Captain America: Brave New WorldCredit: Disney / MarvelOne thing that might have made Captain America: Brave New World a better film, or at least a better moviegoing experience, would have been a final act surprise. Imagine if Disney hadnt marketed the hell out of the Red Hulk and we hadnt known going into the movie that Harrison Fords president Ross was going to turn into the Red Hulk. If that hadnt been spoiled in the marketing, it might have been a really fun twist. Instead, we just waited around to see when it would happen and then watched a big fight scene and then that was that. Light spoilers ahead.Captain America: Brave New World isnt the best or the worst MCU film. It has some genuinely fun action scenes. Theres a good political thriller buried in the overstuffed plot. Anthony Mackie did a really great job as Captain America, and as someone who is generally not a huge fan of Mackie, Im happy to report that he really grew on me here.But outside of Mackie and Ford and some strong but brief moments with both Giancarlo Espositos Seth Voelker and Tim Blake Nelsons Samuel Sterns, the movie is just a convoluted mess. Ive already listed three villains: Voelker, Sterns and Red Hulk / Ross, though Ross is less of a villain and more of a well-meaning antagonist and Red Hulk is just a natural disaster. Im already having trouble keeping track of all these bad guys, plus the new good guys introduced, and the characters from past MCU shows. The more I thought about this movie after seeing it, the less I liked it, because the more I realized how little any of it matters.So much is going on in Brave New World its honestly hard to keep up, and the plot is just go, go, go from the start. There are various factions and alliances and treaties and conflicts and all of them come at you fast, relentlessly, like the film is worried that if it ever slows down people might pay too much attention. Despite tons and tons of exposition to keep audiences up to speed (and to help clue them in on whats going on since many likely missed The Eternals and Falcon and the Winter Soldier) the whole thing is just clunky as hell.Its also hard to really care about any of it. I dont care about Ross and his estranged daughter. I dont really care about the international relationships between the US and Japan (seriously, Japan?) and the rest of the world powers. I dont really understand why the Celestial is filled with Adamantium, either. Surely all this does is cheapen Wolverine?MORE FOR YOUI wont even bother recapping the plot. The plot is too messy. The plot gets in the way of what might have been an interesting movie. The movie is constantly tripping all over itself because of this, and the few nice character moments that do occur feel rushed and out-of-place, like they were jammed in as an afterthought. There are a few funny moments, but not enough to offset all the Very Serious ones. The plot just keeps coming at you. The plot is Red Hulk and its running and leaping and charging right at us the whole time.Theres some mind control stuff going on that could be super interesting if handled properly, but the explanation we get ends up being far less interesting than what could have been a really compelling conspiracy thriller. Somewhere buried in the rubble of all this plot is an interesting story struggling to breathe. Gasping and gasping for air.Was I entertained? Sure. I enjoyed pieces of this movie. Some of the fights are great. Caps vibranium suit is cool. Hes basically a weird hybrid of Ant-Man, Falcon, Black Panther and Captain America now, but without any actual powers, so thats kind of weird but also kind of fun. But overall, this is a pretty forgettable entry in the MCU. The whole is less than the sum of its parts. Its the fourth Captain America film and the least impressive of the bunch. Disney and Marvel really need to get back to basics, starting with a halfway decent script. And maybe the MCU has outgrown itself. Maybe Disney is asking audiences to juggle too many shows and movies, all interconnected, and the result is an increasingly apathetic fanbase.I really hope Thunderbolts and Fantastic Four: First Steps are better.Check out my weekend streaming guide right here for more movies and TV shows to watch, and let me know your thoughts on Captain America: Brave New World on Twitter, Instagram, Bluesky or Facebook. Also be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel and follow me here on this blog. Sign up for my newsletter for more reviews and commentary on entertainment and culture.