Review 788: Spider-Man: Brand New Day

It would be a pretty daunting task to follow up Holland/Watts trilogy of Spider-Man films, especially since the last film No Way Home was a  yet Brand New Day manages to achieve 

The film is set four years after the events of No Way Home, Peter Parker (Tom Holland) now protects New York anonymously as a Friendly Neighbourhood Spider-Man now that the world has forgotten that he exists following Doctor Strange's memory wipe spell and investigates a powerful new threat while his superpowers undergo a surprising and potentially dangerous evolution.

As someone who felt that the ending of No Way Home was an overcorrection, I was pleasantly surprised by how well this film built off of that foundation and how it leaned into to showcasing how cut off from the rest of society and is now dedicating his entire existence to being Spider-Man. I don't mind admitting that there were times throughout the film where I was actively encouraging Peter to tell MJ and Ned the truth. And I was surprised by how nuanced and steadily it was  Peter, MJ and Ned are forced to deal with the consequences of his decision at the end of No Way Home

Given that it's been 5 years since No Way Home, it shows how badly Marvel have prioritised their films and shows lately but better late than never I suppose. The point of this film is that it's pretty much a soft reboot.

For those excited at the prospect of seeing Spidey duke it out against Scorpion (Better Call Saul's Michael Mando reprising the role after a bit part in 2017's Spier-Man: Homecoming) or crime boss Lonnie Lincoln/Tombstone (Marvin Jones III), prepare to be slightly disappointed as they're dealt with in the films otherwise entertaining opening montage.

There is an undercurrent of Acceptance, Loneliness and coming to terms with life not going back to the way it was. The whole point of this film is that Peter shouldn't be alone, he actually needs human connections to keep him on the straight and narrow. 

To tackle this strange new entity, Peter/Spidey is forced to consult Yelena Belova (a delightful cameo from Florence Pugh); they converse while relaxing in a heated baths while he's only wearing his swim shorts and mask. He also consults Bruce Banner/Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) who now teaches at ESU, he's only in a couple of scenes but they're of central importance and he brings his signature dorky, good nature to them. The film skilfully juxtaposes Bruce Banner's dormant Hulk persona against Peter's budding spidy mutation  showing if you try and cage the beast, the beast gets angry.

But despite all of these plot detours and side characters, this is much more streamlined & focused story  

Spider-Man: Brand New Day was directed by Destin Daniel Cretton who previously directed the  Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and much like that film, he shows a great deal of creativity in the action scenes. There's a sense of dynamism and a visceral nature to them that we just haven't seen in the previous MCU Spider-Man trilogy, some of which feel like they've been ripped from the Insomniac Spider-Man games. There's a hugely exciting and tense tank chase through Manhattan towards the beginning, a brawl with the Hulk did feel a bit fan servicey for a lack of a better term but was very well executed in terms of a visceral brawl - and it makes me worried for Bruce/Hulk's future in the MCU going forward.   culminating in a climax with a surprising amount of emotional heft. 

the score by Michael Giacchino  the cinematography is sublime; giving the film a grimy, tactile  giving New York a  much more lived in feel than the previous trilogy. The costumes are terrific, particularly the new Spider-Man suit which looks  

It's hard to believe that it's been a decade since Tom Holland first debut as the Web Swinger in 2016's Captain America: Civil War. At the time, Spider-Man was coming off a middling duo of films starring Andrew Garfield and directed by Marc Webb and his teenage interpretation which carried over to his trilogy was refreshing and a clever spin on the mythology. This is a role that means a lot to Holland and he's clearly looking for new and exciting places to explore with this character. The kid is now becoming an adult and he's searching    He's thrown himself into being Spider-Man as a coping mechanism. 

We also see Jon Bernthal return as Frank Castle/Punisher from the Netflix side of the MCU. They were such a brilliant double act with one being a hardened, traumatised veteran    Both Peter and Frank are superheroes who live solitary lives away from everyone else; Frank lost his entire family  but he sees it as a sentence while Peter sees it as necessary to protect his loved ones.  Even they have different methods and ideologies on vigilante justice.  

I also enjoyed the Batman/Commissioner Gordon dynamic between Peter and Det. Jean DeWolff (The Bear's Liza Colon-Zayas). Now that Peter has pretty much been wiped from existence, Det. DeWolff is now his only connection to outside world and community. 

Marisa Tomei also shows up for a couple of flashbacks playing Peter's late Aunt May; like Ruffalo and Pugh, she's only in 2-3 scenes but they're very important as well as touching and Tomei, once again, brings her warmth to the proceedings, showing how May is a vital part of Spidy mythos even if she's no longer with Peter.

Of course it wouldn't be an MCU Spider-Man film without an appearance from Michelle (a never better Zendaya) and Ned (Jacob Batalon). Even though Peter has wipped all the memories of the good times they    Since graduating MIT, Ned has begun his own investigation in trying to track down Spider-Man and uncover his real identity although as Peter discovers when he stumbles into a housewarming party, he's not even close to uncovering it.

Brand New Day also makes creative use of Sadie Sink's character. I won't spoil Sink's role here but the film positions her character as an interesting foil for Holland's Peter Parker. 

There's also the matter of It's really hard to see Jean as a villain because she really isn't ultimately, she's certainly an antagonist  But making her identity a mystery and keeping it at arms length was a detriment to her character as well as     and the Stranger Things star manages to hold her own against her arachnid 

Her appearance means that unfortunately, Brand New Day suffers from more or less the same issue as last year's Captain America: Brave New World. That film for some reason had Sam Wilson's Captain America fight Hulk villains whereas Spidey is now fighting mutants ahead of a Marvel produced X-Men reboot as opposed to someone from his well known rogues gallery and I'm not quite sure what the point was. It feels like an example of the film serving the wider universe as opposed to the story.

Some of these supporting characters are definitely better served than others. 

Another solid addition to the cast was Naomi Watts as the voice of Peter's new A.I.