After something of a one offering drought in 2024, 2025 has come along and is offering us a smorgasbord of Marvel Cinematic Universe releases in theater. We have already had Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts*, and Fantastic Four: First Steps is becoming more imminent with each passing day.

With Brave New World now available to watch at home on Disney Plus, let’s take a quick backward look at that outing and see what we thought of it while we are waiting on the debut of Marvel’s First Family. 

After three Captain America movies of his own (First Avenger, Winter Soldier, and Civil War), as well as several Avengers flicks as the de facto leader of that team, Steve Rogers has retired into the sunset and left his legacy in the hands of Sam Wilson, his sidekick since Winter Soldier. Sam took a side trip down the Disney Plus streaming exclusive route with The Falcon & The Winter Soldier to set up his own believing in himself to be equal to what Rogers saw in him. But now Sam is officially and finally the new Captain America, and he takes to the skies in Brave New World.

With an uneasy alliance with the new President Of The United States–Thunderbolt Ross–Sam’s first real test is nothing less than easing worldwide tensions when several nations are racing to claim the new adamantium material that was discovered in the frozen Celestial in the Pacific Ocean. Pushing these tensions to the brink are the villainous Sidewinder… as well as a familiar face from deep in the MCU’s past.

Will the new Cap be able to keep hostilities between nations at bay in his first real outing as the star-spangled hero?

TWO UPS AND TWO DOWNS

+ Anthony Mackie commands the screen and really becomes Captain America. He is powerful and dignified and ever-so-slightly flawed (but trying). He is great. If there was any question if The MCU made the right choice giving the shield to Sam, I think this cleared it up. Besides, what was the alternative? Give it to the brainwashed former Soviet asset in Bucky? In character, it always made sense for Cap to pass the mantle to the much more stable Wilson over Barnes.

Additionally, Mackie embodies the beliefs of Captain America outside of the film, just like Chris Evans did. He isn’t afraid to say uncomfortable truths about the country he represents on screen. He isn’t afraid to show who he is and what he supports, even if it might make others mad at him or make them want to see him get torn down. Mackie is a real hero in all regards, both based on who he really is and how he portrays himself in the cineplex.

+ The lack of real superheroics really gives this movie a Captain America: Winter Soldier feel to it. It’s very much about low-to-the-ground human elements and keeping world peace rather than giant pew-pews being fired all around. Which is not to say that there isn’t action in this movie or that there aren’t some big comic set pieces–the finale sees Captain America fighting for his life against a rampaging Red Hulk after all–but the road there is paved with more ground-level action and espionage. Pretty ironic for a guy who flies, I guess. 

I just enjoyed Sam trying to deduce who the villain was and how he could save there day here more than I might have appreciated a throw-away battle against Evil Guy #484. This felt like they were keeping the stakes high, but the devastation low, and I just appreciated that.

– The Red Hulk reveal could have been a million percent better if the trailers hadn’t spoiled it. Seriously? Why did they have to do that? Why can’t we have nice things, and why do trailers have to give away all the most important beats when the movie, watched in a bubble, is clearly trying to keep those moments as a reveal?

I’m reminded so much of last year’s Abigail, a movie about a vampiric ballerina in which, if you watch the movie without having seen the trailers, Abigail’s vampiric nature is definitely supposed to be an “Oh shit!” moment, but TOO BAD for you, because the advertising gave that all away. It’s more of the same here. Brave New World clearly wanted Ross’ transformation to be a MOMENT, but we all know it was coming from the title card. Such a shame.

– Giancarlo Esposito is great, but wildly underused here, as he is basically written out of the movie at the halfway point. He was sorely missed in the back half and was better than the real Big Bad we got. I would have exchanged The Leader for more of Esposito as Sidewinder is a moment. 

The Leader, in addition to being fueled by sketchy design and special effects, just didn’t really have any flavor. Tim Blake Nelson does an OK job, I’ll admit, but it’s mostly the script and screenplay that does him no favors. Meanwhile, in the first act of Brave New World, you have one of the best antagonists in all of media staying one step ahead of Sam. How much better could everything have been had Esposito just hung around as the true Big Bad? A Fair amount, I venture to say.

OVERALL

Brave New World soars and dips with Anthony Mackie’s performance, and it’s mostly smooth flying as far as that goes. He is a star, and as a character, Sam really deserved the moment he got here. There are some intriguing developments throughout, but the second act falters when The Leader emerges as the true threat to world peace. This is a movie that had a lot of potential to be the Winter Soldier of Phase Five, but it kind of squandered that on a weak villain. Still, it’s not a bad watch at all; it just needed to finesse its screenplay to match Mackie’s efforts.

3.5 Stars Out Of 5