Civil War dug into a lot of deep superhero questions I want answered, but I was hoping at the end for a complete story arc for any of its lead characters. The Empire Strikes Back nailed the bitter, open-ended ending Civil War was obviously going for, but that was only setting up one more Star Wars movie. Cap and Iron Man shouldn’t just shake hands and agree to be friends again after all that, but I couldn’t shake the sense of “watch this space!” as they parted ways. I liked that there wasn’t a simple resolution, which would have felt cheap after all this build-up. It’s not straight-up goofy, it’s almost like watching pro athletes jaw at each other, delighting in deflating each other’s egos-until things get all serious. And unlike some recent superhero films (cough, Batman v Superman), it keeps things comic-book light, a specific tone these Marvel movies have always hit when so many of their rivals can’t. It’s probably why the movie juggles its ensemble so well, because it takes such care in having every hero pick a side for plausible reasons before having them attack each other. For me, Civil War didn’t really kick off until at least an hour in-around when Spider-Man showed up for the first time-because there was so much story groundwork to lay out. It’s hard to shake how much setup these movies need, though, just because of the sheer number of characters they’re throwing into the mix. I loved that the ideal of Spider-Man-the “with great power comes great responsibility” line, which he didn’t even need to say-could represent the best version of what Iron Man was aiming for, without feeling diametrically opposed to Cap. vigilantism) and then Black Panther occupied murkier independent territory between them. I liked that we started with very clear battle lines (Cap vs. Black Panther and Spider-Man don’t need elaborate origin arcs because we’re already so used to this living, breathing world of superheroes: It’s their motivations and how they relate to the specific story that the audience is into. I thought the unwillingness to heal wounds, indeed to salt them just when those wounds seemed to be healing, was brave, and really well done.ĭavid Sims: I think the biggest strength of the Marvel style is the confidence with which it introduces new characters. One other thing-this was the rare story that actually improved in the third act. And you don't really worry about those origins because, I think, in this film and in the entire series, the Universe has been so well set up. The movie didn't try to establish Black Panther's origins. There was no need for (yet another) spider bite for instance. I think the movie benefited a lot from being able assume people were familiar with some of the cast. Nothing felt forced, everyone came in when they were needed, and for the most part, everyone got an arc. (You know what I mean!) But it actually worked. How many heroes are in this thing? It would be so easy to just have this be a mash of spider-webs and vibranium claws. I think people need to be aware of how easy it would be to screw up a movie like this. I thought it was a really, really good movie. Viewers who haven’t made it to the theaters yet, beware: Spoilers abound. Now that the film is in theaters and earning the typical Marvel big bucks, Ta-Nehisi Coates, David Sims, Gillian White, and Matt Thompson dig into the wider political implications of its story, the deftness with which it introduces new characters like Spider-Man and Black Panther, and the film’s real-world parallels. The Atlantic’s film critic, Christopher Orr, gave Civil War a positive review on Friday.
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