Captain America: Brave New World’s reviews have started to pour in, and the firstMarvel Cinematic Universemovie of the year is not being met with praise, but a fair share of criticism.Chris Evans' Captain America moviesare highly regarded as part of one of the MCU’s best trilogies, if not the very best.WithCaptain America: Brave New World’s storyhaving been compared toThe Winter Soldier’s, Evans' best Steve Rogers film, expectations were high.
Perhaps that is one of the reasons why so many critics have expressed disappointment with the first of2025’s MCU movies.Captain America: Brave New Worldholds a measly 49% score by critics onRotten Tomatoesat the time of writing. That is somewhat unexpected, as the trailers for the MCU movie seemed to tease the kind of grounded, more serious thriller fans have been asking for years. While the film does go for that tone, there are many issues that seem to have led to a waste of potential.
10There Is Very Little Fun To Be Had
“The overt seriousness and bleakness saps the movie of any enjoyment we might get from watching a new Captain America movie.” - Molly Freeman,ScreenRant.
One of the biggest complaints surrounding the movie is thatit is rather dull and boring. If there is one thing that Marvel Studios films normally aim for, it is that each entry has the appropriate amount of fun. While that has translated into criticism about MCU humor in the past, it seems likeCaptain America: Brave New Worldshould have mixed things up a little.
Captain America: Brave New World Review - I Wanted To Love Anthony Mackie’s Bleak MCU Movie But I Was Just Bored & Disappointed
Captain America: Brave New World lacks the entertainment of an MCU movie, despite compelling performances from Anthony Mackie and Harrison Ford.
As the movie’s trailers teased, the reviews focus on how this is a darker, more serious MCU movie. This would have been fine if the story was gripping. However, that does not appear to be the case. According to critics, the audience is left with an overtly bleak project that offers few opportunities forthe kind of fun that superhero movies like Marvel’sThunderbolts*and DC’sSupermanpromise to bringin spades this year.
9It Feels Unnecessary And With No Sense Of Urgency
“It feels less like a film than something you make when you can’t think of one, but your deadline is looming regardless.” - Robbie Collin,Daily Telegraph (UK).
In the past,MCU movies were treated like unmissable events. However, when the Multiverse Saga started, Marvel began to churn out quite an elevated number of projects with little breaks between them. That led to the MCU’s Phase 4 having nearly the same number of projects as the entirety of the three phases that make up the Infinity Saga. That has led to critics questioning how necessary an MCU project is.
Within the grander scheme of the Multiverse Saga, attention has turned to multiverse-related projects likeSpider-Man: No Way Homeand Disney+‘sLoki, both of which are among the franchise’s most popular entries in recent years. There is still space for grounded movies likeCaptain America: Brave New Worldif they have a solid story to tell. However, critics do not believe that it was a necessary addition to the MCU, withcomplaints about how Marvel might have rushed to release a troubled project.
8It Fails To Match The Heights Of The Previous Captain America Movies
“This reboot is below the standards of what the Russo Brothers achieved, particularly in the high-water mark Captain America: The Winter Soldier 10 years ago.” Pete Hammond,Deadline.
BeforeBrave New Worldwas even released, there were already thousands of comparisons between Anthony Mackie’s Captain America and Chris Evans’ Steve Rogers version of Captain America on social media. The two Captain Americas would always be compared, and so Marvel decided to lead that conversation. Mackie and others involved with the filmpromised thatBrave New Worldwas very much in the vein of Evans’Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
Sadly, critics do not feel like the new Captain America movie lived up to the immense success of Evans' trilogy as the Sentinel of Liberty.
That movie became the perfect example of what a grounded superhero film should aim to be like. Sadly, critics do not feel like the new Captain America movie lived up to the immense success of Evans' trilogy as the Sentinel of Liberty. When it comes to the specific comparison toThe Winter Soldier, the consensus is thatBrave New Worldfalls quite short of getting to that level of excitement.
7Sam Wilson Feels Out-Of-Character
“The stiff expository dialogue certainly doesn’t help, but apart from a few asides about prior Falcon and Winter Soldier characters, this particular version of Sam Wilson is incredibly bland. - Aidan Kelley,Collider.
Captain America: Brave New Worldis meant to be Sam Wilson’s time to shine in the MCU. Up until this point, save for Disney+‘sThe Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Anthony Mackie’s Marvel character has played a supporting role in the franchise. Throughout Sam Wilson’s MCU appearances, the character showed how he isone of the most fun heroes in the MCU. His banter with characters like Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes, Ant-Man, and more has always been great.
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According to critics,the new Captain America movie strips Sam Wilson of his characteristic joyous personalityfor most of the film. If there is one thing that Sam’s previous appearances in the franchise have not been, it is bland. However, many critics believe that Mackie’s Marvel hero does not bring a lot of his charming persona into the film, which dialogue filled with exposition helps make even duller.
6The Movie’s Ties To The Greater MCU Hinder Its Potential
“The possibility for clear and uncomplicated storytelling has been neutralised by the kind of relentless exposition that 34 previous movies and 11 MCU TV shows now, unfortunately, require.” - Kevin Maher,The Times (UK).
One of the biggest complaints the MCU has received from critics and fans alike is that a lot of it feels like homework.The franchise’s interconnectedness used to be its strongest suit. However, with so many MCU movies and now even TV shows having been released and countless more in development, the shared universe has gotten to a stage that might feel like too much for some.
As such, each individual project in the MCU needs to be able to stand on its own feet to some degree. However, one of the biggest sources of criticism found in theCaptain America: Brave New Worldreviews is related tohow much it owes to the rest of the MCU. Be it with returning characters or plots from films and shows or setting up future events. When the Captain America movie focuses on the wider MCU, it seems to lose track of itself.
5The Movie’s Many Reshoots Are Easy To Tell Apart And Distract From The Plot
“Despite the admirable efforts of director Julius Onah and his cast, Captain America: Brave New World shows all the signs of a production that was tampered with almost to the point of self-collapse. " - Andrew J. Salazar,DiscussingFilm.
It is no secret thatCaptain America: Brave New Worldhas gone through a few rounds of reshoots. While those involved with the film have downplayed how much was changed, withAnthony Mackie calling the reshoots normaland something that happens in every MCU movie, critics have commented on the situation, stating that the reshoots are very easy to tell apart, and it affects the movie negatively.
There appears to be a lack of connection between different parts of the film. Certain fight scenes look spectacular, while other action sequences leave it to be desired with their CGI. Characters also come and go frequently, leading to the movie not telling a cohesive story, which detracts from the theatrical experience. Fansfeared that the film would be put together like Frankenstein, but according to the reviews, that is precisely the case.
4It Makes A Forgotten MCU Movie Pretty Much Required Viewing
On the topic of larger connections to other MCU franchises impacting the film negatively, many critics did not enjoy how muchCaptain America: Brave New Worldseems to be directly related toThe Incredible Hulk.That film was the MCU’s lowest-grossing entry until recent years, with many characters from it staying away from the franchise until now. According to critics, the new Captain America film does not stand on its own.
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A criticism found in multiple reviews is thatBrave New Worldfeels more like a sequel toThe Incredible Hulkthan a new Captain America entry. This was one of the main topics of conversation about the movie before its release.It also seems like Tim Blake Nelson’s the Leader is used sparingly in the filmand ends up making for a weaker villain than expected, which further questions why he was brought back.
3Exposition Plagues What Is An Uneven Script
“Entire conversations and characters… exist for the sole purpose of dumping exposition onto viewers.” - Jeremy Mathai,SlashFilm.
Some key aspects ofCaptain America: Brave New Worldwere not positively received by critics. Chief among them is the movie’s story. A common criticism is that the MCU film never tries to do something special with its characters, instead delivering a by-the-numbers narrative that presents few thrills.Exposition appears to be one of the film’s biggest sins, with some reviews claiming that characters often speak their actions out loud to make it clear to the viewer that they are doing something.
Due to their comic book elements, many MCU movies have had to deal with exposition dumps one way or another. The problem seems to be thatCaptain America: Brave New Worldpretty much makes it a part of its DNA, which leads the movie to drag. A lot could apparently have been trimmed out and streamlined.
2There Are Too Many Subplots To Follow
“As the film explodes into numerous subplots that rapidly move far apart from one another, it necessitates constant leaps between characters and locations that only further disrupt the narrative flow of the proceedings.” - Jake Cole,Slant Magazine.
Perhaps a symptom of the movie’s many reshoots, critics have pointed out howthere are way too many moving parts inCaptain America: Brave New World. Marvel Studios has shown with its Avengers films and other huge franchises that a setup like that can work. However, those different settings and characters have to make sense to the narrative. In the Captain America movie’s case, they do not seem to serve that goal.
The reviews make it seem like the movie tried to be too ambitious. With a political story at its center,Captain America: Brave New Worldis a global film. However, instead of making it feel fresh and exciting, the constant jumping around with different characters and subplots detracts from a story that was already uneven, according to critics. With fewer subplots, Marvel could have worked on the core story to make it stronger, which critics feel was necessary.
Finally, critics claim that the core theme ofCaptain America: Brave New Worldfeels repetitive, as the MCU has already told that story before.The new Marvel movie follows Sam Wilson establishing himself as Captain America, dealing with how others view the passing of the baton from Steve Rogers to Sam and how Anthony Mackie’s character thinks of himself as worthy or not.
Based on those points raised by reviews, it sure seems likeCaptain America: Brave New Worldisretreading the journey Sam Wilson went on inThe Falcon and the Winter Soldier. The Disney+ series was all about Sam realizing that he was indeed the best person for the job and showing the world that. However, perhaps out of fear that moviegoers might have missed the show, Marvel repeated the story forCaptain America: Brave New World, but with rather lackluster results.
