I liked that they weren't trying to kill each other at the airport
. They were friends and co-workers with ideological differences and they wanted to stop the other side from destroying everything they have built together. It fit their characters, made sense in the context of the story, and didn't take away from the personal drama between Bucky, T'Challa, Tony, and Steve. It was the perfect mix of drama and levity. I guess some people need someone to get murdered for it to be "real" or have stakes. Lost friendships and characters at crossroads with their ethos are high enough stakes for super hero films, imo. shyt like Steve dropping his shield at Tony's feet works far more than someone dying and having a long drawn out funeral, when everyone knows heroes don't stay dead.
And tbh, what Tony saw on that screen, with Bucky right there was far "darker" than most of the things I've seen in a comic book movie. shyt was visceral, and RDJ acted his ass off to bring that home. When the Winter Solider started bashing Howard's face in
. When he went over to Tony's mom
. I left the movie even more undecided on who was right and who was wrong. I sympathized to an extent with everyone's side, even Zemo, and in the end I thought it was cool having the movie end without a clear bad guy or malevolent character. One of my fav small moments was when Rhody, even paralyzed, affirms his decision to sign the accords. I appreciated that character moment and that the film wasn't interested in saying one side was clearly right, or that the paralyzed guy would realize the error of his ways and regret what they did. Each of these characters come out feeling like stronger characters, with clearer motivations going forward, and interesting relationship dynamics with various characters.
I was pleasantly surprised at the restraint that was shown in the last act. Most Marvel Movies all end in big booms and bangs, but the more intimate, personal finale is why I think this has the best ending of any MCU movie.
I thought some of the shaky cam and editing was a little weak. Some of the CGI was funky looking. The movie could have worked, and been tighter without Zemo, but I did like how Zemo was important in completing T'Challa's arc. I'm growing increasingly more and more disappointed at the lack of memorable scores from these films. I don't remember one bit of the music from the entire movie. How much better would these films be if they had a memorable score like Terminator or Star Wars or Batman does.
Overall I'm feeling a strong 8.5 or 9/10 or a full price on the double toasted scale. Def one of the best comic book movies I have seen. Too early to definitively say where it places at the top, specifically.