**MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD**
“With great power comes great responsibility.”
This is perhaps the most famous line that has often defined Spider-Man in his iterations throughout comic and film history. As an audience, we were given the first glimpse of this ideal in “Captain America: Civil War” (2016) when Peter tells his to-be mentor Tony Stark that “when you can do the things that I can, but you don’t, and then the bad things happen… they happen because of you.” And as was the case in this now-classic (I’m saying it!) scene of Tony’s recruitment of Spider-Man, the original Avenger has loomed large in Peter’s life ever since. Specifically, in “Spider-Man: Far From Home” (2019), Peter’s inner doubts about being a superhero with worldwide responsibilities outside of just his neighborhood, where his friendliness has always been a constant, come to a boiling point. And, in my opinion, it doesn’t just work; it’s at times hilariously joyful, clever, and thrilling while still conveying the complex emotional life true to the inherent dichotomy of the two sides to our main protagonist: Peter Parker and Spider-Man.
Jon Watts returned to direct this installment of the still-shiny new MCU/Sony hybrid version of Spider-Man after his success on “Spider-Man: Homecoming” (2017). As in the first film, he finds a tonal balance between lightness with true laugh-out-loud humor – as in a PG version of Deadpool, who was originally based on Spider-Man – and darker motivations of some characters that has always been a draw to fans of Spider-Man. Along with the writing team of Erik Sommers and Chris McKenna – the guys responsible for “Spider-Man: Homecoming’s” hilarious and coming-of-age screenplay – Watts finds his footing by switching between bombast and intimacy to keep the film humming along at just over 2 hours. This is a true balancing act, and to me, was not always done with A-level proficiency – though, this is a minor gripe.
Sommers and McKenna also find awesomely clever ways to allude to the events of “Avengers: Infinity War” and “Endgame,” including an “In Memoriam” to kick off the film made by high schoolers using Comic Sans font. Thanos’ snap is The Blip, and Peter’s Spidey sense is the “Peter tingle.” One indelible mark Marvel has left on this iteration of Spider-Man is true originality on the character while staying true to the Spidey ethos of fun, heart, and grounded-ness.
Many were also wondering aloud about the effect of taking Spider-Man out of his neighborhood, and placing him all over the European continent. This is perhaps the greatest example of giving the audience an original Spider-Man take while staying true to his historic spirit and large heart: each city he finds himself in becomes his neighborhood, and he cares for them as he would Queens. To me, it just further cements him as the “friendly neighborhood Spider-Man”: only now, people the world over can think that they are his neighbors, too.
Watts, McKenna, and Sommers’ story was made more effective by the winning performances of the ensemble cast. Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury and Cobie Smulders as Anita Hill are the perfect adult counterbalance to Spidey’s nice guy, “aw-shucks” demeanor. Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan and Melissa Tomei as the integral Aunt May play Peter’s mentor figures who, while respecting his grieving process, still push him toward hero-dom – and end up making an unlikely duo of their own that finds Peter as a third wheel by the end of the film.
Peter’s classmates are all well-cast and have their moments to shine. They all also look as if they could legitimately be in high school – and this is a direction that I am elated the casting department went in, as Sam Raimi’s original Spider-Man trilogy and the subsequent Andrew Garfield iterations did not. And I did not realize until “Homecoming’s” release how much of a difference this makes; as an audience member, you begin to become more emotionally invested in these kids with their stereotypical high school problems because the actors are truly that here: kids. Jacob Batalon as Ned is hysterical and pitch-perfect as Peter’s best buddy and confidant. Zendaya is awesomely awkward and ironic to match Peter’s own awkwardness. JB Smoove and Martin Starr as the teacher chaperones never fail to lighten the mood – there is one sequence on the airplane trip going to Europe where Starr’s Ned Leeds and Peter have a short, almost throwaway interaction that was right there as one of my favorites of the film. This crew even ends up naming Jake Gyllenhaal’s iconic character Quentin Beck his more famous Mysterio moniker because of the word “Misterio” appearing in reference to him on Italian television.
And speaking of Mysterio: Jake Gyllenhaal has been one of my favorite actors of the past five years. His transition from traditional blockbuster fare to adult dramas and Broadway has allowed the world to see his ability stretched; here, it’s no different. His rapport with Tom Holland often comes across like popcorn, with dialogue kernels popping consistently. His take on the iconic Spidey villain is, again, done in a way that incorporates him into the 21st century and ties him to prior references in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). While his character arc is a slow-burn throughout the first act of the film, his duplicitous nature is abruptly revealed to begin the second act. This was one moment that I would have liked to have been given more weight and with more showing instead of telling. However, die-hard fans of Spider-Man will be able to appreciate Jake Gyllenhaal’s fully fleshed out Mysterio that also keeps with the character’s history: a revenge-driven visual effects aficionado with sights firmly set on his own glory. And to the casual audience member: Jake Gyllenhaal clearly having the time of his life playing a Spider-Man villain is plenty of fun, too.
On the flip side of this hubris is Tom Holland as Peter Parker. He is on screen for nearly the entire duration of the film, and by virtue of this, is given the chance to shine as the truly friendly, sweet, awkward Peter all the more. He is now, by far, my own favorite on-screen version of Peter Parker we as an audience have ever been given. Throughout “Far From Home,” we are given glimpses into Peter’s love of science, his crush on MJ, his inner conflict of accepting and rejecting the great responsibility thrust upon him by Tony Stark, and his love for the aforementioned playboy billionaire. philanthropist.
Jon Watts cleverly styled the beginnings of each scene within every different European locale with some sort of homage to the fallen Avenger – often through murals or wall art – so his presence literally looms over Peter throughout the film. And as each scene passes, so does the opportunity to leave the superhero life behind as Peter’s inner monologue only becomes more diluted. Tom Holland rides the emotional rollercoaster in a way that shows his deepened understanding of the characters of both Peter and Spider-Man; to me, this film accomplished what “Batman Begins” (2005) did in making the audience care just as much about the person behind the mask as the hero wearing it. He’s seen in new costumes – including a Spider-Man Noir-influenced get-up – and is taken to heights that perhaps only last year’s Best Animated Picture Oscar-winner “Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse” has gone to emotionally, as well as plot and stakes-wise. As Spider-Man was chosen by Tony Stark to lead the next generation of Avengers, Tom Holland was by Robert Downey, Jr. And it shows.
You need not be a die-hard fan of Spider-Man to enjoy “Spider-Man: Far From Home” – it has something in it for the most casual of audience members, as is usually the case with the MCU. However, and as is also usually the case in the MCU, if you do consider yourself a Spidey die-hard: Jon Watts’ film will give you plenty of reason to celebrate, too. With the current divisive cultural climate of and living in an era where the term “fake news” is commonplace, we as a viewing audience are provided the perfect antidote – with a hero on a journey towards self-discovery as the earnest young man he claims to be: our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.
