Daily Sabah logo

Politics
Diplomacy Legislation War On Terror EU Affairs Elections News Analysis
TÜRKİYE
Istanbul Education Investigations Minorities Expat Corner Diaspora
World
Mid-East Europe Americas Asia Pacific Africa Syrian Crisis Islamophobia
Business
Automotive Economy Energy Finance Tourism Tech Defense Transportation News Analysis
Lifestyle
Health Environment Travel Food Fashion Science Religion History Feature Expat Corner
Arts
Cinema Music Events Portrait Reviews Performing Arts
Sports
Football Basketball Motorsports Tennis
Opinion
Columns Op-Ed Reader's Corner Editorial
PHOTO GALLERY
JOBS ABOUT US RSS PRIVACY CONTACT US
© Turkuvaz Haberleşme ve Yayıncılık 2023

Daily Sabah logo

عربي
  • Politics
    • Diplomacy
    • Legislation
    • War On Terror
    • EU Affairs
    • Elections
    • News Analysis
  • TÜRKİYE
    • Istanbul
    • Education
    • Investigations
    • Minorities
    • Expat Corner
    • Diaspora
  • World
    • Mid-East
    • Europe
    • Americas
    • Asia Pacific
    • Africa
    • Syrian Crisis
    • Islamophobia
  • Business
    • Automotive
    • Economy
    • Energy
    • Finance
    • Tourism
    • Tech
    • Defense
    • Transportation
    • News Analysis
  • Lifestyle
    • Health
    • Environment
    • Travel
    • Food
    • Fashion
    • Science
    • Religion
    • History
    • Feature
    • Expat Corner
  • Arts
    • Cinema
    • Music
    • Events
    • Portrait
    • Reviews
    • Performing Arts
  • Sports
    • Football
    • Basketball
    • Motorsports
    • Tennis
  • Gallery
  • Opinion
    • Columns
    • Op-Ed
    • Reader's Corner
    • Editorial
  • TV
  • Arts
  • Cinema
  • Music
  • Events
  • Portrait
  • Reviews
  • Performing Arts

One movie to unite them all: Spider-Man overdose in ‘No Way Home’

by Associated Press

Dec 15, 2021 - 10:32 am GMT+3
Tom Holland (L) and Benedict Cumberbatch in a scene from the film “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” (Sony Pictures via AP)
Tom Holland (L) and Benedict Cumberbatch in a scene from the film “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” (Sony Pictures via AP)
by Associated Press Dec 15, 2021 10:32 am
RECOMMENDED
Halle Bailey as Ariel, in a scene from the film "The Little Mermaid." (AP Photo)

'The Little Mermaid': Disney continues to butcher its classics

review

First, there was the original Tobey Maguire – still considered the epitome of Spider-Man incarnations and bedrock of superhero films. Then came the days of the Andrew Garfield edition, and as divisive as they were, one can't deny they were enjoyable. Lastly, in the saga, Tom Holland picked up the mantle to bring a youthful charm and energy to the character.

One would be forgiven to think that these would be three Spider-Men that have etched their marks on three different generations, but that's the thing about spiders: They're really fast. All of these unique iterations of Spidey have come to life in the span of just one generation over the last two decades.

The franchise's constant (and contractual) regenerative velocity has by now become a familiar punchline. But in “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” the distinct, if cluttered, time zones of Marvel's web slinger overlap and collide in ways that are often entertaining and likely to be satisfying to fans, even if they still lack quite the Spidey sense tingle they're designed to provide an overdose of.

Tom Holland in a scene from the film “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” (Sony Pictures via AP)
Tom Holland in a scene from the film “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” (Sony Pictures via AP)

This movie is like two Spider-Man jabs and a booster all in one. In its retrospective sweep and supergroup construction, “No Way Home” is Spidey's own “Endgame."

That also means it comes with plenty of twists that, if you don't want any spoilers, you really ought to see the movie before reading reviews like this one.

The clever reveals and appearances of “No Way Home” are so much a part of its fabric that's it's difficult to consider the movie without referencing some of them. In a message before the film, Jamie Foxx – who played the villain Electro in “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” – warns of revealing spoilers before it's pointed out that he, himself, is a spoiler.

Jon Watts' “No Way Home” begins as its two previous installments, also directed by Watts, did: with the breezy high-school vibe that has characterized Tom Holland's reign as Spider-Man. It's been a chapter defined by Holland's wholesome charm. He's a pleasant, if somewhat vanilla Spider-Man, who has sometimes seemed most suited to the role offscreen, as a student to Robert Downey Jr. and in his genial, goofy media appearances. But Holland's earnest, easy manner has also lightened the sometimes heavy load of Marvel movies, and his mostly winning albeit easily forgotten Spider-Man films have been refreshingly unencumbered by the larger franchise's exposition-leaden, interconnected apparatus.

Zendaya (L) and Tom Holland in a scene from the film “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” (Sony Pictures via AP)
Zendaya (L) and Tom Holland in a scene from the film “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” (Sony Pictures via AP)

“No Way Home” picks up precisely where 2019's “Far From Home” left off: Outside New York's Penn Station, where Jake Gyllenhaal's Mysterio revealed Peter Parker's identity just before perishing. The new notoriety brings news helicopters hovering over Peter's apartment and disrupts his previously clandestine relationship with girlfriend MJ (Zendaya) and best pal Ned (Jacob Batalon). They are on the cusp of getting into MIT – Paula Newsome is especially good as a college admissions officer – but Mysterio has made Peter a divisive figure. Our stay in Midtown High School, where Peter is mobbed, is brief – too brief, considering the teaching staff includes JB Smoove, Hannibal Buress and Martin Starr.

Wanting his old anonymity back, Peter turns to Benedict Cumberbatch's Doctor Strange, who summons an amnesia spell that goes awry. Instead of wiping the memory of those who know Spider-Man's secret, it conjures villains from his past, opening portals between parallel universes – which in this case means between movies. Electro, Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe), Doctor Octopus (Alfred Molina), Sandman (Thomas Haden Church) and Lizard (Rhys Ifans) tumble forth like dazed travelers who took a wrong turn at Albuquerque.

Alfred Molina as Doc Ock in a scene from the film “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” (Sony Pictures via AP)
Alfred Molina as Doc Ock in a scene from the film “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” (Sony Pictures via AP)

By opening pathways of connection between the Spider-Man films, “No Way Home” binds together a much-remade fictional universe with a new spirit of cohesion and a warm bath of fan service. If we are stepping between movies, it's tempting to want some of the portals to lead into other films – to Cumberbatch's character in “The Power of the Dog” or Andrew Garfield in “Tick, Tick ... Boom!” Or better yet, Dafoe's mad wickie in “The Lighthouse.”

Now that would be meta.

Really, it was the Chris Miller and Phil Lord-produced “Into the Spider-verse” that opened this gateway by riffing metaphysically with the webslinger. “No Way Home” adopts some of that comic energy but doesn't have the same whip-smart, freewheeling uninhibitedness. If “Spider-verse” was about how anyone can be Spider-Man, “No Way Home” is a more authorized Spider-Man compendium; its tone leans more operatic than antic. Still, Watts has a human touch that can be lacking in superhero films, and nearly all of the actors who appear in “No Way Home” come across as individuals despite the high-concept narrative.

Tom Holland (L) and Benedict Cumberbatch in a scene from the film “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” (Sony Pictures via AP)
Tom Holland (L) and Benedict Cumberbatch in a scene from the film “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” (Sony Pictures via AP)

It also offers a more direct comparison and contrast between our three Spider-Men, each a variant of the same theme. The Sam Raimi films, with Tobey Maguire – or at least the first two – are still top of the class. But while Garfield's pair of movies are probably the easiest to dismiss, it's his appearance here that's the most potent. Not because he's at home as Spider-Man but because he isn't.

Now seven years older and doing some of the best work of his life, a more mature Garfield exudes something that doesn't enter into this ever-recycling, short-term memory franchise – that there is life after Spider-Man.

RECOMMENDED
Halle Bailey as Ariel, in a scene from the film "The Little Mermaid." (AP Photo)

'The Little Mermaid': Disney continues to butcher its classics

review
  • shortlink copied
  • Last Update: Dec 15, 2021 12:54 pm
    RELATED TOPICS
    fight-against-terrorism DEUTSCHE-BANK US-LIBYA-RELATIONS
    KEYWORDS
    review cinema movies spider-man spider-man no way home marvel superheroes marvel cinematic universe disney tom holland benedict cumberbatch zendaya
    The Daily Sabah Newsletter
    Keep up to date with what’s happening in Turkey, it’s region and the world.
    You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
    Mayan pyramid and ruins in the famous Tikal National Park, Guatemala. (Getty Images Photo)

    Scientists discover 417 Mayan cities in Guatemala's forested area

    mayan-city
    Voters cast ballots at a polling station set up by the Rotterdam Consulate-General in the Hague, May 20, 2023. (AA Photo)

    Far-right Wilders tells Turks to 'pack bags' for voting for Erdoğan

    geert-wilders

    Erdoğan, el-Sissi agree to reappoint Turkish, Egyptian envoys

    TÜRKIYE-EGYPT-RELATIONS

    Erdoğan meets with former economy chief Mehmet Şimşek: Sources

    Turkish-economy
    No Image
    Istanbul hosts 32nd Bosporus Cross-Continental Swimming Race
    PHOTOGALLERY
    • POLITICS
    • Diplomacy
    • Legislation
    • War On Terror
    • EU Affairs
    • News Analysis
    • TÜRKİYE
    • Istanbul
    • Education
    • Investigations
    • Minorities
    • Diaspora
    • World
    • Mid-East
    • Europe
    • Americas
    • Asia Pacific
    • Africa
    • Syrian Crisis
    • İslamophobia
    • Business
    • Automotive
    • Economy
    • Energy
    • Finance
    • Tourism
    • Tech
    • Defense
    • Transportation
    • News Analysis
    • Lifestyle
    • Health
    • Environment
    • Travel
    • Food
    • Fashion
    • Science
    • Religion
    • History
    • Feature
    • Expat Corner
    • Arts
    • Cinema
    • Music
    • Events
    • Portrait
    • Performing Arts
    • Reviews
    • Sports
    • Football
    • Basketball
    • Motorsports
    • Tennis
    • Opinion
    • Columns
    • Op-Ed
    • Reader's Corner
    • Editorial
    • Photo gallery
    • Jobs
    • privacy
    • about us
    • contact us
    • RSS
    © Turkuvaz Haberleşme ve Yayıncılık 2021