The structure of Batman v Superman done RIGHT.

Rating: 10/10 (2 May 2016)

The irony with both film franchises is how a newly established continuity (DC cinematic universe) prioritises the expansion of subsequent instalments, with more emphasis on defining further projects with no structure or cohesion. As opposed to MCCU, consisting of various films, with becoming the most financially successful franchise to date. Despite the marketing aspects of MCCU and the attention to detail on upcoming instalments, there is genuine intention to make a well written, coherent, and overall enjoyable stand alone instalment.
For simplification, everything that Batman v Superman failed at was perfected in Captain America Civil War.
This review is based on a recent viewing, and skepticism was present by the MCCU debut of Spider-Man and the variety of characters.
But despite initial skepticism,this movie turned out to be a solid edition to the franchise.
Character interactions, one of the best aspects of the previous instalments, continue to impact the film.
The action sequences were well directed and felt necessary in the context of the film's narrative.
The majority of the film's humour was at the end of the film, which is hardly a flaw as the tone is very well balanced.
In terms of characterisation, the highlight is Tony Stark/Iron Man, with a flashback and emphasis on his past, implying more emotional investment to the character and as a result making his final confrontation with Captain America a deserved climax.
Spider-Man's appearance in the film was done very effectively. He wasn't overly emphasised and despite some humorous moments when he almost stole the movie, it didn't negatively impact the focus on the main narrative. For Tom Holland's performance, he was a worthy successor to Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield, and it felt like his own incarnation of the role. I anticipate his further involvement in the franchise and the standalone film being released next year.
To elaborate on minor flaws, some of the supporting characters felt unnecessary. With such an extensive cast from both previous installments and feature length debuts, some characters did not receive adequate screen time to impact the film's narrative.
Ant-Man had some humorous and memorable scenes during the airport sequence, but Hawkeye, Vision, Scarlet Witch and even Black Widow served no real purpose to appear in the film aside from appearing in the action sequences.
Black Panther's debut was a nice addition to the MCU, but had no real stand out moment. The expansion for his stand alone film in the mid credit scene still provided some intrigue for his characterization and further involvement in the franchise.
Regardless of minor flaws, it was one of the best instalments of the franchise to date and is overall a solid standalone film.