OnScreen Review: "Spider-Man: No Way Home"
Ken Jones, Chief Film Critic
I may sound like a broken record by now, but I am an unabashed fan of Spider-Man, my clear-cut favorite superhero as a kid. I loved the first two Raimi films with Tobey Maguire, was traumatized by Spider-Man 3, and left unimpressed by the two Andrew Garfield entries. Marvel has done a fantastic job rehabilitating the character by incorporating him into the MCU with Tom Holland’s version of the character, and have done right by the character with Spider-Man: Homecoming and Spider-Man: Far From Home. Rounding out this trilogy, though I see no reason why there won’t be a fourth installment, is Spider-Man: No Way Home.
Picking up on the heels of Far From Home, Spider-Man’s identity as Peter Parker has been revealed to the world, opening him up to public scrutiny and scorn. It also leaves his girlfriend MJ (Zendaya) and best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon) taking shrapnel too, with all three being persona non-grata when it comes to applying for colleges. With his life a mess without his anonymity, Peter approaches Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) about casting a spell that makes the world forget that he is Spider-Man. Peter’s meddling causes the spell Strange is casting to be corrupted, and though contained, it has unintended consequences, with various entities from other universes coming to their reality that know the identity of Spider-Man. Strange tasks Parker, MJ, and Ned with finding these visitors to return them.
So essentially, No Way Home is probably the closest thing Spider-Man fans are going to get to a Sinister Six movie, as no less than five villains from previous Spider-Man movies make their way into this film, literally one from all previous, non-MCU installments: Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe), Doc Ock (Alfred Molina), Sandman (Thomas Haden Church), Lizard (Rhys Ifans), and Electro (Jamie Foxx). Other visitors eventually show up to assist Peter Parker, but I’ll refrain from spoiling the worst kept secret in MCU history.
On the one hand, I often chafe at too much fan service, because it is so unoriginal and derivative and cheap. However, No Way Home is a good kind of fan service and maybe the best kind of fan service. It brings characters back in a way that serves its plot and also examines the nature of the relationship between the superhero and his villains. Spidey’s villains, particularly in the movies, have stood out as mostly being created due to unfortunate circumstances while trying to do good, not so much because they are evil; consider Otto Octavius and his scientific pursuit of a safe fusion reactor or Doctor Curt Connors becoming the Lizard after trying to regrow human limbs using lizard DNA.
While Lizard and Sandman have smaller roles, it is nice to revisit the characters of Norman Osborn, Otto Octavius, and, perhaps most shockingly, Max Dillon. I did not expect to enjoy a return of Foxx’s Electro, but he was given such a better role this time around. It was a delight to see Alfred Molina return as Doc Ock, having easily the most poignant and cathartic journey of the entire movie. And the return of the split personalities of Dafoe’s Norman Osborn was a real treat. As an added bonus, they ditch the mask that covered his face for so much of Spider-Man and really get to take advantage of the actor’s incredible facial features.
What is the purpose of bringing in all of these characters from previous iterations of Spider-Man into this universe? Well, at the most basic level, it is to further establish the Multiverse for Marvel, which is going to be the next big thing for the MCU (and probably for other franchises and IPs). On another level, though, it is a meta deconstruction of the Spider-Man formula. These villains all face off against their version of Spider-Man in their worlds and meet a tragic end by and large, often despite Spider-Man’s best efforts to thwart them and save them at the same time. Someone like Doctor Strange sees this as their fate and is eager to return them to it to make things right with the universe(s). Peter Parker is ever the optimist and believes he can help them.
The overarching theme of Spider-Man has always been that “with great power comes great responsibility.” That has been the driving force of the character, and it has not been spoken about during this current iteration of the character until this film. While there is not much new ground covered with this third installment, that phrase is finally uttered, and it is the prism through which to see the interactions of Peter Parker with these characters. Whether it is Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man, Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man or now Tom Holland’s Spider-Man, Spider-Man believes he has a responsibility toward Otto Octavius, Max Dillon, or the non-Goblin half of Norman Osborn’s psyche.
There is a lot that cannot be talked about regarding this movie, and I do have some reservations about what takeaways Hollywood may have from this film’s success, but Spider-Man: No Way Home is entertaining and enjoyable fan service that works in furthering the character’s journey. It also worth noting that it loses a few point in originality coming on the heels of Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse just a few years ago. But this is probably Marvel’s strongest film since Endgame and another high-quality entry for Spidey in the MCU.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars