‘Captain America: Brave New World’: Non-Spoiler Review

 

Following widely publicized production woes and extensive reshoots, Marvel Studios’ Captain America: Brave New World has arrived, and although it’s not as disappointing as social media or Rotten Tomatoes might have you believe, it’s a shaky flight for the winged Avenger.

Featuring Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson, having taken up the Cap mantle from Steve Rogers at the conclusion of Avengers: Endgame and solidifying himself as the star-spangled hero in the Disney+ series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, this film unfortunately only feels like a Captain America sequel sometimes. Mostly, it’s a follow-up to 2008’s The Incredible Hulk, with many plotlines and characters carried over from that film 17 years later. It’s also a follow-up to notorious Marvel miss The Eternals, finally addressing the massive dead Celestial in the Indian Ocean that one would think would play into the MCU over the past 4 years. I give the film credit for picking up the pieces and pulling these elements back into continuity, but it all starts to feel more like housekeeping than storytelling – especially when these elements pull us away from Sam.

The pacing is a bit rough as well, and the two-hour film feels longer than that. The action scenes are fun when they aren’t generic, choppy fistfights – especially an aerial dogfight and the thrilling-but-brief battle between Cap and Red Hulk – but the rest of the film is mostly exposition-heavy and feels more procedural than powerful. It seems like Julius Onah is trying to replicate the political intrigue of the Russo brothers’ Captain America: The Winter Soldier, but it often feels like a serviceable episode of Law & Order instead.

Despite feeling flat and disjointed overall, there were some good performances. Mackie brings a lot of charm to Sam’s Captain America, while Harrison Ford – stepping into the role of “Thunderbolt” Ross following William Hurt’s death – brings new vulnerability and urgency to the character, especially when he finally “Hulks out” in the third act. Danny Ramirez provides warmth and humor to the role of Joaquin Torres/Falcon, and Giancarlo Esposito oozes his trademark measured menace as Sidewinder, the leader of the villainous Serpent Society, even though it often feels like he’s in a different movie altogether. Everyone else does fine enough with what they’re given, although one returning character from The Incredible Hulk who winds up being the film’s primary antagonist elicited a lot of unintended laughs from my screening due to sheer goofiness.

All that said, I wouldn’t say Captain America: Brave New World is among Marvel Studios’ worst outings, but it’s solidly middle-of-the-road. It hints at big things for The Avengers and the MCU as a whole, but to me felt like a hollow, brief, occasionally enjoyable experience in and of itself. I should note, however, that this film has one of the worst post-credit sequences in the history of the MCU. If you need to race to the bathroom as soon as the credits start, it’s not worth the wait.

Trailer Showdown: ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ vs. ‘Jurassic World: Rebirth’

 

We all assumed we would be getting trailers for Marvel Studios’ The Fantastic Four: First Steps and Universal Pictures’ during Super Bowl LIX this Sunday, but both franchises kicked things off a bit early, giving fans of summer blockbusters a lot to discuss and dissect this week. But which trailer packs the most punch? Has the bigger bite? Scarletts the most Johanssons? OK, that last one is pretty obvious.

Let’s see how they match up.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps

Let’s be honest: There has never been a good Fantastic Four movie. There are some fun moments in the 2005 Tim Story film, but from the 1994 Roger Corman schlock flick to the 2015 reboot misfire, the silver screen has been unkind to Marvel’s First Family. But the debut Marvel Studios film for Mr. Fantastic, The Invisible Woman, The Human Torch and The Thing shows promise, placing the characters against a reimagined 1960s backdrop that’s separate from the established Marvel Cinematic Universe. Directed by Matt Shakman and starring Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn and Ebon Moss-Bachrach, The Fantastic Four: First Steps also features John Malkovich and Natasha Lyonne in its star-studded cast, with Ralph Ineson voicing The Devourer of Worlds himself, Galactus. The retro-futuristic aesthetic in this is a lot of fun, and the visual effects bringing The Thing to orange, rocky life are exceptional. If the MCU is “at a bit of a low point” – as stated by Deadpool in a certain billion-dollar team-up flick earlier this year – this might be the splash of freshness and color the nearly 20-year-old movie universe needs.

Jurassic World: Rebirth

Jurassic World Dominion wasn’t great. In fact, it wasn’t even good. Overstuffed with characters and lacking any of the awe factor that made Jurassic Park a classic, Dominion felt like an extinction point for the prehistoric franchise. I remember hearing that the next film in the series would be a soft reboot, and it seems like that comes by way of a new human cast, ramped-up horror elements and the emergence of a new mutant dinosaur threat. It’s also directed by Gareth Edwards (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) and written by Jurassic Park co-writer David Koepp so, yeah, I’m in. 

The Rebirth trailer features Scarlett Johansson’s Zora Bennett joining Jonathan Bailey’s Dr. Henry Loomis and Mahershala Ali’s Duncan Kincaid on a dangerous expedition to extract dino DNA from several dinosaurs at Jurassic Park’s original research laboratory so it can be used to create a miracle drug. Things obviously go wrong, and the group is attacked by Velociraptors, Spinosauri, at least one Tyrannosaurus Rex and a hideous mutant dinosaur that will likely be a pretty cool toy.

The plot doesn’t veer too far away from the working formula for all things Jurassic – put humans and dinosaurs together and see what happen – but Rebirth looks like a massive stomp in the right direction after the underwhelming Dominion. Let’s hope there are no giant locusts this time.

The Verdict?

It’s close, but when it comes to The Thing taking vs. The Rex, “It’s Clobberin’ Time!” Fantastic Four: The First Steps wins in a battle of fresh vs. familiar. Jurassic World: Rebirth’s trailer seems to tread familiar ground to bring the series back to basics, while First Steps aptly showcases what sets these characters apart from the 30+ prior Marvel Studios films.  

Writer George Nolfi Joins Rey Skywalker ‘Star Wars’ Film

 

Daisy Ridley’s return as Rey Skywalker is one step closer to becoming a reality, with Ocean’s 12 and The Bourne Ultimatum writer George Nolfi joining the film set 15 years after The Rise of Skywalker, according to The Hollywood Reporter’s Heat Vision.

The unnamed Star Wars standalone film will be helmed by documentary filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy and will feature Rey – who adopted the Skywalker surname at the conclusion of the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy.

Nolfi’s addition comes after a string of writers joined and left the project, including Damon Lindelof, Justin Britt-Gibson and Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight. It has yet to be revealed when production will officially begin.

As was the case with the Prequel Trilogy 20 years ago, conversation around the Star Wars sequels is decidedly mixed and at times contentious, with some pockets of the fandom calling for Disney to de-canonize them entirely. Speaking for myself, I appreciate The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi more and more as time goes on. The Rise of Skywalker, though, feels like a lot of missed opportunities and compromises culled from Reddit forums, but it’s still a mostly fun watch. I’m curious to see where Rey’s story goes from there, and which other Sequel Trilogy characters could be joining her. My fingers are crossed for Babu Frik.

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SUBLIME! Ryan Gosling Could Star in Shawn Levy’s Upcoming ‘Star Wars’ Film

 His job was beach. Now, it’s space.

Ryan Gosling, Barbie’s scene-stealing Ken and the immensely likeable star of such films as The Notebook, The Big Short, Drive, Blade Runner 2049 and La La Land, is in talks to star in Shawn Levy’s upcoming Star Wars film, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Coming off the $1.3 billion success of Deadpool & Wolverine, Levy will helm a feature set in that galaxy far, far away that will reportedly have no connection to the Skywalker Saga. The as-yet-unnamed film has been in development for two years and will go into production this year, being the next in an increasingly long list of potential Star Wars films that have yet to (kyber) crystallize. It would follow the release of The Mandalorian & Grogu, which is set to hit theaters in May 2026.

I’m always on board for more Star Wars, and Gosling is always fun to watch, but it’s going to be a real heartbreaker if this never sees the light of day. After all, where’s the Rey movie, the James Mangold “first Jedi” project, the rumored Episodes X-XII, and all the other films that have been announced/teased for the past 5 years? When it comes to Star Wars at the movies, I can only quote Yoda: “Impossible to see, the future is.”

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Got it Where it Counts: ‘Star Wars: Skeleton Crew’ Season 1 Reaction

 

Star Wars fans are a hyperbolic bunch. Whenever a new project debuts – whether it’s a theatrical film or a streaming series – it’s either the best thing to happen to the franchise in years or it’s the catastrophic death knell for that galaxy far, far away. Admittedly, my reactions tend to be more positive when it comes to Disney’s near-constant output of Star Wars content. You can call me a shill if you must (it wouldn’t be the first time), but I was a kid during the “Dark Times” of the early-mid ‘90s when all we had were the original three films on well-worn VHS tapes, a handful of PC games and a stack of novels and comics of varying quality to satisfy our fervor for the Force. I’m OK with being spoiled with so many Star Wars stories these days, even if they don’t all hit the figurative two-meter thermal exhaust port.

But where does that leave Skeleton Crew, the eight-episode Disney+ pirate yarn featuring a Force-sensitive and swarthy Jude Law, a group of plucky young adventurers and a host of furry, feathery and sometimes squishy alien creatures? In short, it’s damn good.

 Skeleton Crew is a love letter to many things, namely 1980s Steven Spielberg coming-of-age stories, practical visual effects, swashbuckling adventure films and, yes, childhood. It all blends together to form the most accessible Star Wars streaming series since The Mandalorian’s debut season in 2019, devoid of required reading/viewing as long as you’re familiar with the basics of Star Wars (and who isn’t?). As such, I’ve been excitedly recommending this show to just about everyone, not only those who know the difference between a Mon Calamari and a Quarren.

Starring Jude Law as the mysterious Jod Na Nawood and a quartet of kid actors – Ravi Cabot-Conyers as the starry-eyed Wim, Ryan Kiera Armstrong as the headstrong Fern, Kyriana Kratter as the analytical KB and Robert Timothy Smith as the bashful blue alien Neel – Skeleton Crew features stronger performances than you might expect from what many perceive as a “kids’ show.” Joining the flesh-and-blood cast is the tough-as-nails droid SM-33 voiced by Nick Frost, who brings a lot of heart and humor to a broken-down bot with a rat living in its skull.

Series creators Jon Watts and Christopher Ford crafted this season alongside a murders’ row of directors, including Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert (Everything Everywhere All at Once) and the always game Bryce Dallas Howard, who really needs to be directing Star Wars movies as soon as possible. It all comes to a close in satisfying fashion in this week’s finale, but there’s more adventure to be had with these characters if the viewership demands it. After The Acolyte ended after just one season, I’m not getting my hopes up too high but, as has always been the case with me and Star Wars, I’m choosing to look on the Light Side.