Anthony Mackieis leading the box office with his motion picture debut as the titular character inCaptain America: Brave New World, but we should not let it overshadow his recent post-apocalyptic movie. Directed by George Nolfi ofOcean’s Twelve,Elevationis set in the mountains of the U.S., where a pack of monsters inhabits Earth after decimating most of the world’s population.Early reviews forElevationcommended its performances and identifiedElevation’s castas the film’s most compelling aspect. Mackie andDeadpool’s Morena Baccarin join forces to enact a plan to take out the Reapers.
Mackie’s thriller offers an intricate and well-thought-out story, where he plays a father driven by desperation to save his son, by any means necessary.Elevationmade its debut on Max one week ago, on February 21, and quickly rose to the top spot in the streaming services list. The post-apocalyptic film will continue to expand its audience, withthe ending ofElevationhaving “sort of two reveals at the end that raise more questions,“according to director Nolfi (viaCollider.) Combined with Marvel’s latest project,Captain America: Brave New WorldandElevationlaunch Mackie into an admirably strong start for 2025.
Anthony Mackie’s Elevation Is Now Trending On Max - What The Movie Is About
Elevation Relies On Familiar Tropes Within This Subgenre
Within hours ofElevation’s first weekend on Max, it rapidly rose to the top spot in the streaming services' top 10 list in the United States. This officially places the movie above the celebratedWe Live in Time, and the Oscar-nominated animated favorite,Flow.Elevation’s premise centers around creatures rising from the ground and mercilessly killinga significant proportion of the population.Elevationis somewhat similar toA Quiet Placein many respects, as are a handful of other films in the subgenre. As many do, even these monstrous beings are not without weakness, and they possess one critical flaw.
It is soon discovered thatthe Reapers will not travel above 8,000 feetin altitude, which means thathumankind must remain above altitude inElevationand create settlements to survive. The survivors are mostly living in the Rocky regions while the heroes of the story head into dangerous land. Will (Mackie) is required to travel across the country to save his son’s life. This creates an interesting dynamic that occurs while Nina (Baccarin) is attempting to enhance bullets to take down the Reapers.Elevationprovides an emotionally charged story as the pair combine efforts towards a common goal.
Why Elevation’s Audience Score Is So Much Higher Than The Critics Score On Rotten Tomatoes
Elevation Has A 24% Higher Audience Score Than Critical Score
As it stands,Elevationhas a 57% critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes — a rather average score considering its newfound momentum on streaming. However, the audience rating is a more impressive 81%. It is likely thataudiences are enjoyingElevationmore than critics because of Mackie’s role inCaptain America: Brave New World. Although the latest Marvel film premiered with tepid reviews, the film effectively convinced audiences that Mackie was the ideal choice to take on the mantle of Captain America.Elevation’s success owes much to the popularity ofCaptain Americaand the audience’s enthusiasm to see more of Mackie’s compelling work.
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Arguably, critics are much more critical of genre tropes, while audiences seek emotional resonance and entertainment value. This emotional impact is more likely to result in audiences connecting with the film’s themes and characters much more, which results in a more positive reception regardless of its technical flaws. Not only this, butthe final scenes ofElevationleave many questions unanswered, which was an intentional direction by the director (viaCollider.) Nolfi is hopeful that he will be granted a sequel to the post-apocalyptic thriller, and these open doors only heighten the audience’s desire for more.
Elevation’s Popularity On Streaming Gives Anthony Mackie An Even Bigger Start To 2025
Anthony Mackie Is Poised For A Phenomenal Year Of Performances
Elevationis benefiting from word-of-mouth success on streaming, which is actively strengthening Mackie’s pre-established career. The actor’s high-profile projects will likely have a much greater influence on Mackie’s success in 2025. Although the actor had his longest streak of fresh scores on Rotten Tomatoes between 2016-2019,Elevationcomes after Mackie’s gradual downturn, where he saw three Rotten scores in the succeeding years.The success ofElevationon Max andCaptain America’s recent box office performance suggest a renewed upward trendfor Mackie.
Captain Americahas officially surpassed the total earnings ofThe Marvelsand has been leading the box office against its competitors since its debut.
Although Marvel’s latest film is not receiving the most positive reception,Captain America: Brave New World’s box office numbersare still incredibly impressive. The 4thCaptain Americainstallment has officially surpassed the total earnings ofThe Marvelsand has been leading the box office against its competitors since its debut. Its worldwide earnings are currently at $192 million, not the most profitable film from the franchise, butCaptain America: Brave New Worldis doing decently in terms of commercial success.
