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Tom Holland’s Spider-Man swings back into town today in the nick of time, with box offices everywhere in urgent need of a festive boost. The signs look promising. It is already known that advance ticket sales will have James Bond left for dead, and this spoiler has been removed.
Holland has starred in three movies as the web-slinging supervillain for the third time. His first outing, 2017’s Spider-Man: Homecoming, made the utmost of his boyish looks, with the New York crimebuster’s alter ego – polite high-school kid Peter Parker – at least as prominent as the guy in the famous skin-tight onesie.
Spider-Man: Far From Home, the 2019 sequel, plunged our protagonist into an extended European vacation. He and his companions were armed with so many clever one-liners it felt almost like a feature-length sitcom.
Tom Holland’s Spider-Man swings back into town today in the nick of time, with box offices everywhere in urgent need of a festive boost. These signs seem to be a good sign.
Holland has been a web-slinging superhero for three times.
So it’s a relief to report that director Jon Watts and his writers move the character forward with the right amount of wit and abundant energy. There are many gags. However, some of last year’s more mellow comedy was replaced with dramatic action in a surprising sequence.
At the start, following on directly from the events of the last film, with the dying Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal) having spitefully revealed Spider-Man’s real identity to the world, Peter finds himself hounded and reviled by the media. JK Simmons as vindictive editor of The Daily Bugle is the man spreading the fake news – that Peter is public enemy number one.
Unfortunately, Peter’s unmasking rebounds not just on himself but also on his girlfriend, MJ (Zendaya) and best pal Ned (Jacob Batalon), all turned down by a prestigious Massachusetts college. He appeals to Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) for assistance. Strange’s wizardry can make everyone forget Peter Parker is Spider-Man. They can then go to college, and the happy trio will live happily ever thereafter.
Needless to add, it’s not as simple as that. Peter discovers that he has to be remembered by some people, including MJ and his Aunt May (Marisa Tomei). It’s dangerous, tampering with cosmic reality, and soon villains from all over the ‘multiverse’ start arriving in New York City, each with an axe to grind. Preferably through Spider-Man’s neck.
Strange’s wizardry can make everyone forget Peter Parker is Spider-Man.
Beguilingly for fans of previous incarnations of the spandexed superhero, some of these villains come from the Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield movies, and there’s a further surprise that Marvel tried to keep up Spider-Man’s sleeve – only of course there’s not much room up there. The secret inevitably leaked out months ago, but I won’t divulge anything here.
What I can reveal is that one of the mightiest of all Marvel baddies, Willem Dafoe’s Green Goblin, first seen in Spider-Man (2002), is back with a thunderous vengeance. In truth the picture really needs him; he brings a fizz and crackle of villainy that Jamie Foxx’s Electro lacks – and he’s a sight more gripping than Alfred Molina’s Doctor Octopus.
Last night’s audience in London, the film’s first screening in the UK, obliged with hoots, whistles and applause in all the right places.
Holland is a master of his craft and there are many great scenes in the film. It’s particularly pleasing to see the young man from Kingston-upon-Thames sharing the screen with several other Brits. Although they may all sound American, Spider-Man: The Way Home is clearly dominated by Britain.
To me the story felt too contrived to be considered a classic in the genre. While superhero movies require some contrivance (Spider-Man requires a head for heights), this greatest-hits film will be enjoyed by fans. However, it may not appeal to true comic-book lovers.
Spider-Man: There’s No Way Home now in theaters