The last time we saw Sam Wilson was in the Disney+ series The Falcon and The Winter Solider paired with Bucky Barnes. In the 6-episode series (which felt like a long feature film) the two went on a mission filled with action, suspense, and kinetic energy between its two leads played by Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan.
We get a dose of that and a bit more in Marvel Studios’ latest film Captain America: Brave New World, where Sam Wilson takes the front seat in his own story on the big screen along with a new Falcon by the name of Joaquin Torres played by Danny Ramirez. Directed by Julius Onah, in this story, Sam Wilson is assigned with the task of reforming The Avengers under the direction of President Thaddeus Ross (Harrison Ford).
This comes as a surprise to Sam given Ross’ history with The Avengers and the Sokovia Accords. However, Ross is on a redemptive arc and wants what is best for the country and the world – or so we are led to believe. While Sam takes on this assignment, Isaiah Bradley (Carl Lumbly) turns out to be compromised and attempts to assassinate President Ross. Bradley is now viewed as public enemy number one and Ross has also lost trust in Sam as his allegiance and loyalty as a friend to Bradley still remains. Soldiers stick together. It’s clear something wasn’t quite right with this attempt on Ross’ life and Sam is now determined to get to the bottom of what happened.
With the help of Torres, who has a knack for understanding tech, the two investigate who is behind the manipulation happening behind the scenes. It’s not too long that their investigation is interrupted by Seth Voelker aka Sidewinder (Giancarlo Esposito) who is on a mission on his own to search and destroy Sam Wilson.
What Captain America: Brave New World unpacks in the first ten minutes of the film are fast-paced action sequences that leave you engaged and interested in what is happening in Sam’s surroundings. Specifically speaking, the film delivers intense aerial battles, high-speed chases, and shield-throwing action that will have you on the edge of your seat. The fight choreography is top notch and although the CGI at times does look a little less than stellar, it doesn’t take you out of the movie. Going back to the fight sequences, it reminded me very much of the great fight scenes we’ve seen in previous Captain America films such as Winter Solider and Civil War. The story is clear, concise and gets straight to the point. It does help that writer Malcolm Spellman is a part of the team that help craft this story together. He was the head writer for The Falcon and The Winter Solider. The film seamlessly is able to blend political drama with jaw-dropping action. Brave New World brings us themes of global power shifts, hidden agendas, and what it truly means to be a hero in today’s world.
While there is a great deal of exposition that is dumped on us by Samuel Sterns (Tim Blake Nelson) it provides enough needed information and context that doesn’t condescend its audience. Sterns is a pretty interesting villain, although Esposito as Seth Voelker was the most compelling one. He was methodical, scary, intimidating and at times seemed as if he was close enough to deliver a fatality to our beloved Cap.
There’s also the addition of Shira Haas debuting as Sabra, who may play a factor in future films to come with her background as a former Black Widow.
In recent years, Marvel has suffered from the “Marvelification” of their films with hokey one-liners, zingers, and ridiculous buzzphrases that made their characters look like clowns performing at circus show. Marvel leaned a bit too much into humor (i.e, Thor: Love and Thunder and Ant-Man: Quantamania) and less into its dramatic narrative. With this film, we get grounded storytelling without them leaning too much into those moments. There are a few here and there, with Torres as the new guy trying to fit into this superhero world, but it’s not over the top. It’s almost as if Marvel realized that the Captain America formula is one that should be consistent and if it ain’t broke, then don’t fix it. Thank God for the consistency here.
There’s great chemistry with our on-screen leads Mackie and Ramirez respectively. They play off one another very well. And it’s pretty clear the way this storytelling is grounded in Captain America: Brave New World, it will certainly set us up for future stories around The Avengers.
Captain America: Brave New World takes bold swings in redefining what it means to carry the shield and it definitely sticks the landing. This Cap isn’t just about super-soldier serum — it’s about resilience, responsibility, and the courage to stand for something greater. Whether this new world is truly brave or just another stepping stone for the franchise remains to be seen, but at the very least, it’s an intriguing new start.
Captain America: Brave New World premieres in theaters Feb 14th
