The new man behind the Captain America shield is Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie). And while a black Captain America is likely to enrage all the right people, there’s little else to recommend this unengaging placeholder instalment in the interminable Marvel saga. Sam is still finding his vibranium-reinforced wings, with wise-cracking sidekick Joaquin (Danny Ramirez) providing support. In the aftermath of the global catastrophe that saw half the world’s population wiped out, Sam has cautiously decided to throw his helmet in with the US government, led by controversial new commander-in-chief, President Thaddeus Ross (Harrison Ford). But shadowy forces are working against Ross’s proposed global accord. It’s a humourless drag of a picture, overreliant on clunky exposition and naive geopolitical posturing. Plus it’s ugly, with a greasy murkiness that looks as though the lens was smeared with lard.

• In UK and Irish cinemas