Mikey’s
We’re only a few months removed from what was supposed to be the end of the MCU as we know it – Avengers: Endgame. But there’s no time to grieve because here comes the return of your friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man to not only tell a new story but smartly deal with the fallout from Endgame, acting as a sequel to that movie as much as it is a sequel to Spider-Man: Homecoming.
As always I will be avoiding spoilers to the best of my ability though expect full spoilers for Avengers: Endgame.
Far From Home picks up almost directly after Endgame and wastes no time in tackling some obvious questions that many fans might have had going into this and does so with all the charm and comedy you’d expect from an MCU Spider-Man movie. This film does a fantastic job of acknowledging the recent devastating events in the MCU but makes sure to do it in a way that not only put a smile on this nerd’s face but also got me hyped to spend more time in this wonderful world of Spider-Man that was set up so well in Homecoming. I loved this because it shows that Marvel aren’t just going to bulldoze ahead with new stories and forget their past, the tragic events of what we now call the Infinity Saga looks as if it will have a ripple effect through most their movies going forward and in this instance it worked perfectly.
But this isn’t an Avengers movie, it is of course a Spider-Man man movie and is a hell of a good one… No scratch that, it’s an amazing one! I love talking about the MCU’s Spidey as it means I can gush over Tom Holland and that’s exactly what I’m about to do again. Tom Holland is Peter Parker. Ever since he was introduced in Captain America: Civil War, he’s shown everybody exactly why the MCU is famous for nailing it’s characters. It’s no secret that we’ve seen a ton of Spidey movies over the years but Tom Holland encapsulates the character like nobody else. Peter Parker to most (Including myself) is meant to be an awkward teenager who struggles with juggling the drama of being a high school student as well as being a god damn superhero and Holland achieves this with ease. I love spending time with this character, it’s everything I’ve ever wanting from Spider-Man and the way he’s portrayed in this film makes me believe the guys at Marvel are happy for him to be the face of the MCU going forward and I for one will back that decision all the way!
Spider-Man: Homecoming spent a lot of time exploring the relationship between Peter and his mentor – Tony Stark aka Iron Man. Even with Tony now being dead, they manage to continue the evolution of that relationship in grand style. In fact it’s handled so well that I often forget that Iron Man isn’t technically in this movie! There’s a lot going on in this movie but the way Peter has to try deal with the loss of his beloved mentor is a real highlight and demonstrates just how well Marvel have built the relationship between these two iconic characters. They don’t make any secret during this movie that Far From Home is setting out to reflect the Iron Man movies and having Happy Hogan and Nick Fury play prominent roles is one way of doing this and doing it well. I love seeing Jon Favreau in his role as Happy, he’s one of those MCU characters that I will never get bored of seeing and just brings the silly, charming and loveable energy while all along trying to stay straight faced that worked so well alongside Tony Stark… And is now doing the same for Peter Parker.
It’s not all about Stark though as the majority of the supporting characters from Homecoming make a welcomed return. Jacob Batalon once again brings the laughs as Peter’s “guy in the chair” – Ned. Though some hilarious distractions keep him from being as close to Spidey as he was in the previous film, he still comes across as the best friend that everybody wants in real life. The rest of Peter’s class all play their roles great with the teachers Mr Harrington and Mr Dell being the stand outs to me during the trip around Europe that the class are taking. Though it’s Zendaya’s MJ whos character gets fleshed out the most as we learn more about who she is and why Peter likes her so much. Outside of Peter’s school trip we of course see the return of Aunt May played wonderfully by Marisa Tomei who continues to smash expectations on what we all presume the Aunt May character to be.
I really want to talk a lot about Jake Gyllenhaal as Mysterio but it’s going to be very difficult without going into spoilers! I will say though that he’s fantastic in the role and is so likeable. His relationship with Spidey is just great throughout the whole film and some of his big moments are nothing short of spectacular. In fact I’d go as far to say that the special effects for Mysterio’s big scenes, especially towards the end, could well be the most visually stunning thing I have ever seen in the MCU. The way his story plays out took some surprising turns that I wasn’t expecting and come the end I was left so happy with direction they took with Mysterio. Again I’m avoiding spoilers so this may sound a bit flaky but there was one negative I have to touch on where a big concept was introduced through Mysterio then forgotten about very quickly that left me feeling a bit flat and disappointed. Those who have seen the movie will probably know what I mean.
The overall story I felt was very strong. I will say that some of it was quite predictable but even those parts were handled well so it can be forgiven. When all is said and done I can’t quite decide if I liked it more than Homecoming and I was a HUGE fan of that movie so believe me, this is high praise. The action is fun and pretty much what you would expect from a solo Spider-Man movie. It may feel a little flat to some given that the epic and over the top battle from Endgame is still freshly imprinted on our brains but it felt right within the limitations of this movie.
For every one of these MCU movies it’s common knowledge that you wait around for the credits to roll on the strong chance of some classic Marvel extras setting up for future installments to the franchise and after not getting any of those for Endgame (Rightfully so), they more than make up for it here. I’m not even going to hint at what happens in either of the two post credit scenes as you should experience them for yourself without any preconceptions.
In closing there’s very little negatives I can actually point out without nitpicking. It shoots right up towards the top of my favourite stand alone MCU movies and can easily be talked about in the same breath as Black Panther, Winter Soldier and Homecoming. I don’t think it does quite enough to be my outright favourite but it definitely surpassed my already high expectations. Everybody involved in making Far From Home should take a bow for bringing us a second Spider-Man man movie that completely lives up to everything that character represents while at the same time keeping the connected universe of the MCU going just as strong as ever. We may have lost some major faces but rest assured that judging by this movie – Our beloved Avengers are in good hands.
I give Spider-Man: Far From Home:
Luke’s
What can I say that Mikey hasn’t already touched on for this review really?
For me Spiderman is what epitomizes Marvel Comics for me, and Far From Home has proven to me that we finally have a cinematic Spiderman that is worthy of the name. Tom Holland is the absolute perfect Peter Parker, and whilst I appreciate that Tobey Maguire was also a fantastic Peter Parker… Tom Holland is ALSO the absolute best Spiderman I could hope for; he’s just perfect in the role.
I have piggybacked onto Mikey’s review here just because I couldn’t let something about Spiderman go past without getting yet another chance to fanboy about it.
Speaking of perfect in the role – Jake Gyllenhaal as Mysterio (Who is hands down my favourite of Spidey’s rogues gallery by a country mile) is delivered with such absolute intensity that it cemented him as my favourite MCU villain by far.
Also without saying anything about it too much STAY FOR BOTH END CREDITS SCENES. The midcredits scene is by far the best that Marvel has delivered on ever.
My score for Spiderman: Far From Home sits at an incredibly biased: