Captain America: Brave New World review – Bang average, but it has a Hulk

Captain America: Brave New World isn’t a return to the MCU’s halcyon days, nor a step into bold, uncharted franchise territory. Instead, it’s a profoundly mid, muddled actioner that’s just entertaining enough; something that can’t be said about its predecessors. 

Cast your mind back to the glory of the Infinity Saga; sturdy, often dazzling blockbusters that told effective (and affecting) standalone stories with a grander sense of cohesion, barreling towards Thanos and his glimmering gauntlet of universe-culling stones. 

Now, the whole thing is a mess. Bar a few exceptions (Spider-Man: No Way Home, Guardians of the Galaxy 3, X-Men ‘97, and Loki), the Multiverse Saga has been a disastrous exercise in toy-box thrills that’s diluted any sense of event with each release; people want to know why they should care anymore, and Marvel has struggled to instill its TV shows and movies with a reason.

It’s in desperate need of redemption; an incentive to watch beyond fan service (I enjoyed it, but Deadpool & Wolverine is guilty) and stick around. Captain America: Brave New World isn’t that reason – if nothing else, it’s a harmless way to pass the time. 

What is Captain America: Brave New World about? 

Five months after Thaddeus Ross (Harrison Ford) is elected president, Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) – the newly inducted Captain America – is called into the White House alongside Joaquin Torrest (Danny Ramirez), aka the Falcon, for a special assignment: rebuilding the Avengers. 

However, things become tense between them after an incident almost kills Ross and threatens a treaty concerning the remains of Tiamut (the big, abandoned Celestial from Eternals) and its adamantium. And, let’s just say, you don’t want to make the president angry.

There’s also the small matter of Samuel Sterns (Tim Blake Nelson), last seen in The Incredible Hulk after Bruce Banner’s blood made contact with an open wound, causing his head to bloat. There’s little I can say about his place in the plot and his motivations, but he’s a devious, dauntingly smart antagonist. 

Brave New World is choppy and confused about what it is 

Marvel Studios

Each Captain America movie had a sense of identity and purpose; The First Avenger was a pulpy, earnest origin story, The Winter Soldier was a superhero movie in the template of a paranoid ‘70s thriller, and Civil War (aka Avengers 2.5) dared to cause a worthy rift between Earth’s mightiest heroes. 

The same can’t be said about Brave New World, a film that can’t decide what it wants to be – so it tries to be everything: a Captain America movie, a follow-up to a subpar Disney Plus series, an international political thriller, all within a world preposterous enough to let its president turn into a big red monster (more on him later). 

And, hilariously, its most important connection is arguably The Incredible Hulk, notoriously one of the worst MCU movies. You’d probably be fine without seeing it, but I’d advise you to watch it beforehand – especially as it contains emotional payoffs… for The Incredible Hulk (I can’t believe I’m writing this). 

No part of it is the best (or even a great) version of what it’s trying to do: at its best, it’s good. There may be a better movie hidden in here, lost in translation from one script and reshoot to another. That’s not to absolve director Julius Onah of his mistakes, but it’s clearly the victim of a choppy production. 

Marvel Studios

Nelson is underutilized; ironically, his character is sick of feeling like a pawn, and that’s exactly how he’s treated here. The script (penned by a five-strong team, never a great sign) borders on witless; trite humor, occasionally overwritten, and uninspiring. 

The action is fine; cut to death in some scenes, sparingly (and mercifully) edited in others. Mackie is a game, athletic performer who believably kicks guys’ asses – in one fight, he smacks enemies in their faces with cinder blocks! – and the film seems reluctant to show him off. He occasionally seems a little checked-out, but for the most part, it’s a convincing solo outing with the mantle. 

Credit where it’s due, there’s ambition in one huge-scale set piece around Tiamut, a sequence that soars beyond some ropey VFX with dynamic, propulsive action. Elsewhere, Kramer Morgenthau’s cinematography makes a strong impression; forgiving a few ugly shots, the film has a textured, stylish visual palette. 

Its politics are dull… but it has a Red Hulk 

Disney

Where The Winter Soldier and Civil War had a somewhat sharp, prescient edge, Brave New World struggles to capture – as Ross says – the “urgency of the moment.” Its vague nods to the political climate are yawningly hollow; in one scene, Sam says the “country is lost.” Even its use of the film’s title is worthy of an eye roll. 

To say The Falcon and the Winter Soldier did any heavy lifting feels like a stretch, but at least the series interrogated the pressure of Sam becoming Captain America, especially in the shadow of Steve Rogers. Here, it’s little more than a footnote, though that’s not the fault of Mackie – when he gets the chance to talk about it, it’s endearing. 

Now, let’s address the Red Hulk in the room: Harrison Ford is note-perfect, delivering a distinct, charismatic performance as Ross – and his not-so-secret transformation is a brief, but brilliant highlight of the movie. It felt exhilarating to see a Hulk (even if it’s not the Hulk) be a terrifying threat again. If only the rest of the film felt as exciting as those scenes.

Dexerto Review Score: 3/5 – Good 

Captain America: Brave New World hasn’t redeemed my faith in the MCU, and it doesn’t hold a candle to its franchise-defining predecessors, but I can’t lie: I had fun, and that’s what actually matters. 

Until it hits cinemas on February 14, 2025, check out our list of the best Marvel movies and the best superhero movies of all time, and make sure you keep tabs on the year’s releases with our 2025 movie calendar. For more information on how we score TV shows and movies, check out our scoring guidelines here.