One of Marvel's Best

Rating: 6/10 (10 June 2016)

This is just the beginning of my full review. To read the entire piece, please visit my blog at http://GuyWithAMovieBlog.blogspot.com
By now, the Cinematic Universe (MCU, for short) is either for you or not - there's little middle ground. If you're a fan, you're going to be pleased a couple times each year. If you're one of the many who bemoan a new addition to this ever expanding series, you've got something fresh to complain about on a regular basis.
For me, the MCU contains films I love (Captain America: The First Avenger, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Iron Man, Guardians of the Galaxy), films I like (The Avengers, The Incredible Hulk), films I have no interest in ever seeing again (Iron Man 2, Iron Man 3, Thor, Avengers: Age of Ultron), and even a couple I haven't seen yet (Thor: The Dark World and Ant-Man). I'm by no means a fanboy, but even the worst of these films (Iron Man 2) isn't terrible by any stretch of the imagination. For a series stretching 13 films (and counting), it's shown a fair amount of consistency.
The newest addition to the MCU is Captain America: Civil War, the third installment of the Captain America series. Before watching it, I was a bit worried it would be more in line with The Avengers films rather than the Captain America films, which is why it took me nearly a month to get around to seeing it.
I needn't have worried.
Civil War is a tad more bloated than The First Avenger and The Winter Soldier, primarily due to the influx of The Avengers (minus Thor and Hulk, who were apparently off gallivanting across the universe and couldn't be bothered to make an appearance) and several other new characters, but it still felt like a Captain America movie to me, which is definitely a good thing.
The film starts with a very well done action scene. It's not only exciting and intense, but sets up the plot perfectly. After an incident occurs in a foreign country where innocent people are hurt and killed, the United Nations wants The Avengers subjected to a strict and binding set of guidelines and government oversight. Captain America (AKA Steve Rogers, played by Chris Evans) doesn't like the sound of that, knowing first hand how government agencies and people in general can develop their own agendas. He clashes with Iron Man (AKA Tony Stark, played by Robert Downey, Jr.), who feels guilty about the destruction, even though he knows it was done for the greater good.
In addition to this strife, the two also clash over how to handle The Winter Soldier (AKA Bucky Barnes, Rogers childhood friend, played by Sebastian Stan), who was brainwashed by the evil Hydra organization and has resurfaced again, leaving a slew of bodies in his wake. Captain America wants to get to his friend and save him while Iron Man wants to find and arrest him. Since you've seen the previews and commercials, you know that eventually the two come to a head and end up splintering The Avengers. Some side with Cap, some with Iron Man.
continued on my blog...