By Matthew Nguyen, Sports Editor
*Warning – There will be spoilers for both “Avengers: Endgame” as well as “Spider-Man: Far From Home” in this review*
Coming off of the emotional roller coaster that was “Avengers: Endgame,” Marvel Studios’ poster boy Spider-man returns for a sequel that pleases viewers with visually stunning set pieces (as expected from any Marvel movie), well-timed humour and a dynamic chemistry between it’s leading stars.
“Spider-Man: Far From Home” focuses primarily on its main protagonist, Peter Parker, and how he deals with the ramifications of a post-Tony Stark snapped world in which half of the entire world’s (and the universe’s) population suddenly ‘blipped’ back into existence. We can see how, following the death of Iron man, he is being pounded down by the mounting pressures and expectations that society has for Spider-man to take the mantle and ‘replace’ the fallen hero. The inner conflict and turmoil felt by Peter is the driving force behind this film and finally watching him complete his character arch by the final act of the film and find his true identity as Spider-man is satisfying for any viewer.
Speaking of the final act, the action sequences within this movie were simply stunning. By making Mysterio the villain of your movie, you’re just asking for crazy and over-the-top visual effects and Marvel covered that aspect of the film in spades.
The only critique I would have with the action portion of the film was the scaling between Spider-Man and the elementals. It was interesting to see Spider-Man, who traditionally fights villains who are more grounded and closer to his size (The Vulcher for example), fight monsters who towered over ferris wheels and buildings. The dynamic didn’t really work with me personally, although the scenes with Mysterio’s reality-warping ‘powers’ more than make up for it.
The twist within the middle of the film also didn’t really reel me in and surprise me as much as the first movie had. It almost seemed expected and it virtually killed all of the hype of the previous statement of the multiverse being officially canon in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, it does highlight the effects being rippled across the population of the world, showcasing that after a traumatizing event such as the snap, the public has now become reactionary and quick to believe that anything could be possible. This would come to play a larger role later within the film.
The character arch that Peter gets to go through in this movie was a huge highlight for me. In contrast to his progression in “Spider-man: Homecoming,” where he began the story young and naive wanting to be a part of all of the action, Peter began this one wanting to keep Spider-man on the sidelines. They made it a point throughout the course of the film to showcase how tired he was of being a hero, how tired he was of the pressures put upon him and how much he finally needed a break to just grieve the death of his mentor. He follows a similar arch that Tony Stark did in “Iron Man 3,” one in which he has to again find his identity as a hero and a reason to fight again. By the story climax, Parker does just that. He finally embraces his role as Spider-man and becomes a full-fledged hero, not just a sidekick or a glorified neighborhood patrol, but a tried and true superhero.
