Spider-Man: No Way Home – A Fantastic Spectacle

There is arguably been no more anticipated film in the MCU than Spider-Man: No Way Home, the final film of Tom Holland’s Spider-Man trilogy (though there will be more films in the near future). Despite all the alleged leaks and rampant speculation, the hype and enthusiasm remains at an all-time high. Though a lot has been said about the film, true or not, it still had more up its sleeve. That being said, many are likely to not have seen the film at the time this review will be posted therefore it will remain spoiler-free. Fan service has been a term that has often been thrown around as a pejorative to attack films that lazily appeal to the sensibilities of fans as a means to distract from other flaws. However when it comes to this film, it is fan service in the best way possible with crowd-pleasing moments, cameos, and other surprises, serving as a fitting end to the high school trilogy, offering plenty of satisfying emotional beats as the script and direction balanced all those moving parts over the course of its 2.5 hour running time. At the root of it all was heart which at the end of the day, everyone is sure to connect to.

Spider-Man: No Way Home takes place immediately following the events of Spider-Man: Far From Home where Peter Parker (Holland) was outed to the world as Spider-Man. While no longer holding on to that secret identity somewhat put Parker at ease, it also made life difficult for him and the people around him, primarily MJ (Zendaya), Ned (Batalon), and Aunt May (Marisa Tomei), putting them and their futures in jeopardy while in the crosshairs of the court of public opinion and Mysterio’s legion of diehard supporters. Trying to fix the situation, Parker enlisted the help of Doctor Strange (Cumberbatch) to cast a spell to make people forget his secret identity. Little did he know, the intricacies of said spell presented complications that Parker wasn’t necessarily comfortable with as his naivety proved to be its downfall.

Suffice it to say that Parker would be put through the ringer as that failure also came with some unforeseen circumstances to say the least as villains from other Spider-Man universes began to appear though they weren’t quite the same as many fans will remember. Contrast that with the tightrope he had to walk while he and his friends’ futures were on the line, Parker found himself in a precarious situation as his actions had real heartbreaking consequences. While he was still young, he clearly still had some growing up to do as that internal conflict and his resulting arc was the best part of the film. His good nature was not going to cut it here as the reality of the situation set in but however he was going to get it through it, he wasn’t going to get there alone. In the end, he would have to make some tough decisions about how to move forward as Peter Parker and Spider-Man as an emotional ending sets the stage for an interesting future as far as the character is concerned.

As mentioned, in the midst of spectacle worthy of an Avengers: Endgame, Spider-Man: No Way Home features plenty of emotional beats among compelling moments of humor and action as the camaraderie between Parker and MJ and Ned has never been stronger while the addition of Doctor Strange and the villains to that dynamic allowed for some lighter moments until things got more serious of course as the film traverses that fine tonal line beautifully. The extent of how dark it goes may surprise some but the lightness and humor still found a way to break that up nicely. The pacing keeps things moving as the film will not feel like its 2.5 hour length while watching. If the story and the emotion doesn’t engage, the action will keep audiences on the edge of their seats. A more experienced Parker made for some more exciting action as the action was both on a larger scale and actually meant something this time around. Though the abundance of CGI does stick out at times, its impact on the overall film is minor. What ultimately rounds out that epic package was one of the best scores in an MCU film.

After two solo films and countless appearances in other MCU features, Holland delivers his best performance yet as Peter Parker/Spider-Man. The emotional center of the film, he carries it all on his shoulders as he goes through the ringer both physically and emotionally. Through the highs and lows, he was absolutely captivating as audiences feel it all along the way. Audiences have developed a connection to his incarnation over the years and all that work pays off here as he put all his experience with the character in his performance. Meanwhile, the chemistry between Holland, Zendaya and Batalon as MJ and Ned, and even Tomei as Aunt May, has never been better as the film still found a way to incorporate that dynamic even more so here as they were a blast to watch together. Finally, there’s just to be said about seeing Willem Dafoe absolutely not lose a beat and was perhaps even more menacing, returning to the role of Norman Osborn/Green Goblin after almost 20 years but all the returning villains were incorporated just enough.

At the end of the day, Spider-Man: No Way Home is a crown achievement in the MCU and the best Spider-Man film yet. And stay tuned for two post-credit scenes with the latter being the first trailer for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

still courtesy of Sony Pictures

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.