Marvel’s “Spider-Man: No Way Home” Movie Review
Three is the magic number indeed.
Jon Watts directed one of the best MCU movies there is. He is also one of the few Marvel directors to film a complete trilogy. Watts managed to create a visually pleasing movie and filled it to the brim with fan service.
“Spider-Man: No Way Home” is the epic conclusion to the trilogy while setting up for the next three that Marvel/Sony are brewing.
The movie is one of the most ambitious films there is. It had the task to bring in villains from the Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield Spiderman movies. This might sound confusing to read, not only did Watts bring back the actors to play the villains from the previous movies but also the actual characters with the same motives and characteristics that they had in their previous films; basically, picking up where they left off.
Marvel managed to do this so perfectly that it makes any Spider-Man fan emotional.
Seeing actors like William Dafoe as Green Goblin return is breathtaking.
Other villains that resumed their roles in the movie include Thomas Hayden Church as Sandman, Rhys Ifans as the Lizard, and most importantly Jamie Foxx as a non-blue Electro.
All the actor’s performances were great in their roles, and they managed to recapture that greatness in this movie, but some did shine more than others.
Due to so many villains in the movie, The Lizard and Sandman were kicked to the curb and had less screen time and character development than the other villains. Fun fact: they actually reused clips from their previous Spider-Man movies since the actors aged so much since the last time, they played the role.
But back to villains.
Arguably the worst let down of the villains is Doc Ock. He was forced to be comedic and did not have the same conflicted villain feel that he had in “Spider-Man 2”, but even though he wasn’t as good he is still far better than most of MCU villains there are. He also has some of the most emotional payoff there is in the movie.
Jamie Foxx wasn’t a bad Electro in “The Amazing Spider-Man 2,” but the script he had to work with was bad. This movie gave Foxx more to work with and a much better and powerful Electro to be. Foxx killed it in his redemption role.
William Dafoe is by far the best. He is arguably the best villain the MCU has right behind Thanos. He was equally terrifying as he is in the Maguire trilogy. He also was the biggest threat in the movie and pushed Spider-Man to his limit.
Not only did villains reprise their roles, but so did heroes!
Tom Holland as Spider-Man, Zendaya as MJ, J.K. Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson, Marisa Tomei as Aunt May, Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan, Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange, Jacob Batalon as Ned and many additional cameos.
Zendaya and Batalon play their roles well. They are Spider-Man’s best friends and the bond they have with Spider-Man is felt the entire time. They get a lot of screen time yet they seem more secondary and feel overshadowed by other characters in the movie, but they play the roles well and, because of their performances in the trilogy, make the audience shed a tear with what happens to them.
Simmons is J. Jonah Jameson. He makes people feel like Spider-Man is a menace and is arguably the best comic book movie casting there is. He feels like he’s straight out of the comic.
Tomei’s Aunt May gets more screen time than she had in previous films. Her moral battles in the film and her ability to push the plot forward is well done.
Favreau continues to be unhappy Happy Hogan. Happy was still comedic in the movie and had a few heartfelt moments, but was mostly side-lined throughout the film.
Cumberbatch has mastered Doctor Strange in Marvel. His performance is phenomenal. The issue is the script seemed uncharacteristic for the character and the audience questions his choices in the film and can ridicule his one major fight scene.
Holland does his best Spider-Man yet. He is no longer a kid or Iron Man’s sidekick. He had an emotionally beautiful performance that can arguably make him the best Spider-Man actor.
The acting in this movie was epic but so was the fan service. They brought in multiple memes like the long running joke of the Green Goblin saying he’s something of a scientist.
They also had the movie filled with easter eggs and references to other Spider-Man movies.
Most importantly, the movie delivered what all viewers wished to see. Which is a hard task to do with eight previous Spider-Man movies and the hype for this movie rivaling Avenger’s Endgame. But Marvel didn’t shy away from the task. They delivered what every fan wanted plus more.
But every movie has their flaws.
The movie’s plot wasn’t a great one. It felt rushed to get into the next scene, and some of the characters' actions left the audience to scratch their heads. But the heartstrings this film tugs and the emotions it makes one feel can make it easy to ignore the flaws in the script.
Surprisingly, the fight scenes were lackluster. For a superhero movie none of them really stood out besides the emotional battle between Green Goblin and Spider-Man. Each fight was enjoyable, like the end fight had some incredible action shots, but many fight sequences didn’t stand out compared to other superhero films.
Without spoilers, the best part of the movie is the ending and has some of the most memorable moments in recent film history.
“Spider-Man: Now Way Home” is one of the best movies in recent history and has iconic moments that not only lived up to the hype but will most likely be remembered for years to come.
Rating: 4/5 stars
Ethan Hetrick is a first-year communications major. To contact him, email eth5186@psu.edu.
