There are probably a multitude of reasons why I feel the films directed by Joe and Anthony Russo – Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Captain America: Civil War – are among the best Marvel Studios have thus far released, but I’ll simplify matters by saying that I really appreciate the emotional weight, authenticity and consequences they lend to the material. That said, you can imagine why I have the utmost confidence that Avengers: Infinity War will be a well-rounded moviegoing experience.
Speaking of which, if Civil War can lay claim to anything, it was that it changed the landscape of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, effectively splitting Earth’s Mightiest Heroes down the center. But, then again, it’s pretty believable that so many powerful people with conflicting personalities and ideologies may not be able to work as one cohesive unit for long. Still, the change in status quo gives us such cool things as Steve Rogers paying homage to his Nomad persona from the comics.
During a recent sit-down with The Telegraph, co-director Joe Russo spoke of how the “Team Iron Man vs. Team Captain America” jazz that proved to be a marketing monster weighed on all characters involved:
“It was Kramer vs. Kramer, and it was a really messy divorce. You love both your parents, and you don’t want to see that happen. But it did.”
To the credit of the Russos, this thread will carry over into Infinity War, as Tony Stark will find himself still being emotionally affected by his falling out with the Sentinel of Liberty and those who sided with him. Here’s what Joe had to offer on that front:
“So moving forward into Avengers: Infinity War, Tony is in a place where he harbours guilt about what happened. But I don’t know if he’s ready to forgive. This movie is a ticking-clock film. Once it starts it doesn’t stop until the end. We refer to it as a smash and grab heist movie. Once Thanos starts collecting the stones, he’s doing it with speed. So Tony doesn’t have a lot of time to reflect. He only has time to act. But I think that the ramifications of Civil War reverberate deeply throughout Avengers: Infinity War.”
Intriguing as that may sound, Tony, Steve and everybody else absolutely must get on the same page before long if they’re to defeat Thanos when Avengers: Infinity War arrives in theaters on April 27.
