I've written extensively in the past about the crucial importance of superhero costumes, specifically in the way they can say so much about a character in solely a visual manner. Many comic book movies (namely the live-action X-Men films) have ditched the spandex-clad outfits that its lead characters have worn for decades on end in the favor of ugly leather apparel. This weekend's Captain America: Civil War became the latest motion picture to carry on this tradition, but in a first, the transition from flashy attire to a more mundane ensemble felt, just like the best superhero costumes, a way to reinforce character motivations rather than a desperate appeal to "realism".
In the comics, Baron Zemo is a name given to two individuals, both Captain America characters. The first was a Henrich Zemo, an evil German scientist known for a purple hood and constantly facing the patriotic superhero. Heinrich's son, Helmut Zemo, took over his father's costume and hatred of Captain America. It is Helmut Zemo that appears in Captain America: Civil War, though in a drastically different form. For much of the film he is an enigma, a man whose motivations are mysterious beyond just a desire "to see an Empire fall". However, soon a conventional supervillain emerges to explain Zemo's actions; he yearns to activate five other Winter Soldiers and unleash them on the world to do his psychotic bidding.
Captain America, Bucky and Iron Man track Zemo down to the abandoned HYDRA facility where the Winter Soldiers are being kept in cryo-sleep, only to discover all of the enhanced individuals have been shot directly in the head. Here, it is revealed Zemo's true purpose for bringing the trio here; he has no desire to rule the world or control weapons or anything like that. No, he is merely a man who lost his wife, son and father when the Avengers battled Ultron in the fictitious European country of Sokovia. All he's been thinking about since their demise a year ago is tearing the Avengers apart, which is he manages to accomplish by revealing that a brainwashed Bucky murdered Iron Man's parents 25 years ago.
There are numerous clever tricks in the screenplay for Captian America: Civil War but Zemo may be among most brilliant. It's an exceptionally shrewd move subverting audience expectations by putting all of the elements in place for everything to get wrapped up in a pretty little bow (Tony and Steve will reunite over fighting the Winter Soldiers! Yay!) only to pull the rug out from under both the audience and our main characters. Like the Mandarin reveal in Iron Man 3, this plot point allow a Marvel Cinematic Universe movie to keep itself one step ahead of the audience, as well as a rejigger a figure from the comics to better adjust to the themes of the movie.
And then there's the topic I discussed in the first paragraph of this essay, Zemo ditching his comic book costume in favor of sweaters, glasses, pants, an all around conventional get-up. Zemo is a far more mundane creation compared to other MCU antagonists and his wardrobe reflects this fact. He has no superpowers, no flashy purple garbs to prance around in, he simply has determination and experience on his side. And seeing a fellow with just those weapons by his side actually win and tear this group of superheroes apart truly leaves an impression on the viewer.
But that's the kind of power one human being can have on the world. One person can tear Earth's Mightiest Heroes apart. One person can inadvertently destroy a building populated by pedestrians. One person can lend inspiration to a plucky teenager from Queens, New York. And one man (whose gotta be at least a hundred years old at this point) can help protect his tortured friend no matter the cost. Captain America: Civil War is all about the impacts we have on each other's lives, with those impacts sometimes taking multiple decades to fully resonate. Zemo may not have as flashy of a costume as the heroes opposing him, but that doesn't mean he doesn't leave his own (terrifying) mark on the world too.
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