SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME REVIEW

 *MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*

The sequel to Spider-Man: Homecoming, Far From Home, was well received by fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and critics. One of the most memorable scenes took place in the middle of the end credits and saw the villain, Mysterio, revealing to the whole world that Peter Parker (Tom Holland) is the web slinging superhero, Spider-Man, and that he was the cause of all of the chaos in London. Following the release of Far From Home in 2019, fans have been sharing their theories of what they think will happen in the follow-up, No Way Home, making it one of the most anticipated films of the year. However, does it live up to the hype? 

The story picks up immediately after Far From Home and sees Peter’s life turned upside down. He loses his privacy and is constantly harassed by the media. Peter, his girlfriend, MJ (Zendaya) and his best friend, Ned (Jacob Batalan) are rejected by their dream college due to their involvement with Spider-Man. This leads to Peter asking Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) to cast a spell that makes people forget that he’s Spider-Man. Unsurprisingly, the spell goes wrong leading to various villains appearing from alternate universes, including Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe), Doctor Octopus (Alfred Molina) and Electro (Jamie Foxx). 

There’s no denying that 2021 has been a packed year for Marvel Studios. Aside from releasing four films including Black Widow, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Eternals and No Way Home, they’ve also produced four spin-off original series, WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Loki and Hawkeye. Although I’ve genuinely enjoyed all of the films and series that Marvel have released this year, I think that the stand-out is No Way Home. I can’t imagine fans of Spider-Man being disappointed with what director Jon Watts and screenwriters, Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers, have created with the latest addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Although the latest trailer, which was released last month, confirmed the appearances of previous Spider-Man villains, including Green Goblin, Doctor Octopus, Electro, Lizard (Rhys Ifans) and Sandman (Thomas Haden Church), fans have been wondering about the return of Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield, with the latter being frequently questioned by journalists whilst he was promoting his latest film, tick, tick…BOOM!. Garfield has denied any involvement with the latest Spider-Man film. I will honestly say that, prior to watching No Way Home, I didn’t think that either Maguire and Garfield were in it so I was more than pleasantly surprised when they made their appearance halfway through. Although I didn’t grow up with the Spider-Man franchise as I was too young, I can imagine that those who did will love seeing their favourite portrayals of Spider-Man teaming up to defeat the villains. There will be those who will complain that No Way Home is simply fan service but I don’t think that’s necessarily an issue when it’s done this well. Recent blockbuster franchises, including Star Wars with their latest trilogy and Ghostbusters with the release of Afterlife, have relied on nostalgia in order to sell tickets. Whilst No Way Home will certainly be enjoyed by fans of the web-slinging superhero, those who haven’t seen the other Spider-Man films will be puzzled as they won’t have any idea who the villains are. Although No Way Home definitely succeeds as a Spider-Man film, as a stand-alone superhero film, it struggles as it does expect you to have seen all of the previous films in order to understand who the characters are and what’s happened. Most of the conversations between the three Spider-Men and the villains are hints at things that have happened in other films. Because I had recently rewatched all of the Spider-Man films, I understood their references, however, I can imagine casual movie goers being confused.  

What’s most interesting about No Way Home is that it uses some of the characters better than in their own films, especially Garfield. Although I don’t think they’re bad, both The Amazing Spider-Man and its sequel are disappointments as it didn’t really do anything new or exciting with the character and failed to live up to the adjective in its title. What was most impressive about both of the films was Garfield’s performance as both Peter Parker and Spider-Man. I think the main issue was the writing as it didn’t give him enough depth. In No Way Home, Garfield returns to one of his most famous roles and he continues to impress with his portrayal. Those who have seen The Amazing Spider-Man 2 will remember one of the most heartbreaking scenes when Garfield’s Spider-Man fails to save his girlfriend, Gwen Stacy, as she falls to her death. A similar scene sees MJ, who is in a relationship with Holland’s Peter, begin to fall before she is captured by Garfield’s Spider-Man, who is relieved that he saved someone. All three of the Spider-Man actors had great chemistry and clearly had a lot of respect for one another.  

What’s most impressive about No Way Home are the performances, especially by Dafoe and Molina who return to their most memorable roles as Green Goblin and Doctor Octopus. Their performances makes it hard to believe that it’s been almost twenty years since they first appeared in Spider-Man and its sequel. Dafoe succeeds in capturing the Green Goblin’s menacing and twisted personality whereas Molina humanises Doctor Octopus. Out of all of the villains that appear in No Way Home, Doctor Octopus is the only one who wants to help Peter. While Foxx’s performance of Electro is an improvement than the one he gave in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, especially because he’s no longer a blue CGI mess, he is still underused as are Thomas Haden Church as Sandman and Rhys Ifans as the Lizard. Also returning after appearing during the post-credits scene of Far From Home is J. K. Simmons as the fast-talking and fiery head of the Daily Bugle, J. Jonah Jameson. While Simmons continues to amuse with his scene-stealing performance, I am disappointed he didn’t get to share any scenes with Maguire’s Peter. While it’s great seeing all of these past actors return to some of their most famous roles, it’s Holland who stands out. Since making his first appearance in Captain America: Civil War five years ago, Holland has succeeded in capturing Peter’s cheerful personality and Spider-Man’s heroism and that’s still the case with No Way Home, however, he also delivers his most emotional performance yet. Equally as impressive is Zendaya as MJ, who is more than just Peter’s love interest and is given a lot more to do. She’s not just the damsel in distress which is a tiring cliche in a lot of superhero films. Batalan is still likeable as Peter’s best friend, Ned, however, I did feel like he was underused and was funnier in both of the previous films.  Following the action packed climatic battle, No Way Home ends on a emotional note as Peter realises the only way to save the world is by making everyone forget about his existence whilst retaining their knowledge of Spider-Man. This impacts his relationships with MJ and Ned who forget about Peter. Their chemistry has been the highlight of the past Spider-Man films so their final scene is heartbreaking. It does make me wonder about the future Spider-Man films and what will happen. 

As is the case with the MCU films, No Way Home has two post-credits scenes. The first involves Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy) who, along with Venom, are updated by a bartender about the new universe. Just as Eddie and Venom are considering meeting Peter, they vanish, however, a part of Venom is left behind. The other scene which takes place at the very end of the credits is a teaser for the Doctor Strange sequel, In The Multiverse of Madness. Although I enjoyed this trailer, I don’t think that it’s worth waiting through the entire credits for as it will be online soon.  

Overall, Spider-Man: No Way Home will certainly satisfy fans of the web slinging superhero and is an exciting addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

8/10