Marvel needs a savior of a film. Going beyond Marvel, the superhero film genre needs that proverbial shot in the arm and a savior film. So the big question hanging on most film critics’ minds as 2025 comes along is whether this new Anthony Mackie-led Captain America will serve that purpose and enjoy as big a success as Black Panther did in 2018, when it grossed over $1.3 billion worldwide. And trust me, while that is a tall order to put on anyone’s shoulders, let’s remember that before Black Panther started its run, not many in the world would have even known who Chadwick Boseman was. 

Captain America: Brave New World is the fourth installment of the film series and a continuation of the TV miniseries The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021). Directed by Julius Onah (The Cloverfield Paradox, 2018), the film stars Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson/Captain America, with Danny Ramirez as Joaquin Torres/Falcon, Shira Haas, Giancarlo Esposito as Sidewinder, Tim Blake Nelson as Samuel Sterns, Liv Tyler as Betty Ross, and Harrison Ford as Thaddeus Ross (a role originally portrayed by William Hurt). 

There are no spoilers here, so I’m not going to mention how the above list of actors does not include one name, who makes a great cameo. And no prizes for guessing who; as if you’ve watched the previous Captain America films, it’s not that hard a guess. And I’ll even help you by saying it’s not Chris Evans. 

The plot of this film follows Captain America as he gets enmeshed in one international incident after another, all because he tries to bury the hatchet and work with Thaddeus Ross, now US President Ross. What President Ross has up his sleeve, or what dark secrets he harbors are what make up for the dense storyline of this film. Some mentioned that watching The Falcon and the Winter Soldier would have been helpful. But I haven’t, and pretty much got where this film wanted to take us.

Captain America has always been the more straight-laced, grimly correct superhero. While Thor has a naughty streak, and Iron Man can go snarky, Captain America had the more serious mien. That grim demeanour carries Mackie in his portrayal, and I’m not sure that was the right road to take. Mackie has a gift for comedy and being more physical, so I would have liked the producers creating a truly different version of the Captain.

As it is, there’s too much angst about filling the shoes of Steve Rogers and constantly being reminded about that. A more easy-going Sam Wilson might have helped. There’s also a rather abrupt end to the film, like the producers were conscious about not hitting the two-hour mark, so that compared to films like Avengers: End Game, no one will say they’re stretching or squeezing all the juice out of the narrative. 

Best to watch this on an SM IMAX screen so the effects and scale of this film are enjoyed. Whether this is the rejuvenating film for the superhero genre, I think it’ll do decent business given the time of the year and lack of competition, but we will still have to wait for that true savior.