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Spider-Man: Brand New Day– Film Review

Cast: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Jon Bernthal, Sadie Sink, Tramell Tillman, Mark Ruffalo, Liza Colón-Zayas

Director: Destin Daniel Cretton

Synopsis: After everyone in his life has forgotten him, an isolated Peter Parker continues to fight crime and protect the people of New York as Spider-Man until a mysterious, powerful new threat emerges…

Review: A superhero’s life can be exciting as they are granted extraordinary superhuman abilities and strength that most of us could only dream of. However, beyond attracting dangerous enemies, it can be an unforgiving existence where the hero must protect their secret identity and sometimes make the hardest choices, even at tremendous personal cost. Never has this been truer for the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s iteration of Peter Parker/Spider-Man, who made the ultimate sacrifice to prevent the multiverse from being torn apart at the end of Spider-Man: No Way Home, where he made Doctor Strange cast a spell to make everyone forget him and erase him from their lives. A decision which saw him lose the love of his life and his best friend, a perfect encapsulation of the words every Spider-Man fan will know off by heart: “With great power, there must come great responsibility”. After bringing his MCU origin story to its conclusion, one might have wondered whether this iteration of everyone’s friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man would hang up the web shooters and make way for a new wallcrawler to enter the MCU, but you can never keep a good spider down.

Set in the years after the events of No Way Home, Peter has devoted himself to being Spider-Man full-time, taking down all manner of villains and keeping the citizens of New York safe, all while living on his own in his Manhattan apartment. Spider-Man is beloved by the city, but even with that adulation, Peter lives a truly lonely existence and has to watch from afar with heartache and sorrow as his former lover MJ (Zendaya) and best friend Ned (Batalon) go off to MIT. He is desperate to try and somehow restore their memories of him, but remains wary that doing so could put them in harm’s way. As if that wasn’t bleak enough, Peter begins to experience strange changes in his body and powers, all while a terrifying new threat emerges, threatening to undo all of Peter’s good work and unleash absolute chaos on New York’s streets once again.

True to its title, after having a trilogy of films in which Peter was under Tony Stark’s tutelage, dealing with inherited vendettas of villains who felt they had been wronged by the late billionaire philanthropist, or encountering crazy multiverse shenanigans and teaming up with variants of himself, the slate has been totally wiped clean. It is a new dawn, and a new day for Peter, but he isn’t feeling so good. Erik Sommers’ and Chris McKenna’s script returns the character very much to his comic book roots as an unquestionably bright working-class young man who fights crime all by himself, without the vast resources of a wealthy benefactor behind him, or a single soul he can confide in. This becomes particularly problematic when his body begins to change in the worst ways, leading Peter to consult a certain scientist struggling to prevent his green alter ego from reappearing. It certainly treads familiar narrative beats to (arguably the best Spidey film to date) Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 2, but rest assured, this is not a retread. Even with the obligatory references and appearances of certain characters to tie it into the wider MCU, McKenna and Sommers’ script keeps the stakes deeply grounded and personal, veering into almost horror territory when Peter’s powers begin to mutate.

With this marking the seventh time he has donned Spider-Man’s mask across solo adventures and wider MCU team-ups, Holland once again excels, slipping back into the suit with effortless ease. Ever since his memorable introduction in Captain America: Civil War, Holland has grown and matured in the role before our very eyes. From a wide-eyed teenager in awe while fighting Captain America and his associates, to a battle for the fate of the universe itself, to multiversal shenanigans, and the death of his beloved aunt. It would be an understatement to say he’s been through a lot over the years, leaving a heavy emotional toll that comes through in Holland’s performance, especially when compounded by the physical upheaval he goes through. Despite his loneliness, he finds an unlikely kindred spirit in Jon Bernthal’s Frank Castle/The Punisher, who also lives cut adrift from everyone else. It’s a relationship that isn’t exactly plain sailing, given Castle’s modus operandi is far more direct and brutal, but the film leans into this dynamic and makes it extremely entertaining as these polar-opposite philosophies and combat styles are left with little option but to join forces, particularly when MJ’s life is threatened.

In taking over from the Home trilogy’s director Jon Watts, Destin Daniel Cretton reinvigorates the franchise in a thoroughly refreshing and exciting manner. It’s easy to see why he was recruited to direct an Avengers film, as there’s vibrancy not only in the scenes where Spider-Man swings and thwips his way through the city, but also in the action scenes. One would strongly suspect that Cretton played the Insomniac games beforehand, as there are clear visual nods to them, along with the impressive flair he so masterfully demonstrated with Shang-Chi especially with the scenes involving The Hand and the film’s main antagonist. The identity of said antagonist shall not be divulged here, given the deliberate manner in which the film’s marketing shrouded it in secrecy. Needless to say, Marvel would do well to keep Cretton in mind should an opportunity to direct an MCU ensemble film come up in the future.

Those wider references to other MCU characters, while necessary, sometimes bog the story down and keep the audience from focusing on Peter’s internal struggles to balance his superhero duties, being Peter Parker, and trying to reestablish some human connection in his life. It shows that growing up is hard, even with superhuman (or spider) DNA, especially when the comforts you have relied on to get through this complicated journey we call life are taken away. You get knocked down, but you get back up, put your best webs forward and come back swinging, because a spider’s work is never done.

Building on the foundations laid by the Home trilogy, Brand New Day raises the stakes with a more mature, grounded story that delves into complex themes of isolation and growing up, with Holland never better as the titular hero.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps – Film Review

Cast: Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Joseph Quinn, Julia Garner, Natasha Lyonne, Paul Walter Hauser, Ralph Ineson

Director: Matt Shakman

Synopsis: On a retro-futuristic parallel Earth, the Fantastic Four must defend the world against the sinister planet-eating threat known as Galactus…

Review: In such a golden age for superhero storytelling as the one we’re currently experiencing, we have seen all manner of comic book characters successfully adapted for both the big and small screens, from the massive ensemble team-up films to the most obscure characters, who have since become household names. Yet despite numerous attempts, the Fantastic Four has never achieved such success. We have seen the fun but flawed movies of the noughties to the unmitigated disaster that was Fant4stic. You would have been forgiven for thinking that someone had placed a curse on Marvel’s First Family, that they would never get an adaptation that would do them justice. After having done such wonderful work with the first (and you could make the argument for the best) TV show in WandaVision, enter Matt Shakman to well and truly ~~break~~ clobber that curse.

In a futuristic parallel world separate from the main Marvel timeline (Earth-828 to be exact) filled with advanced technology like flying cars and cool personal robot companions like H.E.R.B.I.E (an adorable scene-stealer), we learn through a series of newsreels it has been four years since our titular heroes blasted off into space on a mission where they were exposed to cosmic rays, which granted each of them superhuman powers. The supersmart Reed Richards (Pascal), who can stretch any part of his body, his brilliant wife Sue (Kirby) who can create force fields and turn invisible, Reed’s loyal best friend Ben Grimm (Moss-Bachrach) whose skin has been transformed into orange rock that grants him superstrength and durability. Last but certainly by no means least, Sue’s hot-headed brother Johnny (Quinn) can control fire and fly.

They are the planet’s sole protectors, and through their heroism, they have become celebrities whose ingenuity has enabled advances in technology and brought stability and peace to the world. With Reed and Sue preparing for the life-changing milestone that is parenthood, the four of them must deal with the arrival of the Herald, the Silver Surfer (Garner) who tells them their planet is “marked for death” with the impending arrival of the planet-eater Galactus (Ineson).

After a Phase Five that had some high points and arguably the lowest of the lows for the franchise (looking at you Quantumania), it makes sense to begin Phase Six with something of a reset and to establish Marvel’s first family in their own universe before their world collides with the main timeline as we know it. The script by Josh Friedman, Jeff Kaplan, Eric Pearson and Ian Springer keeps things focused squarely on the quartet and their dynamic, with no chance of any other superhero crashing into this world. There will be plenty of time for that in future Phase Six films. Having seen the origin story done before in the Fox era films, the decision to quickly bypass this allows the film time to explore Reed and Sue’s loving relationship, the camaraderie/playful banter between Johnny and Ben, and indeed, the togetherness and warm family embrace between the entire team is sincere and genuine.

With such pitch-perfect chemistry between the team, it’s a credit to the casting director that they absolutely nailed each casting choice (hurrah that the Oscars will at long last be giving these people their dues in next year’s ceremony). Pascal, continuing his bid for cinematic domination, expertly balances Reed’s intelligence and scientific nous while preparing for the enhanced responsibility of becoming a father. Moss-Bachrach’s Ben, despite his hard-as-rock exterior, comes off as very kind and gentle, particularly when demonstrating his strength to a group of schoolchildren. Quinn as Johnny exudes charm and charisma in flaming abundance. However, the MVP of the team is unquestionably Kirby’s Sue. A woman balancing impending motherhood, a heroic feat of endurance in itself, but all while leading diplomatic efforts on the international stage. This, combined with the true power she possesses, means she is a force to be reckoned with.

Speaking of forces to be reckoned with, while she doesn’t get a vast amount of screentime, the Silver Surfer remains a mysterious presence that Johnny cannot help himself be drawn to. Perhaps in this alternate universe, flames are attracted to metal, or beings with metallic skin? The Surfer, or Shalla-Bal to give her name, gives the team plenty to worry about. Yet, it is the gargantuan cosmic entity Galactus who poses an even greater threat. 2007’s Rise of the Silver Surfer reduced him to a cosmic cloud that feasts on planets. This iteration very much retains his desire to feast on worlds, but through an effective combination of practical costumes, CGI and Ineson’s imposing voice, the menacing factor is turned to the maximum and does justice to a fan favourite.

Having worked wonders with the MCU’s first (and arguably best) TV show, WandaVision, Shakman brings that quirky vision to this universe through some brilliant worldbuilding. The sets of this alternative 1960s New York feel lived-in, and the technological advancements on display are so wonderfully realised, it is almost enough to make you green with envy that such a world doesn’t actually exist. With another fantastic score by Michael Giacchino (seriously, does this man ever miss?) Marvel’s first family have taken their first steps into the MCU, and at long last, have been given their well-deserved moment in the spotlight. Now, all roads lead to Doomsday. Set your countdown clocks accordingly.

With pitch-perfect chemistry between its leads and the perfect retro-futuristic setting to introduce them in, Marvel’s first family’s foray into the wider MCU is a roaring and flaming success!