Captain America: Civil War Review
May. 10th, 2016 10:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
iariaOverall... I enjoyed it.
Unfortunately one little thing happened near the beginning, something completely incidental to anything, that put a pall over the entire movie for me. The reveal that Tony and Pepper broke up at some point post Age of Ultron seriously pisses me off. Why did they throw that in there? I do not understand it. There was no reason for her to be in the movie so while I really wanted to see her I would have been okay with no mention. But to break them up off screen? I mean blah blah Tony angst bad day emotionally compromised blah - but no reason for it! And mention it offhand in a Captain America movie?? Oh, fuck you.
I was a little worried, after I heard she might be in the movie, about them killing her off to give Tony motivation but I never once considered the possibility of them break up (off screen) so it came out of no where for me. Here's the thing - they are so solid. They've had their ups and downs in the movies - she threatened to walk away in the first one, the second one had her mentioning quitting, because she can't stand the idea of losing Tony but she never did. And post-IM3, after everything that has happened, for her to walk away now just does not work for me. I don't buy it.
I was basically simmering in low-grade irritation all the way until the airport fight which distracted me with it's greatness. It really impacted my enjoyment of the movie as a whole. Even now while thinking back to the things I enjoyed I keep getting blindsided by my anger, which irritates me because I just want to enjoy the movie. There is so much that was great! I have literally enjoyed every single MCU movie and even though it feels really dumb I'm having a hard time getting past this. I do feel like the next time I watch I'll enjoy it more.
Anyway.
Moving past that there was a lot I liked about what they did in this movie.
+ The airport fight was awesome. I was a little nervous about it based on the trailers but it was one of my favourite parts of the movie. I loved all the different match-ups - both those working together and those working against each other. I loved how Spider-Man and Ant Man were both used. Ant Man on Clint's arrow and entering the armours to mess with them was great. Giant Ant Man was awesome! I loved Tony, Rhodey and Peter working together to take him down. Cap vs Spider-Man was excellent. I also loved Spider-Man vs Bucky and Sam. Natasha vs Ant Man. Wanda taking out Natasha because Clint couldn't. So many more little moments I don't even remember. But I loved how it played out from start to finish.
+ I thought they did a good job, for the most part, in showing the different sides POV and why each of the various characters chose what they chose. I feel like both Tony and Steve's choices were sympathetic and they did both have points. I liked that Steve's wasn't about protecting Bucky so much as doing what he thought was right. That said I'm 100% Team Tony here. I think he and Natasha were right and Steve taking such a hardline stance immediately was foolish.
As for the others - I was very relieved with Natasha and her approach to this situation. Everyone should have listened to her. The one I least bought was Clint getting involved. I have no idea why he was even there. This wasn't a life-or-death, or a end of the world situation. It didn't affect him. Also Scott - what are you doing? Rhodey being behind the Accord's 100% made complete sense to me.
+ I love that we started the movie with T'Challa's grief over losing his father and his quest for vengeance, that we followed him on that quest all the way to Siberia where we got Tony's desire for revenge and then how it was all tied together with everything happening because of another man's wish for vengeance. I liked Zemo as a villain quite a bit actually and he ended up being very effective.
+ The end fight between Tony and Bucky/Cap was really well done. I liked how that played out. I really appreciate that the big final battle was just between the three of them with no potential collateral damage.
+ Tony's reaction doesn't bother me because he literally not only just learned that Bucky was 'responsible' for his parents murder but he watched it happen. And at the same time learned that Steve knew and hadn't told him which made him feel betrayed on top of everything else and killed his trust in Steve. So him losing it and going into kill mode made complete sense to me. I loved Tony's "He killed my mother." That said it did get to be a little much. I do feel like if Steve had told Tony the truth when he first learned about it things would have gone very different. Without Bucky right there, without being forced to actually watch the murders happen, Tony would have had the time to work through his anger. He would have been able to eventually see that it wasn't Bucky and Bucky was a victim as well.
+ I really liked Steve sending Tony that letter - him apologising for keeping the truth about his parents from Tony but still certain that his choice on the Sokovia Accords was the right one, and him sending Tony a phone and an offer to help if he ever needs it.
+ Tony/Rhodey were so great. I loved them. It's hard to believe that back in IM2 I didn't buy Cheadle's Rhodey as Tony's BFF because they are so great now. "Let go of my Rhodey!" ♥ I loved them working together during the fight. Tony holding Rhodey's body and his expression when Friday told him there was a heartbeat. That final scene between them was perfect: Tony helping Rhodey with his physical therapy and offering him all the toys he wants, Rhodey reassuring Tony that he still believes in the choice he made and doesn't regret it or blame Tony, and Rhodey teasing Tony about "Stank" (lol).
+ T'Challa was great. I love his deliberateness and I liked him not only not choosing vengeance but that he didn't let Zemo kill himself either and instead took him into custody for actual justice. I really love his suit and his whole look. It's one of my favourites. Also I love the way he moves. I really enjoyed his interactions with Natasha. I'd love for her to be in his movie.
+ Peter was adorable. I really loved his earnestness and genuine interest in all the different bits of technology. The way he kept getting distracted during the fight was great and I love how enthusiastic he was. His little Star Wars explanation was hilarious. I loved that his super-strength was so obvious - him catching Bucky's arm being the standout moment - because it often feels ignored.
+ I love the Tony/Peter relationship. Their scenes were great and I love Tony mentoring Peter so much.
+ I enjoyed Steve and Bucky a lot. I loved their first scene together and the fight with the cops was great. I loved Steve's exasperation with Bucky during the stairway fight. I loved Steve saving Bucky from the water after the helicopter crash. I loved the scene in Siberia with Bucky having his back and then Steve helping Bucky as they left. The mid-credits scene was really nice too.
+ The Bucky/Steve/T'Challa chase scene in Bucharest was great. I loved T'Challa jumping onto Sam, lol.
+ Steve/Natasha were truly lovely. I love so much that she went to London just so that he wouldn't be alone (... even though Sam was there Natasha) and that hug was wonderful. I love her trying to protect him throughout. I love how much it was obvious that while she did think signing the Accords was the right thing and thus her head was with Tony, her heart was with Steve. I love their friendship so much.
+ Sam and Bucky were super great in their few interactions. In the car when Cap was getting their gear back from Sharon they were a delight. I loved Sam hard-faced refusal to move his seat and Bucky scooching over and their reactions to the Steve/Sharon kiss were hilarious and I think might have been my first laugh of the movie. I also loved their fight against Spider-Man and Sam's "I hate you." when Bucky started criticizing him. I kind of want the Sam and Bucky movie now.
+ I love that it was Clint once again giving Wanda his version of a prep talk that made her decide to act and help Steve.
+ I am glad that the whole 'double agent' spoiler played out this way. Natasha was so obvious as the one who would have that role but I like that she honestly was on the side of signing the Accords and in the end she wasn't so much a double-agent for Steve as she was his friend who realised he would never give up and didn't have the interest in continuing to fight him.
+ Natasha/Tony had some surprisingly good moments. I really liked her touching his shoulder and checking that he was all right after the Bucky attack.
+ Tony creating a whole new technology in order to help people deal with past trauma was lovely.
+ I loved Peggy's advice to Sharon and how it obviously got to Steve.
+ I'm glad that Rhodey being shot down was an accident and I loved that Sam went after a falling War Machine too.
On the other side of it things I didn't like:
+ Tony and Pepper grumble grumble. WHATEVER movie I don't care what you say they're just fine!
+ That Sharon/Steve kiss was so badly done. I almost can't believe how badly done it was. It felt so out of place, awkward and I simply didn't understand it. She went above and beyond to help him so I can understand him being grateful. But the execution of this was terrible because it came out of no where. I mean there was some flirtiness when she was undercover but nothing else since then and even that was mostly nothing. I just find how they played out her off and weird.
+ I think it was a mistake not to have War Machine in the new Avengers fight against Crossbones at the beginning. He's supposed to be one of them so why wasn't he there? It feels like he was too overpowered and the writers weren't sure how to deal with that and so just left him out without an explanation. As a result he never really feels like he's part of that team and thus his fight with them over the Accords and him siding with Tony ends up feeling like a 'duh' moment. He's been fighting with this Avengers lineup for a year now but you really wouldn't know it.
+ Ross being in charge of the Accords and calling all the shots felt... well, like a concrete example of exactly what Steve was worried about. Isn't the whole point of the Accords to put the Avengers under UN oversight with them answering to a panel? Why does Ross have so much power in this situation?
+ Actually the Accords themselves - how the hell did they get that far along without the Avengers learning about them? It would have taken months to get to this point and it should have been all over the news? When exactly did Tony learn about them?
+ Tony going and bringing high-schooler Peter into a fight with various super-powered people had me shaking my head so much. Oh, Tony, seriously? Especially after all his angsting earlier over the kid killed in Sokovia. Just - what.
+ Why the heck was Zemo in Bucky's cage cell at the end? He's a normal guy with no powers. He should be in a normal jail. Also that whole set up seemed like a secret US jail situation which considering Zemo's crimes does not fly with me. He killed/caused the death of multiple people across a bunch of different countries. There would have been a trial. Hell, T'Challa would have made sure of it.
+ So was the fact that the Winter Soldier killed the Stark's in that info dump Natasha did in CA2? Because there is no way that Tony wouldn't have found out! JARVIS would have immediately started decoding and looking over them for anything of interest. Tony would have been doing that. I don't buy it.
+ When it was revealed that there were more Winter Soldiers I was half-expecting a reveal that Natasha was one of them based mainly on her line to Bucky about remembering her. A little disappointed that she didn't have more to do especially with the movie moving on to Russia which is her old stomping ground.
+ I wish we had gotten a Tony/Wanda scene though I admit I don't really see any good point for it to happen.
Unfortunately one little thing happened near the beginning, something completely incidental to anything, that put a pall over the entire movie for me. The reveal that Tony and Pepper broke up at some point post Age of Ultron seriously pisses me off. Why did they throw that in there? I do not understand it. There was no reason for her to be in the movie so while I really wanted to see her I would have been okay with no mention. But to break them up off screen? I mean blah blah Tony angst bad day emotionally compromised blah - but no reason for it! And mention it offhand in a Captain America movie?? Oh, fuck you.
I was a little worried, after I heard she might be in the movie, about them killing her off to give Tony motivation but I never once considered the possibility of them break up (off screen) so it came out of no where for me. Here's the thing - they are so solid. They've had their ups and downs in the movies - she threatened to walk away in the first one, the second one had her mentioning quitting, because she can't stand the idea of losing Tony but she never did. And post-IM3, after everything that has happened, for her to walk away now just does not work for me. I don't buy it.
I was basically simmering in low-grade irritation all the way until the airport fight which distracted me with it's greatness. It really impacted my enjoyment of the movie as a whole. Even now while thinking back to the things I enjoyed I keep getting blindsided by my anger, which irritates me because I just want to enjoy the movie. There is so much that was great! I have literally enjoyed every single MCU movie and even though it feels really dumb I'm having a hard time getting past this. I do feel like the next time I watch I'll enjoy it more.
Anyway.
Moving past that there was a lot I liked about what they did in this movie.
+ The airport fight was awesome. I was a little nervous about it based on the trailers but it was one of my favourite parts of the movie. I loved all the different match-ups - both those working together and those working against each other. I loved how Spider-Man and Ant Man were both used. Ant Man on Clint's arrow and entering the armours to mess with them was great. Giant Ant Man was awesome! I loved Tony, Rhodey and Peter working together to take him down. Cap vs Spider-Man was excellent. I also loved Spider-Man vs Bucky and Sam. Natasha vs Ant Man. Wanda taking out Natasha because Clint couldn't. So many more little moments I don't even remember. But I loved how it played out from start to finish.
+ I thought they did a good job, for the most part, in showing the different sides POV and why each of the various characters chose what they chose. I feel like both Tony and Steve's choices were sympathetic and they did both have points. I liked that Steve's wasn't about protecting Bucky so much as doing what he thought was right. That said I'm 100% Team Tony here. I think he and Natasha were right and Steve taking such a hardline stance immediately was foolish.
As for the others - I was very relieved with Natasha and her approach to this situation. Everyone should have listened to her. The one I least bought was Clint getting involved. I have no idea why he was even there. This wasn't a life-or-death, or a end of the world situation. It didn't affect him. Also Scott - what are you doing? Rhodey being behind the Accord's 100% made complete sense to me.
+ I love that we started the movie with T'Challa's grief over losing his father and his quest for vengeance, that we followed him on that quest all the way to Siberia where we got Tony's desire for revenge and then how it was all tied together with everything happening because of another man's wish for vengeance. I liked Zemo as a villain quite a bit actually and he ended up being very effective.
+ The end fight between Tony and Bucky/Cap was really well done. I liked how that played out. I really appreciate that the big final battle was just between the three of them with no potential collateral damage.
+ Tony's reaction doesn't bother me because he literally not only just learned that Bucky was 'responsible' for his parents murder but he watched it happen. And at the same time learned that Steve knew and hadn't told him which made him feel betrayed on top of everything else and killed his trust in Steve. So him losing it and going into kill mode made complete sense to me. I loved Tony's "He killed my mother." That said it did get to be a little much. I do feel like if Steve had told Tony the truth when he first learned about it things would have gone very different. Without Bucky right there, without being forced to actually watch the murders happen, Tony would have had the time to work through his anger. He would have been able to eventually see that it wasn't Bucky and Bucky was a victim as well.
+ I really liked Steve sending Tony that letter - him apologising for keeping the truth about his parents from Tony but still certain that his choice on the Sokovia Accords was the right one, and him sending Tony a phone and an offer to help if he ever needs it.
+ Tony/Rhodey were so great. I loved them. It's hard to believe that back in IM2 I didn't buy Cheadle's Rhodey as Tony's BFF because they are so great now. "Let go of my Rhodey!" ♥ I loved them working together during the fight. Tony holding Rhodey's body and his expression when Friday told him there was a heartbeat. That final scene between them was perfect: Tony helping Rhodey with his physical therapy and offering him all the toys he wants, Rhodey reassuring Tony that he still believes in the choice he made and doesn't regret it or blame Tony, and Rhodey teasing Tony about "Stank" (lol).
+ T'Challa was great. I love his deliberateness and I liked him not only not choosing vengeance but that he didn't let Zemo kill himself either and instead took him into custody for actual justice. I really love his suit and his whole look. It's one of my favourites. Also I love the way he moves. I really enjoyed his interactions with Natasha. I'd love for her to be in his movie.
+ Peter was adorable. I really loved his earnestness and genuine interest in all the different bits of technology. The way he kept getting distracted during the fight was great and I love how enthusiastic he was. His little Star Wars explanation was hilarious. I loved that his super-strength was so obvious - him catching Bucky's arm being the standout moment - because it often feels ignored.
+ I love the Tony/Peter relationship. Their scenes were great and I love Tony mentoring Peter so much.
+ I enjoyed Steve and Bucky a lot. I loved their first scene together and the fight with the cops was great. I loved Steve's exasperation with Bucky during the stairway fight. I loved Steve saving Bucky from the water after the helicopter crash. I loved the scene in Siberia with Bucky having his back and then Steve helping Bucky as they left. The mid-credits scene was really nice too.
+ The Bucky/Steve/T'Challa chase scene in Bucharest was great. I loved T'Challa jumping onto Sam, lol.
+ Steve/Natasha were truly lovely. I love so much that she went to London just so that he wouldn't be alone (... even though Sam was there Natasha) and that hug was wonderful. I love her trying to protect him throughout. I love how much it was obvious that while she did think signing the Accords was the right thing and thus her head was with Tony, her heart was with Steve. I love their friendship so much.
+ Sam and Bucky were super great in their few interactions. In the car when Cap was getting their gear back from Sharon they were a delight. I loved Sam hard-faced refusal to move his seat and Bucky scooching over and their reactions to the Steve/Sharon kiss were hilarious and I think might have been my first laugh of the movie. I also loved their fight against Spider-Man and Sam's "I hate you." when Bucky started criticizing him. I kind of want the Sam and Bucky movie now.
+ I love that it was Clint once again giving Wanda his version of a prep talk that made her decide to act and help Steve.
+ I am glad that the whole 'double agent' spoiler played out this way. Natasha was so obvious as the one who would have that role but I like that she honestly was on the side of signing the Accords and in the end she wasn't so much a double-agent for Steve as she was his friend who realised he would never give up and didn't have the interest in continuing to fight him.
+ Natasha/Tony had some surprisingly good moments. I really liked her touching his shoulder and checking that he was all right after the Bucky attack.
+ Tony creating a whole new technology in order to help people deal with past trauma was lovely.
+ I loved Peggy's advice to Sharon and how it obviously got to Steve.
+ I'm glad that Rhodey being shot down was an accident and I loved that Sam went after a falling War Machine too.
On the other side of it things I didn't like:
+ Tony and Pepper grumble grumble. WHATEVER movie I don't care what you say they're just fine!
+ That Sharon/Steve kiss was so badly done. I almost can't believe how badly done it was. It felt so out of place, awkward and I simply didn't understand it. She went above and beyond to help him so I can understand him being grateful. But the execution of this was terrible because it came out of no where. I mean there was some flirtiness when she was undercover but nothing else since then and even that was mostly nothing. I just find how they played out her off and weird.
+ I think it was a mistake not to have War Machine in the new Avengers fight against Crossbones at the beginning. He's supposed to be one of them so why wasn't he there? It feels like he was too overpowered and the writers weren't sure how to deal with that and so just left him out without an explanation. As a result he never really feels like he's part of that team and thus his fight with them over the Accords and him siding with Tony ends up feeling like a 'duh' moment. He's been fighting with this Avengers lineup for a year now but you really wouldn't know it.
+ Ross being in charge of the Accords and calling all the shots felt... well, like a concrete example of exactly what Steve was worried about. Isn't the whole point of the Accords to put the Avengers under UN oversight with them answering to a panel? Why does Ross have so much power in this situation?
+ Actually the Accords themselves - how the hell did they get that far along without the Avengers learning about them? It would have taken months to get to this point and it should have been all over the news? When exactly did Tony learn about them?
+ Tony going and bringing high-schooler Peter into a fight with various super-powered people had me shaking my head so much. Oh, Tony, seriously? Especially after all his angsting earlier over the kid killed in Sokovia. Just - what.
+ Why the heck was Zemo in Bucky's cage cell at the end? He's a normal guy with no powers. He should be in a normal jail. Also that whole set up seemed like a secret US jail situation which considering Zemo's crimes does not fly with me. He killed/caused the death of multiple people across a bunch of different countries. There would have been a trial. Hell, T'Challa would have made sure of it.
+ So was the fact that the Winter Soldier killed the Stark's in that info dump Natasha did in CA2? Because there is no way that Tony wouldn't have found out! JARVIS would have immediately started decoding and looking over them for anything of interest. Tony would have been doing that. I don't buy it.
+ When it was revealed that there were more Winter Soldiers I was half-expecting a reveal that Natasha was one of them based mainly on her line to Bucky about remembering her. A little disappointed that she didn't have more to do especially with the movie moving on to Russia which is her old stomping ground.
+ I wish we had gotten a Tony/Wanda scene though I admit I don't really see any good point for it to happen.
