative is a convoluted mess, attempting to juggle political intrigue with superhero action, but succeeding in neither.

No tension, thrill, no excitement. The action felt tedious to follow.

It's as if the writers threw together a series of tropes without any regard for coherence or originality.

Mackie's portrayal of Sam Wilson lacks the charisma and gravitas needed for the mantle of Cap.

His performance is wooden and uninspired, making it difficult to invest in his character's journey. Plus we have to act as if we care for his sidekick...the new falcon... didn't bother to learn his name.

Ford, usually a powerhouse, seems disinterested and it's obvious he came to collect a paycheck. Plus why would you cast a 80 plus nearby to grave for a character that is properly re introduced.

The film's pacing is atrocious, dragging in parts where it should be thrilling and rushing through moments that could have provided emotional resonance.

The action sequences are uninspired, lacking the creativity and excitement that we expect.

As usual the secondary or primary ( depends how you see it) antagonist is worthless whereas if used correctly he could have been a seriously dangerous threat. Earth's mightiest heroes the tv series had awesome portrayal of the character in a handful of episodes.

The VFX is trash with several scenes appearing blatantly artificial. The cinematography is uninspired, failing to capture any memorable or striking imagery.

Save your time and money; this is one superhero flick that's not worth the watch.

This movie failed to focus on a villain or a storyline despite its length. It felt like it was being used as an excuse to introduce new dynamics and catapult upcoming releases and potential projects (IDF woman, Bucky in Thunderbolts*, the new Falcon) rather than focusing on the Captain America character. Both the Winter Soldier & Falcon show as well as the trailers made it seem like this movie had specific intentions for the new Captain America, but the movie fell flat and didn't tell us anything we didn't already know about Sam. Despite the possible consequences, the villains wound up feeling low stakes and impersonal. The most interesting characters had the least screen time, and it was overall disappointing compared to the show that preceded it.

Brave New World left me with a feeling of disappointment, summed up in one word: forgettable. Throughout the film, I struggled to find any new or exciting scenes that we haven't already seen in the MCU. In fact, I caught myself nodding off a couple of times due to the lack of engagement and investment in the characters. Danny Ramírez's character managed to deliver a couple of amusing lines, though I can't remember what they were. Despite this, he was the only character I found myself rooting for.

The one thing that could have been a surprise would have been Harrison Ford's character transformation. But of course, they decided to spoil it in the trailer, why?!!!

The future doesn't look bright for Marvel films. Where have the good old days gone?

Captain America: Brave New World is the latest entry in the Phase Five of the MCU. Considering the amount of reshoots, I didn't had high hopes for it and thought it wouldn't live up to the Captain America Trilogy and unfortunately I was right.

Starting with the positives. The cast delivers some charismatic performances particularly Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson/Captain America. He pours his heart and soul into bringing the best out of his character. Danny Ramirez as Joaquin Torres also delivered a hilarious and delightful performance and his chemistry with Mackie is solid. And Harrison Ford as Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross/"The Red Hulk" was one of the highlights of the film. The action sequences were entertaining even though not as mesmerising as they could've been.

Now the movie has some obvious flaws. The plot felt rushed, predictable and lacked depth with a lot of story elements feeling underdeveloped. The pacing was extremely uneven. There were moments that felt rushed while others dragged on making the film a little unengaging at times. It tries to match the storytelling heights of the Captain America Trilogy only to fail at it. The editing is noticeably choppy. The CGI was questionable at times. The villain was underwhelming which shouldn't be the case with a Marvel movie. And the ending was anti-climactic.

While it suffers from a rushed and predictable plot, boring villain and uneven pacing, Anthony Mackie's performance and the entertaining action sequences makes Captain America: Brave New World a passable action flick and another mixed bag in the Phase Five of the MCU.