Now that I have got that out of my system, let get on to the second things. You know, I work with documents for a living, pretty big documents sometimes. And I can say, if someone puts a document in front of me that is as thick as Chris Evans' bicep (okay, I'm still getting some of it out of my system), I'm not just going to pat it and say, "Yeah, I'm happy to sign off on all that!" I'm going to want to read it.
Granted, sitting down watching Chris Evans' forearms flexing as he leafs through a 700 page contract might not be some people's idea of a gripping film (some people not including me) but I'd expect a little more than a tap on the cover and a "Yeah, nah!"
And who the hell writes 700 pages worth of accords to secure oversight of the world's superheroes without talking to the actual superheroes themselves. I'd be pretty pissed if someone dropped a document on my desk all of a sudden and said, "Here, these are going to rule your existence from now on... there's the dotted line."
And over some people caught in the crossfire? Because the Avengers don't take the time to go through passport control? I think screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely have Secretary of State Thaddeus Ross (William Hurt) say something along the lines of "We can't have you running around operating within sovereign borders without permission..." Haven't they read up on American foreign policy over the past half century?
And RDJ's Tony Stark falls in line because he hears about some kid who was killed as a consequence of the Avengers' action in ripping up that city in Sokovia, which they did to save, you know, the entire planet. Everyone here is acting as if they'd never realised innocent bystanders have been hurt. I mean, this is par for the course, ladies and gentlemen. They'd deal with this every day, not just when Alfre Woodard rocks up with a photo and a quivering lip...
All of this is to say that I didn't buy the impetus of the schism that fires Civil War but I will say when it hits the fan you get to experience some of the best superhero action sequences to churn out of the Marvel Studios superhero action sequence machine since they put the thing in play with Iron Man back in 2008. We're not talking Batman vs. Superman level get-them-fighting fuckery, Marvel's been too clever with its character set up for that and they hammer it home with a re-activated Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan), so there is some pedigree to the resulting feud. It is just that the revenge cycle that is ignited for Capt. America, for Iron Man, for Prince T'Challa, a.k.a. Black Panther (superbly introduced by Chadwick Boseman - we can forgive him Gods of Egypt now), feels like it wants to get "Monte Cristo" level serious and it doesn't quite reach it. Instead it wades in a kiddy pool of dead innocents and "haven't you gotten over that yet?"
That aside, I'm putting it out there that Anthony and Joe Russo have delivered one of the best, if not the best, Marvel offerings to date. Captain America: Civil War is slick; it is pacy; it is generous with its screen time for all involved, including Tom Holland's long-awaited Spidey (who is as perfect a webslinger as you're likely to get) and Rudd's returning Ant-Man, who has his own surprises in store. In fact, the film's central confrontation proves just how finely the Russo brothers have tuned their film.
Rumours of Civil War being a grind until the big showdown couldn't be more off the mark. The set pieces are exhilarating from the get-go and the momentum barely falters from beginning to end. Any lulls are given over to well drawn character moments and the cast, to a hero, are comfortable enough in their roles to wear them as a second skin. Add to this the wealth of character-driven backstory they can now rely on and this outing really does feel like settling in with some very familiar family members - just ones that aren't getting on so well.
The drunk ones at Christmas.
And you know how fun they are to watch, even when they're taking their shit to some very dark places. The same holds true here. There are scars by the end of Civil War that are going to give the Marvel Cinematic Universe a lot more personality. I think it will wear them well. Especially if they keep the Russos in tow.
And if they have Paul Rudd do a bit more of that pectoral patting.
★★★★
Trailer:
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