Spider-Man: No Way Home, 2021.
Directed by Jon Watts.
Starring Tom Holland, Zendaya, Benedict Cumberbatch, Jacob Batalon, Jon Favreau, Jamie Foxx, Willem Dafoe, Alfred Molina, Benedict Wong, Tony Revolori, Marisa Tomei, Rhys Ifans, Thomas Haden Church, Andrew Garfield, and Tobey Maguire.
SYNOPSIS:
Spider-Man’s role in the MCU continues with No Way Home, a thrilling joy ride whose plot could have been a poorly-executed gimmick but instead satisfies in every way, from little character moments to big action set pieces. This Blu-ray + DVD edition includes a code for a digital copy as well as over 80 minutes of bonus features.
Will the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) ever misstep in a major way? Sure, there have been some subpar efforts, like Eternals, but the cinematic juggernaut overseen by Kevin Feige has yet to misfire in the way that 1997’s Batman & Robin stopped that franchise in its tracks. Spider-Man: No Way Home continues that “no major missteps” trend with a film that’s exciting, thoroughly satisfying, and sets up the MCU for the multi-verse, which I thought would always be relegated to the pages of comic books, given the incredible complexity of turning stories like that into live-action films.
What a time to be alive, right? I assume you’ve seen No Way Home already, but if not, here’s a spoiler-free rundown of the plot: When we last saw our hero, Peter Parker, he had his identity revealed to the world via the villain Mysterio. That revelation ends up creating major problems for him, his now-girlfriend MJ and his buddy Ned. The subsequent media backlash causes MIT to reject the applications of the three of them, dashing their dreams and making them social pariahs.
Ah, but this is the Marvel universe, and there’s always a way to undo what’s been done, so Peter turns to Doctor Strange for help. However, the spell that’s supposed to make everything the way it was before instead opens a rift in the multi-verse, causing characters from the pre-MCU Spider-Man films to enter this world. I’ll keep it vague to avoid spoilers, but let’s just say that Spidey also gets some friendly neighborhood assistance along the way as he tries to restore his reality to somewhat normalcy.
No Way Home does an excellent job of balancing big action set pieces with small character moments, enriching our hero and making us empathize with him more than ever. Spider-Man was always one of those characters who people could connect with more than others, given his origin story, and this film deepens that empathy, giving us a reason to feel for him even as he’s making mistakes that worsen the situation. There are also plenty of fun little cameos along the way, which has become a hallmark of the MCU. If you put me in a time machine and sent me back to the 90s, I doubt I’d get many comic book fans of that era to believe that something like the MCU would someday be a reality. Maybe the MCU will crash and burn eventually, but for now, it’s one hell of a ride.
Sony sent me this film on Blu-ray, with a DVD and a code for a digital copy included too. Given No Way Home’s recent release, the visual and audio presentations here are top-notch, which isn’t a surprise. I assume we’re in a world now where even 20 years hence, a movie like this won’t require any restoration work to be presented in whatever the dominant format will be (streaming straight into our brains, maybe?).
Moving on to the bonus features, none of them dig very deep on their own, but they still add up to over 80 minutes of content, which is nice. I admit I’ll always have a soft spot in my heart for those great two-hour documentaries that dig deep into the making of a movie, but I realize that such efforts will always be few and far between in the modern era. I can’t imagine any studio, aside from a boutique outfit like Criterion or Arrow, putting resources into something like that when a batch of short featurettes will do the trick.
Here’s what you’ll find on the disc:
- Action Choreography Across the Multiverse (6.5 minutes): Stunt choreographer George Cottle’s work on the action scenes is given an examination here.
- A Spectacular Spider-Journey with Tom Holland (6 minutes): This is a look at star Tom Holland’s portrayal of Spidey as well as the character’s place in the MCU.
- Realities Collide, Spiders Unite (8 minutes): I’ll try to avoid spoilers here by simply saying that this featurette takes a look at Holland and two other actors’ involvement in the movie, which Sony and Disney tried to shroud in secrecy to no avail.
- Graduation Day (7 minutes): Co-stars Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, and Tony Revolori discuss the Spidey franchise in the content of their careers.
- Enter Strange (5 minutes): I don’t think I’ll ever stop being amazed that major stars like Benedict Cumberbatch don’t mind playing minor roles in MCU films where their characters aren’t the focus. This brief piece looks at his role in the movie.
- Weaving Jon Watts’ Web (7 minutes): This is the director’s third MCU Spider-Man film, so this is a quick look at his place in the series.
- Alternate Reality Easter Eggs (4.75 minutes): Just about every MCU film has plenty of little things to watch out for, so this is a rundown of the ones you’ll find in No Way Home.
- A Multiverse of Miscreants (6.5 minutes): A look at the multiple villains in this film. Multi-villain superhero movies sometimes don’t work well, but No Way Home sticks the landing with its implementation of it.
- A Meeting of the Spiders – Heroes Panel (7.5 minutes): Holland and two of his co-stars discuss their involvement in a film franchise that’s 20 years old now. (Again, I’m trying to avoid spoilers, although I imagine 99% of the people reading this review already know what happens in No Way Home.)
- The Sinister Summit – Villains Panel (8.75 minutes): The actors who play the villains get their turn in the spotlight.
- The Daily Bugle (4.25 minutes): These are the full versions of the Daily Bugle news stories that are featured in the film.
- Stunt Scene Pre-Vis (3.5 minutes): This takes a look at two fights in the film and their progression, from pre-visualizations to rehearsals to the finished product.
A batch of marketing materials, a bloopers and gag reel, and previews for other movies from Sony round out the platter.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★ ★
Brad Cook