KSL Movie Show review: ‘Captain America: Brave New World’ is nothing new

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SALT LAKE CITY —Remember that annoying friend who used to ruin jokes when you were a kid?  “Oh, is this the one where the duck says put it on my bill!” Yeah, that guy.

Well now he apparently works for Marvel Studios, making trailers for their movies these days – and he’s back to his old tricks. 

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I wish I had warned you to not watch the trailer for this latest Captain America, since it gives away WAY TOO MUCH, but you already know what I’m talking about and if you don’t – good for you – and now you’re going to stop reading – and go watch the gall-darned trailer anyway, aren’t you.  Sigh.

In truth, I almost feel sorry for the guy.  I’m sure he made a beautiful preview touting all the new things Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) as the Captain 2.0 had in store, but the studio execs said, yeah we’re not making that movie.  Instead, we’re gonna dredge up a bunch of old stuff from 17 years ago, so we can remind people what they’ve been missing, rather than forging any new path for poor Sam in what is supposed to be his real coming out party.  That’s why we want you to put in all that “extra Harrison Ford stuff,” so people will come see the movie!

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Never mind, that most of “that stuff” comes at the end of the film, where we as an audience almost forgot it was coming.  They even tease it two-thirds in, but no, false alarm. 

So here’s what the suits came up with.

A bad guy named Sidewinder (Giancarlo Esposito) has taken some super compound, even stronger than vibranium, from the Japanese, who got it from some alien island that looks a lot like a giant Iron Giant stuck in cement underwater.  Captain America gets the super goo back with the help of a new Falcon and all is well?  Not even close.

Thaddeus Ross (Ford) who was a big jerk and a mean general played by William Hurt until he died in 2022, is now the President of the United States.  Huh? Don’t even think it.  He is determined to unite the countries of the world to work together in developing this new super material, not like the greedy Wakandans who wouldn’t share.  But nobody trusts the Americans, especially the Japanese Prime Minister who looks like he just walked out of a Shohei Ohtani catalog. 

Throw in a Manchurian Candidate mind control subplot with a bubble-headed Barney Fife villain, that took the characters forever to figure out, then add a whole bunch of serious expositional chitchat and you have the makings of fairly ho-hum action drama that suffers the cardinal sin – of virtually eliminating all the fun electricity of the previous Avenger movies. 

What is going on here?!

And even if you sit through the extra ten minutes of closing credits like a good little Marvel soldier, you’re treated to some drivel about other worlds – meaning get ready for more multi-universe nonsense.  Which on second thought might be the only way Marvel can get the whole band back together if they want to save this thing – anyone have Robert Downey Jr. on speed dial?

CAPTAIN AMERICA: BRAVE NEW WORLD (C+) Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, and some strong language. Starring Anthony Mackie, Harrison Ford, Danny Ramirez, Shira Haas, Tim Blake Nelson and Giancarlo Esposito. Directed by Julius Onah (“Luce” “The Cloverfield Paradox”) – filmed in Atlanta and Washington, D.C.  Running time: 118 minutes.   

The KSL Movie Show with Andy Farnsworth and Steve Salles airs Fridays on KSL NewsRadio from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Follow the show on Facebook, and join The KSL Movie Show Club for exclusive perks by texting MOVIE to 57500. Message and data rates may apply. Text STOP to cancel. Message frequency varies.