Summary
- Captain America: Brave New World embraces a political thriller tone, departing from conventional Marvel blockbusters.
- The film’s genre pastiche approach could set a new trend for superhero movies, ensuring distinct identities for each character.
- Success for Brave New World is crucial for fan acceptance of Sam Wilson as the new Captain America and for future MCU projects.
Marvel Studios is taking a unique creative approach with Captain America: Brave New World, and its success could shape the direction of future MCU films and TV shows. Set to release on February 14, the film marks a crucial turning point for both Sam Wilson’s Captain America and the franchise as a whole.
Right from the early stages of production, the buzz surrounding Captain America: Brave New World hasn’t been ideal, to say the least. The film was reportedly hit by a series of negative test screening responses and subsequent reshoots, which haven’t been reassuring to many fans. However, the trailers released so far promise something exciting, especially with the film’s distinct tone. This tone, which has already been seen in previous Captain America movies, could become a stylistic trend not just for Cap but for other heroes as well. If Marvel intends to go further ahead with this approach, Brave New World needs to succeed.
Related
Kevin Feige Wants Sam Wilson To Be Accepted But Is Making It Impossible
Kevin Feige is making it impossible for audiences to accept Sam Wilson as Captain America.
Captain America: Brave New World’s Political Thriller Tone
A Grounded Approach To Marvel’s Next Chapter
Judging based on the trailers released so far, Captain America: Brave New World appears to follow more of a political thriller tone rather than Marvel’s conventional blockbuster action spectacle. This aligns with previous Captain America movies from Chris Evans’ Steve Rogers era, such as The Winter Soldier and Civil War. With some fans still divided over Rogers passing the Captain America mantle to Sam Wilson, this creative call deserves praise, as it conveys that it’s the same hero in spirit. This choice serves as a blueprint for Marvel to win over fan acceptance for more heroes and their successors in similar scenarios.
Calling Captain America: Brave New World a “grounded” film might seem far-fetched, considering it features a literal Red Hulk as well as Tiamut, a celestial being floating in the sky. However, it still feels more genre-heavy, balancing itself as half superhero movie and half political thriller. Apart from the obvious setting involving Harrison Ford’s President Thaddeus Ross and the film’s focus on a supposed “international incident”, Brave New World’s trailer showcased a lot of style with split-screen shots and eerie black lines, making it feel refreshingly different.
Brave New World Rejects The Easy Route For Sam Wilson
A Genre-Bending Film True to Captain America’s Roots
With Brave New World, Marvel could have taken the easy route by opting for a more fun, crowd-pleasing storytelling style. Instead, they made the right choice by crafting a genre pastiche film, staying true to the spirit of other Captain America movies. In April 2024, Anthony Mackie told Entertainment Weekly that the film is a more grounded action-thriller, similar to how The Winter Soldier changed the perception of Marvel at the time of its release.
“It made more sense for it to be more of a grounded espionage action movie as opposed to aliens and airplanes coming through portals and s*** […] I think with these movies, you’re getting a clear, new branding of what Marvel is headed towards the same way they did with Captain America: The Winter Soldier.”
Director Julius Onah and Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige have both been vocal about deliberately taking this political thriller approach. Even unforeseen creative decisions, such as reshoots and the addition of Giancarlo Esposito to the cast, seem to revolve around perfecting this tone. Executive producer Nate Moore confirmed this to The National earlier this week.
As we were making the film, we were really trying to find the perfect political thriller tone. And sometimes that means some of the stuff you shoot doesn’t quite work out in the way you intended. […] We knew we needed somebody like Giancarlo to help ground the tone even further into the world of the political thriller without it getting too heightened.
Why Captain America: Brave New World Needs To Win Big
A Spiritual Sequel To Past MCU Projects
But is it really that important for Brave New World to be a political thriller? As a matter of fact, yes. Sticking to the same genre as previous Captain America movies is the easiest and most subconscious way to ensure Sam Wilson is accepted as the new star-spangled man with a plan. Beyond just the tone, past Captain America films were known for their high-octane, realistic fistfights, which helped them stand out from other Marvel movies. This tone is the right move not just for Captain America, but also to serve as a spiritual sequel to The Incredible Hulk (2008) and The Falcon and The Winter Soldier.
Going Beyond Mere Genre Imitation
Embracing a shadow government theme gives the film a distinct spy thriller flavor, drawing comparisons to genre classics like JFK and All the President’s Men. At the same time, this genre formula isn’t without risk. It might alienate a section of fans who expect a fast-paced, explosive superhero movie but instead get something that leans more into quiet espionage. Simply mimicking a genre doesn’t automatically make a film good. While Brave New World’s comparisons to political thriller films aren’t a stretch, it must surpass expectations to earn its place alongside such revered classics.
Genre Pastiches Could Shape Future Superhero Films
If Brave New World successfully continues this genre formula, it could carve out a path for future superhero properties. Marvel should continue tying its biggest heroes to genre pastiche films to ensure their properties remain distinct, even when films change directors or lead actors, as seen with Brave New World. Additionally, giving each film its own identity — like how Ant-Man felt like a heist movie — is a smart way to attract non-comic book fans and expand a film’s audience. With that in mind, there’s a lot riding on Captain America: Brave New World’s results to keep this genre-driven approach alive. It could reinforce Marvel’s commitment to good storytelling while also benefiting movie culture as a whole.