This article will contain a lot of spoilers so if you haven’t seen the movie and plan to, then I advise you to stop reading here, though you can read my thoughts on why the movie is going insane at the box office right now.
(READ: ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Going Gangbusters at the Box Office Proving Non-Woke Movies are What We Want)
If you don’t care about spoilers or already have seen the film, then come with me and you’ll be in a world of pure nerd-toxication.
It was a surprise that I got tickets for a Sunday night show of Spider-Man has no way home. I’d been hearing that people have been rushing to get them and some were even being sold for thousands of dollars by scalpers. The seats were left at Alamo Drafthouse’s far back row. I immediately grabbed them.
When the lights turned low and the film started, I was immediately…not getting what I expected. Perhaps I was wrong to expect it, considering the way Marvel Studios approached Spider-Man. It is more about Peter Parker than Spider-Man.
This movie begins exactly where the previous one ended. The Daily Bugle’s editor-in-chief turned internet blowhard, J. Jonah Jameson (J.K. Simmons), just exposed Spider-Man’s secret identity thanks to footage sent to him by Far away from home‘s villain, Mysterio, and pegged Parker for the death and destruction caused in that film. Parker (Tom Holland), in costume, is forced to swing away from an increasingly hostile crowd that had surrounded him and MJ (Zendaya) in downtown New York, winding up back at Parker’s apartment.
This sets up the first act which has Parker, MJ, and Parker’s best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon) dealing with the fallout of Parker’s identity being revealed. You think this will be a movie about a super hero turns out to be an adult drama. The trio continue going to school to try to get into MIT. However, everything goes wrong quickly.
Although the movie does spend a lot of time on these topics, it doesn’t overstay its welcome. To be honest, Parker the young man overshadows Spider-Man the superhero in this film quite a bit, but it’s done so well that the two seamlessly mix together. It’s always been part of the Spider-Man story, but no movie has managed to capture it so well as There is no way home.
The film takes a turn when Parker, upset by his life messing up the lives of those closest to him, gets the idea to seek the help of New York’s resident wizard, Doctor Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) to see if magic could fix the problem. Strange, as seen in previews shows, has a solution. However, Parker misinterprets the spell mid-way.
Here the film can get a tad confusing for people who don’t keep track of the Marvel Cinematic Universe or watch the Disney+ shows that add a ton of story and background to events of the movie. While it’s definitely helpful, the film doesn’t really require you to have seen anything but the big films in order to enjoy it.
A botched spell causes a split in reality which allows villains from other universes to emerge. Spider-Man fans will recognize them as villains from previous Spider-Man movies dating all the way back to the early 2000s, including Willem Dafoe’s Green Goblin from the 2002 Spider-Man film starring Tobey Maguire, and Jamie Foxx’s Electro from The Amazing Spider-Man 2 starring Andrew Garfield.
Despite the emergence of villains from past movies, Parker and Strange capture them all relatively easy, but this is only to set up the film’s main theme; redemption.
Parker learns that some of these villains die at the hands of their universe’s Spider-Man, and despite Strange making it clear that this is their destiny, Parker cannot accept this and seeks to fix each of the villains in holding.
It’s a decision that Parker makes due to influence by his Aunt May (Marisa Tomei) but one that would ultimately backfire on him, resulting in betrayal and tragic death. Because of Parker’s soft heart, he undergoes one of the most tragic and gutwrenching moments of any MCU movie thus far.
But where the film delivers one of the MCU’s lowest moments, it also delivers one of its highest. In an attempt to find him, Parker’s friends try to find him through magic, only opening portals that bring in both Garfield and Maguire’s versions of Parker. They help Parker, the younger, to see the good in his grief after having experienced it firsthand.
The final act is about rescuing villains and heroes. But, Parker must also confront his darkest secrets. The film shows Spider-Man’s ability to be brutal but also that he is a scared, angry boy underneath.
If you’re thinking the film will be wrapped up with a nice little bow with everyone happy, then I’d temper your expectations. You’ll probably walk away slightly melancholic. Although not everything goes according to plan, it is a satisfying ending. People who grew up watching the previous Spider-Man movies will feel like their nostalgic itches were scratched as Holland’s Spider-Man hits Maguire and Garfield beats, but you are left with far more hope for Holland’s Parker after seeing this film’s treatment of his predecessors.
Story-wise, the film is a masterpiece, but I expect that out of Marvel’s big-name titles. The best thing about the film was seeing how well they played their roles. They all performed their roles like they were meant for them. Maguire was the exception, as he reverted to Parker’s role so seamlessly that I almost felt we had never parted. Garfield manages to be my favorite Spider-Man of the trio, being somewhat of an underdog of the three, prone to humorous self-deprecation, but desperately in need of closure, even if he doesn’t know it.
However, it’s Tomei’s May that really captured my heart. Her love for her nephew sends her at Spider-Man’s biggest villain like a protective mother with a random blunt object when Parker is all but defeated. Tomei is able to communicate the desperation and fear so clearly that I almost forgot she was acting. Even afterward, her speech to Parker is both powerful and devastating. This is easily Tomei’s best acting of her career.
MCU lovers will enjoy seeing other characters appear. Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock (aka Daredevil) makes a much-deserved appearance from the Netflix show, not in his suit, but as Parker’s lawyer. While he doesn’t do any superhero things, he does catch a flying brick flying through Parker’s window before Parker can. It’s a significant moment for the MCU, telling us that the interconnected universe is even more connected than you think.
Sony’s Venom (Tom Hardy) also makes a post-credit appearance, staying long enough to signify that Marvel’s Parker will be confronting the alien symbiote in future installments of the franchise.
The film does a lot to show that Sony and Marvel have thrown their doors open to one another, and it couldn’t have been done with more care and skill. You won’t find yourself becoming exhausted by over-reliance on the action. Each story beat happens exactly when it should. You feel on edge every time an anticipatory event happens, even if you know it. There were many instances when they could have done that.
I’ve seen a handful of movies that were actually good this year but There is no way homeThis film will certainly be at the top of its class. Perhaps on subsequent viewings, when the shine wears off, we’ll get a clearer view of the film’s worth, but for now, I can’t recommend this movie enough.
About Post Author
You may also like
-
The Benefits of Movable Soundproof Room Dividers: Flexibility, Noise Control, and Sustainable Design
-
What to Do Following an Unfair Workers’ Compensation Denial
-
Benefits of Utilizing After School Programs
-
Why Is Extra Security Needed for Events and Meetings?
-
How to Skip the Hassle of PA’s with Orbit AI