Spider-Man: No Way Home is a movie that fans who follow movie news daily feel like they have figured it out. To an extent, they are correct. The trailers have made it clear that after the shocking ending of Spider-Man: Far From Home, Peter Parker is going to ask Doctor Strange to cast a spell so everyone forgets he's Spider-Man. The previous Spider-Man movies show up when it goes wrong. All of that is true.
What you don't know is why that happens, how it gets sorted out, and what makes Peter Parker a better Spider-Man. Jon Watts and his team have found a way to make the story more heartbreaking, character focused, and even more fun than you think. Spider-Man: No Way Home is an absolute blast, even though it can get a little too wrapped up in the story. It will make you happy and happy.
If you want to go in without knowing anything, it is best to leave now. It is necessary to explain what we did and didn't in No Way Home. Just in case.
J. Jonah Jameson plays news footage that shows Spider-Man is Peter Parker in No Way Home. Peter's world is turned upside down in an instant. Suddenly he is the most famous person in the world and the film shows this from many different perspectives, from Peter's teachers and classmates to friends, family, strangers, and even heroes. Seeing how many different people change their perception of Peter is one of the most welcome surprises. You have to wrestle with the trauma Peter is enduring on a day to day basis.
Things go terribly wrong after Peter asks Dr. Strange for help. It isn't handled in the same way as you would expect from the trailers. Many of the characters Peter encounters in No Way Home are incredibly smart. They are not going to show up in an alternate universe. They want to kill Spider-Man immediately, but soon after those motives change, in fun and frightening ways. Conflict doesn't just exist between Peter and his new enemies either, leading to moments where, for the first time in his tenure as Spider-Man, Holland's Parker gets to act and make important decisions of his own making.
Peter will be spending more time with his girlfriend, best friend, and Aunt May. Peter needs friendly support and has a plan for the villains. None of them are just there for the ride. They help Peter advance the plot with some unexpected twists that range from fun and exciting to downright depressing. You have Peter, Ned, MJ, and Aunt May dealing with, as seen in the trailers, Doc Ock, Green Goblin, Electro, and Sandman.
The story begins to overtake the characters at about this point in No Way Home. There is not a lot of time for Peter to stop and really think about what he is facing with his family and friends by his side. He is doing and doing. No Way Home is a little less clever and impactful than the past No Way Home movies, but for a little while it feels like it wanders off course. It starts to rely too much on the novelty of seeing all these villains on screen again, doing the same things we saw them do in their original movies.
No Way Home begins to fly as the film enters its climax. The last hour of No Way Home may end up ranking with the other movies in terms of satisfying and rousing moments. There are moments of big laughs and excitement, but also chances for characters to redeem themselves, and pass on important lessons to our hero. It is not just a scene or two in a larger grand finale, but a long section of the movie filled with winks, nod, payoffs and touching reverence. The third act of No Way Home made me cry happy tears, cry sad tears, and literally cheer in the theater, and if you have ever loved any version of Peter Parker on film, you will likely do the same.
The third act of Spider-Man No Way Home doesn't end up being the real treat, in another exciting twist. It is great for fans to feel like they are getting a celebration of the character's cinematic history over the past twenty years, but this remains the third film in Tom Holland's Spider-Man trilogy, and really it all comes down to what kind of Spider-Man. No Way Home knocks it out of the park again, with choices made that are sure to be controversial, but they pack an emotional wallop leading to a strong ending, and something that feels like a whole new beginning for this version of the character. If not for Tom Holland, none of this would work. Holland's most dynamic work in this character is No Way Home. He rises to the occasion, not just he who rises to the occasion, but also his enemies and friends, as well as the villain, who thrives on his return to Norman Osborn.
The journey of the MCU's take on Peter Parker has been long. He defeated the villain, Mysterio, fought the villain, and saved the world while trying to get through high school with good grades. Spider-Man: No Way Home is a movie that is almost too big for its own good as it battles to balance its wide cast of characters and its larger than life story. It is hard to not love No Way Home, it is a big scale adventure on PeterParkers choices as a hero to justify some of the excess.
Spider-Man: No Way Home opens this Friday.
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