Captain America: Civil War is in no way Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, despite the pretty similar plot - a fight between beloved superheroes, with villains working in the background and the world terrified by the destruction caused by the superpowered battles. And that is because Captain America: Civil War feels like the pinnacle of all Marvel movies thus far - and it feels that way for almost all the critics who have attended the world premiere and the early screenings.
When the first Twitter reactions came in, we didn't believe them - too many times they were completely off track. But the thing is that with Captain America: Civil War the praise was continued from the Twitter reactions into the actual reviews. And to say that they are positive is a total understatement.
Here is what Empire Online says: "And that is what you call the ultimate Marvel superhero event. Matching its blockbuster scale and spectacle with the smarts of a great, grown-up thriller, *Captain America: Civil War* is Marvel Studios' finest film yet. There. We said it again."
Games Radar notes some issues, though they could be considered subjective (at this point and without the general audiences seeing the movie): "That epic runtime is the only problem. It’s generally well-paced, but there’s one too many plot swerves as you wait for the gang to suit up and throw down. There's also a slightly icky and completely unnecessary romantic beat that torpedoes the MCU's best love story, and it's a shame that the trailers (and LEGO) gave away quite so many of the film’s surprises. If there's a risk of the Marvel "˜formula' becoming stale, there isn't any evidence of that here. Civil War isn't just a damn-near-perfect popcorn crowd-pleaser; it doesn't offer any easy answers for its combatants, or the world going forward. Team Cap or Team Iron Man? The real winner here is Team Marvel."
The Playlist notes: "‘Civil War’ is effective thanks to a focus on character, with the film’s extended roster serving to explore and underline absorbing ideas about family, friendship, and the use of power. As big as this movie is, "Captain America: Civil War" thrives on a smaller, human scale."
The Hollywood Reporter says: "Posing serious questions about violence and vigilantism while reveling in both, Captain America: Civil War is overlong but surprisingly light on its feet. It builds upon the plotlines of previous Avengers outings, bringing together known marquee quantities and introducing the Black Panther and a new Spidey in winning fashion."
And here is what USA Today has to say about Captain America: Civil War: "Between the political issues, explosive battles and a nefarious plot by new villain-on-the-scene Helmut Zemo (Daniel Brühl), Civil War is overflowing with story. It’s a gold mine for Marvel nerds that may be dizzying for the rest. Yet the central conflict between superfriends Steve and Tony stays in focus, even escalating in a real and tragic way as the plot progresses and weaves in Winter Soldier's history of breaking bad to tear them apart even further. Rather than rooting for the fisticuffs, it hurts to watch these men, brothers in a sense, punch and blast each other into oblivion "” a testament to two actors totally on their game but also to audiences' investment in these characters paying off in dramatic fashion."
Lastly, The Wrap notes that Captain America: Civil War, "tangles itself up with fears of endless war and the annihilation of innocent humanity, and in doing so it continues to validate the ongoing series."
Of course, Captain America: Civil War is not perfect. IGN says that the movie, "can’t quite recapture the emotional and cerebral strengths of its predecessor, The Winter Soldier. Its central villain is ultimately lackluster and its final act, while dramatic, lacks the energy and effectiveness of the central action set-piece that assembles the Avengers in instant-classic fashion."
Lastly, Variety also notes the biggest fault of the movie: "wisecracking humor punctures the tension at key intervals, to continually amusing if somewhat ingratiating effect; it's a bit deflating when Iron Man at one point actually invokes "The Manchurian Candidate," rather than simply allowing the obvious reference to speak for itself."
In any way, we - the audiences - will be the judges.
