Helmut Zemo, now sporting an outfit with 100% less purple and gold, lost his family during the events of Avengers: Age of Ultron, they didn't survive the battle of Sokovia. Consumed by revenge, he has used leaked Hydra information to hatch a plan to destroy the Avengers. At the same time as he does this, the world leaders are trying to do the same thing (I wonder if Ross and Zemo play poker together...). You read that right though, Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross, that army guy from that one MCU movie that people forget exists in the MCU because they don't reference it much anymore and the lead actors never appeared again, is indeed back. Now a representative of the United Nations, a job that has 100% less Hulk tracking (I do hope though that we get a Red Hulk story though eventually), he now wants the Avengers to sign the Sokovia Accords, a series of international laws that would put the Avengers under the control of the UN (I will get back to my thoughts on this in a moment). With the two external forces in play, the Avengers are divided, Captain America believing that the Accords will do more harm than good, while also trying to clear the name of Bucky Barns (the Winter Soldier), who has been framed for attacking the UN, killing King T'Chaka in the process. Tony, on the other hand, believes that the Accords are needed to regain the trust of the public, and Bucky is guilty of the attack. Both sides find allies to aid them, Cap getting the help of not only Bucky, but also Falcon, Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch and Ant-Man, while Tony gets the help of War Machine, Vision, Black Widow, and the two newcomers of the film, Black Panther, and Spider-Man. Throw in a battle in an airport between the heroes, including the debut of Ant-Man's opposite form, Giant Man, Tony found out that Bucky killed his parents, leading to a final battle between Tony, Cap and Bucky, and the destruction of the Avengers by the end of the movie. The second phase of the Russo Brothers' destruction of ideas in the MCU is complete. I wonder if their plan is to see how much destruction they can inflict onto the MCU before someone tries to stop them.
All jokes aside, while the way to get to the emotional moments is very weak. I personally think Zemo is one of the weakest villains in terms of plans, though one of the more interesting in terms of motivation, and the Accords to me feels like a rushed idea that a lot of the other movies are ignoring. To give a minor spoiler for Infinity War, the one part of the movie that brings them up at all can be summed up as "hanging up the phone when the person on the other end is an annoying telemarketer". I do hope that someone tries to enforce them in some form soon because they do feel like a waste. Again Marvel, make that Red Hulk movie! The emotional effects that Zemo and the Accords have on the heroes are very interesting and lead to some great moments in the movie. It's a perfect case of "actions have consequences". Cap admitted he knew the fate of Tony's parents, and you have to wonder how different things would have been if he told Tony rather then Zemo telling him. There are also some great character interactions in the film, with one of the best (for me at least) being Tony and Peter's first conversation. At the moment in the films, both Tony and Peter are motivated by guilt, its why Tony's on board with the Accords. T'Challa is motivated by revenge, leading to some great lines from him. They even add some charm to Vision, with how he and Wanda interact. Because we've spent so much time with this universe, and some of the characters, it's hard to watch them fight, which to me is the biggest strength of this movie compared to Dawn of the Jesus Symbolism (the two came out around the same time, both deal with fighting superheroes, it's only fitting to compare them ok?). The only thing that makes this movie harder to watch emotionally, how the characters interact with each other, is knowing what happens in later movies.
From a technical perspective, I've got no major issues with the cinematography. There are no major editing faults that I could notice when watching the film and the shots themselves are excellent. The CGI is solid, though there are the usual minor marvel cracks, which are easy to ignore (I know of them, but even then I can't say to you I saw them when watching the film). The soundtrack is pretty forgettable for me though, as none of the songs and themes stuck with me. It might be that I'm listening to them while watching the movie and not on their own, but most Marvel soundtracks I find forgettable.
The movie itself though is still very strong and still worth a watch. It's a bit surprising that the Captain America movies have a strong, consistent quality to them when many other Marvel movies for individual characters have either been hit and miss or had a gradual decrease in terms of plots. It's safe to say that the Russo brothers know what they're doing and get Captain America. Up next on the Toybox is another Infinity War Lego set, Corvus Glave's Thresher Attack, and up next for here... isn't Doctor Strange (as many of you might first think). One thing's coming out before then, Star-Wars: The Last Jedi... Cause May the 4th. Let's hope by then I won't be needing to take Cold and Flu tablets!
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