Spider-Man: Far from Home
(Columbia Pictures/Marvel Studios)
By Lucas Allen
It’s a great time to be a Spider-Man fan. Between his appearances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the Oscar-winning animated film “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” Stan Lee and Steve Ditko’s legendary teen superhero is flying higher than ever on the big screen. After his appearances in the last two Avengers movies, Spidey returns for his second solo film in the MCU with “Spider-Man: Far from Home. ”
With the same creative team as “Spider-Man: Homecoming,” the sequel will have to go farther than they did to impress us much more.
Peter Parker (Tom Holland) returns to New York after being gone from The Snap for five years while dealing with the aftermath of “Avengers: Endgame.” He and his classmates are taking a special school trip around Europe, which means a chance for him to share his feelings for MJ (Zendaya) he’s been pining for. But things don’t go as well as planned when another student, Brad (Remy Hii), is also after MJ, and his best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon) is paying more attention to Betty (Angourie Rice). Things get crazier when Spidey is brought in by Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) to combat a growing problem the world is facing.
It seems The Snap has caused a rip in the universe that unleashed some cosmic beings, the Elementals, who consist of air, water and fire. To combat that, a man from an alternate Earth named Quentin Beck (AKA Mysterio) (Jake Gyllenhaal) arrives to help our heroes using his cosmic powers to destroy them. Although it’s nice he’s working with another hero, Parker still feels under Tony Stark’s shadow that he could be the next Iron Man. Now Spidey will have to prove himself to be more than that when he discovers deception and evil that he never expected.
It should be no surprise that this is another really good Spider-Man movie, especially from the good folks at Marvel Studios. But with the shadow of Endgame hovering over it, the movie manages to add some emotional depth to the story between the characters and the action scenes. When you watch the main character go through one event after another, you still have that emotional connection to him that’s essential in any Spidey movie. No matter if the movie is live-action or animated, it’s easy to get into this superhero universe and not want to leave it.
Much like “Homecoming,” there’s a genuine mix of action and comedy at a level of an ’80s John Hughes high school film. With the change in location from New York to Europe, it gives the filmmakers a chance to expand on what made the previous film a success, while doing something different in an action-packed story. Not only do they succeed in all fronts, but they also add some human drama along with some twists to make it better than before. The real kicker happens in the mid-credits scene that contains both a surprise cameo and what’s to come in Phase 4 of the MCU.
Thanks to his recent appearances in the Avengers films, Holland continues to evolve with his performance as both the awkward teenager and the emotionally conflicted hero. We finally get to see his vulnerable side as he deals with mounting problems that affects him as a character. Gyllenhaal deserves kudos in the role of Mysterio with the Oscar-nominated actor using his best acting ability to give the character different layers of his personality. Marisa Tomei and Jon Favreau also return as Aunt May and Happy Hogan respectively this time in a relationship subplot that generates plenty of giggles.
With “Spider-Man: Far from Home,” the character remains the Marvel fan-favorite audiences have come to love. It’s also the best Spider-Man film since the 2002 Sam Raimi original that launched the character into a global phenomenon. Plus after the shocking mid-credits scene, it would be interesting where the character will go next in the MCU whether in his solo movies or in other films.
THE MOVIE’S RATING: PG-13 (for sci-fi action/violence, some language, and brief suggestive comments)
THE CRITIC’S RATING: 3.75 Stars (Out of Four)
