3.5 stars. Rated PG-13, for sci-fi action violence and mild profanity
By Derrick Bang • Originally published in The Davis Enterprise, 7.5.19
Life goes on, even for superheroes.
Particularly for superheroes.
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| Having helped defeat a massive elemental monster, Spider-Man (Tom Holland, left) is gratefully surprised when his assistance is acknowledged with sincere respect by the more flamboyantly super-heroic Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal). |
In the wake of early spring’s Avengers: Endgame, fans have been curious about the direction subsequent Marvel Universe films would take. Spider-Man: Far from Home provides some answers, but mostly stands on its own as Tom Holland’s second starring outing in the iconic web-slinging costume (in addition to his co-starring appearances with Captain American and the Avengers).
At its best, the Chris McKenna/Erik Sommers script successfully evokes the geeky, angst-ridden vibe of the early 1960s Stan Lee/Steve Ditko comic books, when Peter Parker was a reluctant costumed hero, and mostly a nerdy, misfit high school teen forever questioning the slightest thought, word or deed. He epitomized the early Marvel archetype: a hero laden with insecurities.
Holland’s Peter Parker isn’t exactly burdened by doubt, nor is he the shy introvert that Lee and Ditko created. This Peter also isn’t completely friendless; he’s blessed by constant support from best bud Ned (Jacob Batalon), and the relationship with his Aunt May (Marisa Tomei) is much more a closeness of equals, than the comic books’ doddering parent/guilty child dynamic.
In this film continuity, both Ned and Aunt May know of Peter’s web-slinging activities, which allows for playful banter.
But Holland’s Peter is flustered in the presence of über-cool, tart-tongued Michelle Jones (Zendaya), the girl he has long worshiped from afar. (She more commonly goes by the initials MJ, evoking fond memories of the comics’ original Mary Jane Watson.) Holland is endearing as he spins increasingly silly scenarios about “the perfect moment” to confess his love for MJ, while Ned shakes his head in disbelief.
As the story begins, everybody in Peter’s high school continues to grapple with the disorienting aftermath of “the blip,” which returned half the world’s population following a five-year absence. Trouble is, that half — including Peter, MJ and Ned — came back at the same age as when they left, whereas those left behind are five years older.
The latter include Peter’s new nemesis, the arrogant Brad (Remy Hii), who has transitioned from a similarly uncool nerd into a heartthrob determined to make MJ his own. The perfect opportunity arises when a small group of students earn a European vacation, under the close (?) supervision of two clueless teachers (Martin Starr and J.B. Smoove, perhaps hitting the dweeb key a little too hard). First stop: Venice.
Such inter-personal anxieties pale alongside Peter’s profound sense of loss, being reminded — at all times — of the heroic death of his mentor, Tony Stark (aka Iron Man). Still a reluctant “neighborhood hero,” Peter feels cast adrift without Tony’s guidance: a woebegone aspect Holland also conveys quite persuasively.
On a grander scale, and with the Avengers seemingly disbanded (for good?), the indomitable Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and stalwart associate Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders, making a welcome return) investigate a small Mexican village demolished by what the inhabitants describe as a massive cyclone … with a face. Its return might have proved disastrous, were it not for the timely arrival of a purple-caped, dome-headed costumed hero armed with searing flashes of green energy.
Peter gets sucked into this madness when a second elemental monster — this one made of water — erupts from Venice’s canals. The mysterious hero once again appears and demolishes this beast, with an assist from an outmatched but still plucky Spider-Man (who, in his best Clark Kent fashion, conveniently eludes his classmates during the confusion).
Fury pulls Peter in for a palaver, where he also meets the caped champion: Quentin Beck (Jake Gyllenhaal), dubbed Mysterio, sole survivor of a multiverse alternate Earth, where four similar elemental monsters — air, earth, water and fire — annihilated his planet. (Note the brief nod to last year’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.) With the help of Fury, Maria Hill and their former SHIELD associates, Beck has destroyed three of this Earth’s similar invaders.
Only the fire elemental — by far the worst — remains.
Although honored to be included in this war council, and flattered by Beck’s kind encouragement, Peter feels overwhelmed in this high-powered company. Once again, McKenna and Sommers reference — and Holland nails — the angst that made the early comic book character so captivating: the concern that he simply isn’t up to such a world-leveling challenge … particularly without Iron Man at his side.
Fury — never willing to tolerate fools at all, let alone gladly — brusquely insists that Peter put up or disappear. The resulting Holland/Jackson dynamic becomes a snarky running gag, with the former’s uncertainty playing nicely against the latter’s impatience.
Fortunately, Peter has one more important friend: Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau), Stark’s security head and personal chauffeur, who shares his former boss’ belief in Spider-Man’s integrity, resourcefulness and battle skills. Then, too, Happy is in a position to enhance Peter’s costume — and gear — with all manner of Stark Technologies goodies.
As events proceed from Venice to Prague — and, ultimately, London — viewers can’t help sensing that some unseen shoe is about to drop. (Longtime Marvel Comics readers will know what’s coming, at least to a degree.) When matters do indeed go from bad to worse, Peter’s willingness to be useful to a world-saving degree is in serious conflict with an equal determination to keep his friends and classmates out of the danger zone.
And this, sadly, is where McKenna, Sommers and director Jon Watts lose control of their film. The “surprise reveal” is much too contrived, complicated and poorly justified; it adds layers of sidebar complexities that overwhelm everything else. Perhaps sensing this error, Watts and his scripters turn most of the third act over to the usual landscape-shattering melee that goes on and on and on and on, with Spider-Man somehow holding his own against jaw-droppingly ridiculous odds.
I mean, seriously? There comes a point at which one wall-crawling, web-spinning hero’s resilience just becomes silly.
Model, dancer, singer and Disney Channel phenom Zendaya is a striking presence, and she gets considerable mileage from the aloof superiority with which MJ responds to Peter (and pretty much everybody else). But Zendaya also shades the role nicely; there’s a hint of vulnerability in her gaze, as if the tough-chick exterior might be just a pose.
Gyllenhaal’s Beck is earnest and determined, albeit clearly burdened by a tremendous sense of loss; Gyllenhaal’s expression is haunted, even when trying — magnanimously — to boost Peter’s flagging spirits.
Favreau is — as always — a welcome presence in an ongoing role he has played since 2008’s franchise-starting Iron Man. On the one hand, he’s quietly sincere when Happy does his best to encourage Peter; alternatively, Favreau becomes just as foolishly tongue-tied when it appears as though Happy has developed a crush on May.
Angourie Rice is cute as Betty, a high school classmate who initially seems rather brittle and condescending, but then melts into a giddily romantic relationship of her own.
Hii is appropriately insufferable as the arrogant Brad, but Tony Revolori’s Flash Thompson — Peter’s chief school tormentor, in 2017’s Spider-Man: Homecoming — has been demoted to a one-dimensional joke character, forever determined to vlog these increasingly chaotic events. Numan Acar gets considerable mileage out of his mostly silent performance as Dimitri, one of Fury’s fellow agents.
Watts seems an odd choice for this material, with only shorts, TV episodes of The Onion News Network and two awful big-screen features — Clown and Cop Car — on his résumé. While he handles Peter’s out-of-costume encounters reasonably well, Watts is less successful at orchestrating the battle sequences, and he utterly fails at the cross-cutting that could have made the climactic melee more suspenseful.
The usually reliable Michael Giacchino’s score is buried beneath a relentless barrage of pop tunes, which Watts employs to unnecessary excess.
Ultimately, Holland’s Spider-Man deserve better than this adventure, which becomes as awkward and ungainly as Peter Parker, at his most insecure moments. This is a reasonably satisfying place-holder, as we await what comes next in the Marvel film universe, but I hope our favorite neighborhood wall-crawler gets more respect in the future.
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