Chris
Evans Robert Downey,
Jr. Scarlett Johansson Sebastian Stan Anthony Mackie Don Cheadle Jeremy Renner
Chadwick Boseman Paul Bettany Elizabeth Olsen Paul Rudd Tom Holland Daniel Bruhl William Hurt Emily VanCamp
Keep your eye firmly on the screen because this
Captain America travels at lightning
speed across the continents, through the story line and the 90+ characters,
over 20 of which are central to the action. Despite this complexity, more than
in many action films, screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely
present a coherent plot, fairly easy to follow for non-diehard Marvel Comics
fans. Industrial Light & Magic’s
visual effects are stunning.
It seems that after numerous deadly encounters
through the years between the superheroes and the bad guys, much collateral
damage has been incurred, making citizens fearful and governments thinking the
Avengers need to be reined in.
It’s proposed that a United Nations panel be appointed to supervise them
and set limits on what they will be allowed to do. Tony Stark, aka Ironman (Downey), specifically is confronted
by the mother of a promising son who was involved in charity work when he was
killed in Sokovia, incidental to the Avengers’ defeat of the super villain Ultron. The nation of Sokovia was decimated in
that battle.
Out of some guilt and reasoning, Stark is in favor of going
along with the UN proposal called the “Sokovia Accords” when Secretary of State
Ross (Hurt) presents it to him. Tony
brings it up to a few other super heroes for consideration, including Captain
America (Evans), Black Widow (Johansson), the Falcon (Mackie), and Scarlet
Witch (Olsen). Vision (Bettany)
and the War Machine (Cheadle) are already on board with the Secretary. The film laudably presents logical
arguments for and against the proposal, which have to do with individual
freedom versus community interest and true heroism versus vigilantism. Those on Tony’s side—Black Widow, War
Machine, and Vision—regard community concerns as paramount; whereas those
taking the other side—Captain America, Scarlet Witch, and Falcon—trust their
own moral judgments over a committee’s and foresee that their individual
assessments in emergency situations will be more effective than judgments by a
committee. This mistrust on the
Cap’s part continues the theme from the 2014 Captain America film; namely his experience of being betrayed by
authorities.
So the lines are drawn between Stark and
Captain America representing both sides of the argument, both of whom bring in
recruits: Spiderman (Holland) by
Stark and Hawkeye (Renner) and Ant-Man (Rudd) by Captain America. Fierce battles will be waged until an
evil plot of divide-and-conquer is uncovered. The Winter Soldier (Stan), Black Panther (Boseman) and Zemo
(Bruhl) will play pivotal roles.
Directors Anthony and Joe Russo (Captain America: Winter Soldier) with their writers create an
adventure-filled fantasy while clearly and intelligently addressing important
moral issues related to security, privacy, individualism, and the role of
governments in our world. Grief over
major losses and testing friendships add social/emotional components to make
the action more meaningful.
The cast is phenomenal, with most of the experienced,
well-known superheroes skillfully reprising their roles. Tom Holland as Spiderman is a welcome
newcomer, acing his role with competency and humor. Chadwick Boseman as Black Panther with cat claws is likewise
effective in his introductory appearance.
A visual effects extravaganza with
exciting and still meaningful content.
No comments:
Post a Comment