“Spider-Man: No Way Home”: An ending to an exciting trilogy or nostalgia bait? !!!Spoilers Ahead!!!
Spider-Man No Way Home draws fans to the 8th live action Spider-Man flick by bringing back cast members from the previous iterations of Spider-Man, but are they there to complete a cohesive trilogy for Tom Holland’s Spider-Man or to steal the spotlight all together?
Tom Holland stars as Peter Parker/Spider-Man in Columbia Pictures’ SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME.
In “Spider-Man: No Way Home”, Zendaya’s Michelle Jones says, “If you expect disappointment, then you can never really be disappointed.” The latest addition to the MCU and the finale of the Homecoming trilogy, “Spider-Man: No Way Home” delivers an exciting, and jaw dropping experience that is sure to not disappoint.
No Way Home is a direct sequel to Spider-Man Far From Home. Tom Holland returns as Spider-Man and his secret identity as Peter Parker has just been revealed to the world! Peter then recruits Doctor Strange to cast a spell to hopefully fix everything, but something goes awry and Spider-Man villains from alternate universes begin to arrive, and it becomes Peter’s job to fix the mistake and send the villains home.
“Spider-Man: No Way Home” delivers an experience that was 20 years in the making to satisfy fans of all the iterations of Spider-Man. Fan favorite Spider-Man villains return to reprise their roles, giving a deeper dive into the psyche of some of these characters, Willem Dafoe especially, masterfully returns as the Green Goblin giving more emotion and fear then when he first appeared in 2002’s “Spider-Man.” He was given the main villain treatment which seems fitting for one of the men who started it all.
To no one’s surprise, about sometime into the 3rd arc, Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire would reprise their roles as the other version of Spider-Man. They deliver performances straight out of their respective movies and giving fans joy for seeing their childhood versions of Spider-Man in the current year. Tobey Maguire fills his role as the older and wisest Spider-Man, and the breakout star, Andrew Garfield returns as his underappreciated role as Spider-Man. Although his movies weren’t as well received as his counterparts, this movie serves as a redemption for Garfield, allowing him to reinstate his place as the “Amazing Spider-Man.”
The returning cast all fit their respective roles, and the chemistry between the main cast of Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, and Tom Holland is always a beautiful sight to see, but the single performance of Tom Holland closing out his trilogy, dealing with the death of Aunt May, and the consequences of his actions throughout the film cements him as the new Spider-Man, as this trilogy represents an origin story to his version of the character.
As always, massive flicks that try to balance all these characters at once have trouble with runtime and continuity errors. The movie offers a lot from the return of these beloved characters, but it also leaves a lot to be wished for in exploring these characters even more. Jamie Foxx’s Electro never learned who Spider-Man was, so Doctor Strange’s spell should have never worked in the first place, the spell to make people forget is a tad bit contrived, and a lot of the second and third act, especially how they “fix” the villains is a bit convenient.
Despite its faults, the movie is a nostalgia filled ride that ends as a masterful Spider-Man film for the fans. No matter how many problems you may have with the movie’s plot convenience or contrivity, there is no doubt that you will enjoy seeing 20 years of Spider-Man’s film history coming together in a single movie that redeems this version of Spider-Man for all fans out there, director Jon Watts truly has a vision for his movies, and it is exciting to see what comes next from him, because with this movie he truly understands, “With great power, there also comes great responsibility.”
