Spider-Man: No Way Home

Spider-Man: No Way Home

Peter Parker is unmasked and no longer able to separate his normal life from the high-stakes of being a super-hero. When he asks for help from Doctor Strange the stakes become even more dangerous, forcing him to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man.

  • Released: 2021-12-15
  • Runtime: 148 minutes
  • Genre: Action, Adventure
  • Stars: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Benedict Cumberbatch, Jon Favreau, Jacob Batalon, Marisa Tomei, Alfred Molina, Jamie Foxx, Willem Dafoe, Tony Revolori, Angourie Rice, Martin Starr, Hannibal Buress, J.B. Smoove, J.K. Simmons, Benedict Wong, Paula Newsome, Harry Holland, Arian Moayed, Jay Karales, Thomas Haden Church, Rhys Ifans, Jorge Lendeborg Jr., Thomas Haden Church, Rhys Ifans, Tobey Maguire, Rhys Ifans, Thomas Haden Church, Rhys Ifans, Michael Le, Andrew Garfield, Tobey Maguire, Rhys Ifans, Thomas Haden Church, Charlie Cox, Tom Hardy, Haroon Kahn, Emily Lue-Fong, Rudy Eisenzopf, Ben VanderMey, Gary Weeks, Gregory Konow, Tom Hardy, Jay Karales, Cristo Fernández, Jake Gyllenhaal, Mary Rivera, Kathleen Cardoso, Jonathan Sam, Andrew Dunlap, Zany Dunlap, B. Clutch Dunlap, Minnah Dunlap, Carol Anne Dines, Anisa Nyell Johnson, Willie Burton, Mallory Hoff, Greg Clarkson, Regina Ting Chen, Robert Mitchel Owenby, Glenn Keogh, Paris Benjamin, Jwaundace Candece, Taylor St. Clair, Gabriella Cila, Darnell Appling, Rolando Fernandez, Edward Force, Michael Le, Dean Meminger, Frederick A. Brown, Clay Savage, Jay Karales, Jake Gyllenhaal, Luke Aitchison, Tarek al Halabi, McDaniel Austin, Gloria Bishop, Stephen Branson, Kyle Bryde, Tommy Campbell, Riley Cliett, Jay Karales, Emily Fong, Jay Karales, John Barnes, Nicholas Hammond, Gina Aponte
  • Director: Jon Watts
 Comments
  • ptghsmty - 27 June 2024
    Missed some big opportunities
    Pretty great movie, had a lot going on. But I couldn't help but imagine what if they used this crossover to introduce Miles! Another crack in the multiverse opens as strange, peter and other stand by, turning to look they see a cartoon world and we see miles sitting there at his desk sketching and look up. He thinks for a moment then jumps towards to portal. Then we hear the beat. Flowers. As he comes through the portal in slow motion and transforms from the cartoon miles into the real one.

    Also Dr strange comes across a little too stupid, knowing what will happen but allowing himself to perform such stupidity as the entire premise of the movie kind of puts an uncomfortable stain on the whole thing as you watch.

    But it's great to see the old characters from previous movies back in action. Seeing the power and potential of some of the old sinister 6.
  • vincent0860712 - 24 April 2024
    A grand celebration for Spidey films both past and present
    Even if he's not my favorite Marvel character as a whole, I do like Spider-Man as a character and as a hero, and I love quite a few of his own solo movies, most particularly the Into the Spider-Verse animated film and the first two Sam Raimi movies. As for the Marvel Cinematic Universe solo Spidey films, I liked but didn't love both of them, so when I heard Marvel and Sony were going to incorporate some of the older character incarnations into the third installment, I had cautiously optimistic expectations.

    Fortunately, No Way Home not only lived up to my expectations, but managed to exceeded them. Just like Into the Spider-Verse (Which remains my favorite Spidey flick to date), Sony and Marvel managed to take a concept that may end up as a cluttered mess if not properly handled and made it into a narratively focused thrill ride that celebrates what the character of Spider-Man stands for. As far as Spider-Man flicks go, it is probably my fourth-favorite behind Into the Spider-Verse, Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 2, and Raimi's Spider-Man 1. As far as MCU films go, it may not be among my top 5, but it is at least in my top 10 favorites so far. As for the MCU Spidey flicks, No Way Home is easily the best out of the three for me.

    Is Spider-Man: No Way Home perfect? Not really. Although the first thirty minutes or so still kept my attention, it did have a few "MCU-style jokes" that took me out of the weight of the situation (That "Scooby-Doo" line was also cringy.), but fortunately things began to pick up once Peter visited Doctor Strange. While not as pedestrian as Marc Webb's direction for The Amazing Spider-Man films, and I will admit he has improved his craftsmanship with each passing film, Jon Watts' directing style still has yet to find a unique visual flare that sets him apart from other blockbuster filmmakers like how one could easily recognize a superhero movie directed by Sam Raimi or James Gunn. Though the ending did give me a few feels, I would have liked a more rounded and neat closure for certain loose ends at the same time. Lastly, I'll also say that if you're a newcomer to the entire Spider-Man franchise, No Way Home requires you to have seen not only the MCU Spidey films, but also the Sam Raimi and Amazing Spider-Man films as well in order to fully appreciate, so it's probably not the best place to start with.

    However, these minor nitpicks of Spider-Man: No Way Home are heavily outweighed by its strong qualities. The story may have started out a little rough, but it built up continuously better and better as its conflicts and consequences slowly led to that epic climax, and it managed to keep the crowded plot moving at a brisk pace without ever feeling rushed or bloated. The fanservice elements also flowed well within the story and ended up supporting the plot rather than feeling like fan-pandering just for the sake of fan-pandering, with many moments that made Marvel/Spider-Man fans like me, my upperclassman, and the entire audience gasp with joy and cheer without distracting us from the film. (Watch and learn, J. J. Abrams. Watch and learn.)

    One of my biggest gripes about Tom Holland's interpretation of Spidey in his first two solo outings was that he felt too much like a pale shadow of Tony Stark, but No Way Home finally rectified this problem and allowed Peter Parker to grow into his own character as the story went on and forced him to face some heavy situations on his own without the help of his fellow Avengers. Tom Holland added a more compassionate, empathetic, and human touch in this film that finally sets him apart from previous portrayals of the Web-Slinger, and is Holland's finest hour in the role by a long shot. The villains were also another delight in this film and even played different roles than one would usually expect, apart from feeling the pure joy of seeing these iconic Spidey baddies share the same screen together, most of them were also given a surprising amount of growth to further extend their character arcs beyond their original appearances. While Alfred Molina's Doc Ock and Willem Dafoe's Green Goblin in particular were the standouts just as I expected, even Jamie Foxx managed to give in an electric (sorry) performance as Electro in No Way Home after the script for The Amazing Spider-Man 2 criminally underutilized him. The supporting cast such as Benedict Cumberbatch, Jacob Batalon, Marisa Tomei, and Zendaya also provided delicious support, with the latter two being the best in their roles here in No Way Home.

    As expected from Marvel, the visuals and production values were also up to the job for a blockbuster like this, with the bridge battle, a certain way Doctor Strange used his powers, and of course the incredible final climax I still can't believe they managed to pull off being enough to make one's jaw drop. Just like what Marvel did to Samuel L. Jackson to make him look like he was in his thirties in Captain Marvel, the CGI used to de-age Willem Dafoe and Alfred Molina to make them look exactly as they looked in the first two Sam Raimi films also never felt distracting in the slightest and looked natural. Michael Giacchino's music score in No Way Home may not be one of my favorites from this famed composer given my love for his work on many Pixar films, but it more than fits the tone of the film while also cleverly incorporating some familiar musical cues from older Spidey flicks.

    Overall, minor nitpicks aside, truly a grand celebration for Spidey films both past and present. There's no way (sorry) I could hate it, and as a matter of fact, I adore it. 9/10.