Movie Review: Spider-Man: Far From Home

Spider-Man: Far from Home **** / *****

Directed by: Jon Watts.

Written by: Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers based on the Marvel comic book by Steve Ditko and Stan Lee.

Starring: Tom Holland (Peter Parker / Spider-Man), Zendaya (Michelle Jones), Jon Favreau (Happy Hogan), Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury), Jake Gyllenhaal (Quentin Beck / Mysterio), Marisa Tomei (May Parker), Cobie Smulders (Maria Hill), Angourie Rice (Betty), Martin Starr (Mr. Harrington), Remy Hii (Brad Davis), Michael Mando (Mac Gargan), Jacob Batalon (Ned), Tony Revolori (Flash Thompson), Toni Garrn (The Seamstress), J.B. Smoove (Mr. Bell).

 

The summer of the coda continues! That’s what I thought watching Spider-Man: Far From Home, which like Toy Story 4, I’m not sure is an entirely necessary movie on its own terms – but works remarkably well as a kind of coda to an already completed franchise. Just a few months after Avengers: Endgame came out, Far From Home feels like the aftershocks of that film – before (of course) the stinger in the end credits comes along to set up more adventures. The MCU is not dead – it’s not going away – but it will have to morph into a new phase. And yet, in addition to Far From Home being that coda to this phase of the MCU, it also functions as the second film in this Spider-Man franchise – and like the second films in other superhero franchises (the original Superman, and Sam Raimi’s original Spider-Man) it has our hero questioning if he really wants to be that hero – or if doing so will ruin any chance of happiness in his own life. If he can live with the consequences of putting those he loves in danger. There is a surprising amount going on in this film – which still manages to move quickly and doesn’t feel as long as it 130-minute runtime suggests.

 

In this film, our Peter Parker (Tom Holland) is back at high school – and the opening helpfully explains the consequences of the blip (some students are 5 years older, some are the same age as they were, etc.) Peter is still reeling from the death of his mentor/friend Tony Stark – but really wants to have a normal summer. There is a science trip to Europe coming up – and all he wants is have fun with his friends, and figure out a way to tell MJ (Zendaya) that he likes her. But of course, it will not be that easy – it never is. Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) has been trying to get a hold of him – and Peter has been dodging the calls. But you can only put off those calls for so long. And so, of course, Peter is drawn back into the mix – there are monsters threatening to destroy the world, a mysterious stranger from another universe Quentin Beck (Jake Gyllenhaal) whose world was destroyed by those monsters, who is now determined to stop it from happening here (this films way of introducing the multi-verse), etc. You get it – Spider-Man has great powers, and therefore great responsibilities – and even if it ruins his summer, he has to save the world.

 

So yes, like all Marvel movies, this one is on rails. You know what you’re getting into, and you’ll probably catch on well before Peter does what exactly is going on here. You can say that we’ve already seen this – and you wouldn’t really be wrong. Sure, Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 2 didn’t involve the aftermath of the blip or the death of Tony Stark – but it basically had Peter Parker weighing the same decisions – the pull of a normal life, vs. the responsibilities of the powers (and did so with a good impotence metaphor to boot).

 

And yet, the movie still works like gangbusters. A large part of that is the charm of Tom Holland – who I think now is firmly entrenched as the best Spider-Man in the movie, even if the aforementioned Spider-Man 2 is the best of the live action movies (and Into the Spider-Verse puts them all to shame). But Holland has the right dorky charm to pull off Parker, and the quips to pull of Spider-Man – and make them seem like the same person. Zendaya was an inspired choice for MJ – and she’s making a strong case for herself as the best non-superhero love interest in the MCU. While we could lose Natalie Portman in Thor and not miss a beat (and the same could be said of say Rachel McAdams in Doctor Strange) – Zendaya’s MJ is a part of this franchise – and adds something essential here. I’ll also say, without spoilers, that Gyllenhaal is better than most others in the MCU in this type of role – he’s certainly continuing his run of making choices. I could do with a little less Nicky Fury though – I liked him a lot in Captain Marvel, but this time, it’s like Samuel L. Jackson autopilot at work.

 

At this point, we know what the MCU movies are. They aren’t going to reinvent anything, aren’t going to take huge chances. But they do deliver the goods – consistently. Director Jon Watts, coming back for his second go with Spidey knows what he’s doing, and crafts fine action sequences, and gets the most of his charming and funny supporting cast. And the film works – after all the emotional heavy lifting of Endgame, Far From Home works as the conclusion of that story, and the start of something new – the end of this film mirroring the end of the original Iron Man in a way. So yes, the MCU still has it – and I’ll still be showing up to more installments whatever they happen to be.