A Review of “Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)”

 

Spider-Man No Way Home might be the most hyped and most anticipated Superhero movie since Avengers Endgame. After that shocking cliffhanger from the previous movie and the fact that villains from both Sam Raimi’s Spiderman trilogy and The Amazing Spider-Man were returning for multiverse madness, the hype went through the roof. However, does it live up to the hype or collapse under its weight?

Let’s get the obvious praises out the way first. The action sequences are all still very exciting and enjoyable to watch. The fight scenes utilize Spidey’s and the villains’ ability very well leading to a very fun choreography. Although, my favourite fight happens to just be a brutal fistfight in an apartment that illustrate the new tonal direction of the film. Michael Giacchino returns to score the film and his music score is better than ever. The first half of the film has a similar music score to that of Spider-Man Homecoming and Far From Home. The second half is where Michael’s music score starts feeling more sombre and heroic, which is very effective and fitting for the story. He also includes some subtle music soundtrack from Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man and The Amazing Spider-Man that is very fitting. One complaint that I had about director Jon Watts is that his Spider-Man movies are not visually interesting. This isn’t the case in No Way Home with there being good cinematography and memorable shots. There is a scene with Strange and magic that looks visually pleasing and a scene with Peter in the rain that looks stunning.

Tom Holland is still phenomenal as Spider-Man with him delivering a great performance. His chemistry with both Jacob Batalon and Zendaya who play Peter’s best friend and girlfriend respectively is a wonderful sight. Seeing the three of them work together like the best of friends feels very believable. Benedict Cumberbatch also returns as Doctor Strange and he gives a very different side to him that we haven’t seen before. He gives a more playful yet lecturing father-like side to him that bounces well off Spider-Man. Alfred Molina returns after 17 years as Doctor Octopus from Spider-Man 2 and he is still able to embody the character perfectly like he never left. The best performance in this film comes from Willem Dafoe who returns as the Green Goblin From Spider-Man (2002). Willem is somehow able to give a performance that is even more frightening and unhinged than his performance in 2002 Spider-Man. Jamie Foxx also returns as Electro and thankfully his performance is no longer as cringy or silly as it was in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. This time he does feel like a villain to be reckoned with.

The story is also a huge step up from the previous MCU Spider-Man movies as it feels like there is more emotional weight this time. One issue with MCU Spider-Man over previous Spider-Man movies is that Peter never has anything personal at stake. This isn’t the case in No Way Home where it feels like he is dealing with a lot and even downright suffering for it. He has a proper story arc that is incredibly satisfying. One worry I had was the fact there were 5 villains in this movie. Surprisingly, the movie does a good job of juggling them all. Everyone has a fair amount of dialogue that illustrates their personality while clearly stating their motives for them being against Spider-Man. Even if their motive is just wanting to turn a city into lizards.

Unfortunately, Lizard and Sandman don’t get as much focus compared to the other three villains. Both do feel like they are just there to have a big CGI battle at the end. I also find Sandman’s motive clashes with the other villains which makes it weird for him to be teaming up with them at all. No Way Home also still seems to have a problem that a lot of MCU movies have which is doing quips and jokes without letting the serious nature of the moment linger longer. The film also has some weird editing where it feels like they don’t linger on an actor’s facial performance for long enough and just cut away to someone else’s reaction instead. There are also a fair amount of scenes done with close up camera shots instead of a long or wide shot even though it would be better. Both of these are very noticeable in the final act, most likely due to the studio filming these actors in different places.

Overall, Spider-Man No Way Home might be the best MCU Spider-Man film so far. While it is certainly filled to the brim with fan service, the film is still able to maintain a compelling story while making the fan service complement the story. This film should’ve been a bloated mess and it should have crushed under its weight, but it didn’t. While the film certainly has flaws (and some plot holes and plot conveniences), it never damages the experience. No Way Home is an excellent movie that lives up to the hype. This is how you do fan service properly!