Does whatever an Iron Man can
Were I to unleash the full and unfettered comic-book geek inside of me, I could probably whittle Spider-Man: Far From Home down to the size of Hot Wheels Thanos Helicopter, but this film is far too good and is way too much fun to get all worked up and picky about the details; and besides, it perfectly captures the spirit of the old Spidey comics and that’s the important thing.
In Far From Home, the world is still recovering from Thanos’ devastating finger-snap and the incredible events of Avengers: Endgame, but Peter Parker’s world seems to have survived with very little change or hardship, except for the loss of his hero and mentor, Tony Stark.
Peter Parker (Tom Holland) and his high-school gang, including MJ (Zendaya), Ned (Jacob Batalon) and Flash Thompson (Tony Revolori) go to Europe on a science-trip and find themselves caught in the middle of a battle between a new super-powered entity named Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal) and elemental creatures bent on destroying the Earth. Crazy fun Spidey-action ensues as Peter fights to save his friends and hopes to spend some quality time with MJ.
Directed by Jon Watts and written by the same team that did 2017’s Spider-Man: Homecoming, this is a hilarious and fun film that is part summer teen-comedy and part superhero adventure. While watching, it struck me that this is what a Marvel movie would have looked like if John Hughes had written and directed it.
My biggest issue is that I’m not a fan of Peter Parker getting all caught up in high-tech and high-dollar costumes. He’s an everyman hero, a poor kid who sometimes has to carry too much of the world on his shoulders – but still manages to rise to every challenge thrown in his path. So I’m a little put off when the character becomes too Iron Man-centric, which is where the newest rendition of Spider-Man has gone, much too often.
That said, Spidey has blended pretty seamlessly into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, where he didn’t even exist up until the last few movies; and Peter Parker’s base character, thankfully, still remains largely intact – despite the Iron Man influences.
There are surprises big and small throughout this film and the less you know about it going in, the more you will enjoy it. Be sure to stick around until ALL of the credits have run and the screen goes blank. You have been notified!
At the screening I attended, the crowd was laughing and cheering the whole way though the film, and rightfully so. With this, its 23rd film, Marvel Studios is still going strong and making all the right moves. I can’t wait to see what comes next.
Grade: 9/10
