Spider-Man: No Way Home is a film where I weirdly couldn't quite put a finger on where my expectations were at before seeing it.
On one hand, I'm always excited to see the next MCU feature as I'm #dedicated, and Tom Holland's Spider-Man with Benedict Cumberbatch's Dr. Strange was an intriguing combo.
The multiverse "stuff" obviously dialed that up considerably once initial trailers revealed Alfred Molina's Doc Ock (among several other villains) and the almost universally-held belief that there would be more surprises in store. *Quick Note* this will be a completely spoiler free review so those surprises may remain hidden for all to enjoy!
But I'd also say my hype wasn't nearly as high as the collective masses. Ticket pre-sales were outrageous, especially in a COVID world, and people were prepping for No Way Home with an excitement that I felt like matched what I had for Endgame. In a very weird way, I almost expected to be disappointed by No Way Home because I felt like I knew where it would go.
That long preface is all to build up the fact that No Way Home tremendously met and exceeded my expectations. I went with a group of 6 friends, including my wife, and we all had similar sentiments. The energy and joy that exited my completely-packed theater indicated the same thing. It has been a long time (honestly, probably Endgame) since I've been in a movie with as much hooting/hollering and excitement coming out of it as No Way Home did last night. And there's good reason why:
It's one of the MCU's most entertaining films to date.
No Way Home picks up immediately after the events of Far From Home where Mysterio has not only revealed Spider-Man's identity, but also positioned him as a ruthless vigilante responsible for his murder. Peter's world is thrown into chaos - which eventually simmers down - but the questionable controversy surrounding him has lasting effects on those he loves. He visits Dr. Strange to inquire if there would be any way to make people forget he's Spider-Man and during the spell, there's a moment where things go awry. From there, most of the rest of it gets into spoiler territory that I won't delve into, but suffice it to say that, at its core, this is a film that explores and pushes the growth of our young Spider-Man. It forces Peter to face the consequences of his actions and desires, which are both selfish and unselfish, while he also determines how dark of a person (and Spider-Man) he wants to be. It's this latter part that I was particularly stunned by, not necessarily because it's unique to the genre, but because of how dark No Way Home is in comparison to the previous two Spider-Man films and Holland's tenure in the MCU in general. With this darkness comes an emotional core that I was floored by and are something I'd argue the previous Spider-Man films completely lacked (by design, TBF). No Way Home hits you right in the feels, as the kids say, and in a fairly consistent manner throughout the latter half. It's all well-earned sadness and emotion, which makes it all the more potent and surprising, not to mention the original score - from Michael Giacchino - is sincerely one of the best of the year and is particularly effective in the film's more somber moments.
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| #Besties! |
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| #NotReallyBesties... |
Getting further into this review, there's so much more I want to write about but won't because it reveals too much so I'll stick with some other "basic" stuff to recap on. First, the performances - both by Holland and his supporting cast - are the best in the series by a long shot. There's obviously real chemistry between him and Zendaya and their relationship is much more front and center, to great effect. Zendaya, who we know is supremely talented from her other efforts, is a great anchor for the film and for Holland's Spider-Man and she gets to show her range as both a comedian and dramatic actress. Holland, meanwhile, has those aforementioned dark and emotional moments (no...nothing like Spider-Man 3 emo dancing) where he's able to convey anger, hurt, sadness, and rage. Some would potentially scoff at this, but I think it's one of his best performances, MCU or not, to date. Everyone else reprises their roles with eagerness, including a particularly sinister Willem Dafoe. And outside of all the dramatics, this is yet another hilarious MCU entry with tons of humor, one-liners, and fan-service winks that all got huge laughs from my crowd with very few, if any jokes, falling flat.
Which if you've been following for any amount of time, that's saying quite a lot.
CONS
- Some questionable behaviors/motives from a variety of characters. It's never so egregious where it's unbelievable, but a few definitely feel like decisions made to move the plot in a certain direction
- Some villains are shortchanged. Because of already long runtime, this seems fine
- The best MCU Spidey-story yet. It forces Peter to come to terms with the ways he can be selfish, but also the consequences when he does unselfish things
- Has a lot of heart and darker than previous entries
- Fantastic ending with likely much larger implications for the MCU than we think
- Amazing cast all around with potentially a career (definitely series) best performance from Holland and a anchor in Zenday's MJ that we've not had in the previous two films
- One of the funnier MCU entries to date with almost no jokes that fall flat
- Wonderful fan-service. I tend to view this as a positive if done in the right way
- Visually stunning, often unique action that differentiates itself from other superheroes
- Impressive special effects
- An original score that packs a punch in both exciting and somber moments
- Host of surprises that pan out in fun ways
- Massively entertaining from start to finish
Rath's Review Score |
10/10 - Instant Classic
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