Anthony's Film Review - Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

The third Spider-Man movie with the Marvel Studios label makes you feel right at home with an intriguing story...

The trailer for Spider-Man: No Way Home, the third Spider-Man movie that is officially part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), is one of those movie previews that a significantly larger number of people than usual viewed and discussed excitedly. I'm not one of those people, because I sometimes like to go into a movie completely blind to any teasers. For this movie, I only saw a few screenshots of the trailer, including one of Alfred Molina reprising his role as Doctor Otto Octavius, after playing that character in Sony's Spider-Man 2. When I noticed that, my first reaction was, "Whoa! Is this the MCU version of Sony's Spider-Man 2, with Alfred Molina, not someone else, playing Doc Ock?" Then I thought about how Marvel Studios has been in the process of buying back rights to their characters from other studios that adapted those characters into their own films.

Well, it's more complicated than that for Spider-Man. That's because Sony still holds the rights for Spider-Man, but Marvel Studios has permission to produce Spider-Man movies for the MCU, provided that they are made in conjunction with Sony. The beginning of this movie should serve as a reminder. The first movie studio logo that appears isn't the Marvel Studios logo, but the Sony logo, followed by the logo for the Sony subsidiary Columbia Pictures and then the Marvel Studios logo. At this point, any thoughts about Sony and Marvel Studios should cease, because the first scene of the movie takes place right where the previous movie, Spider-Man: Far From Home, left off. And when I say "left off," I mean by like one second. Imagine chopping off the end of a movie already made and then treating what's chopped off as the beginning of another movie. It's sort of like that.

That's not a bad thing at all. What you have here is not a slow setup before the action, but rather an instant jump-start right into the action. Peter Parker/Spider-Man (Tom Holland) is now in big trouble and has to make a big escape with his beloved MJ (Zendaya). Just when things seem to slow down a bit, the crisis is really nowhere close to over. Besides MJ, Peter's aunt May (Marisa Tomei) and best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon) still stand by Peter even if they too are seen as accomplices to a troublemaker. Thankfully, there is a way for them to escape and go into hiding for now.

It's apparently not enough for Peter. He desperate wants to undo certain things about recent events. If only there were some extraordinary way to actually do that. Obviously, it would require someone with special powers. Someone like... Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch). Why not? He has the ability to manipulate the fabric of space and time. Hence, Peter visits Doctor Strange to cast a spell that would end his troubles. However, due to Peter's indecisiveness, the spell goes horribly wrong. What follows is a series of events that may be a threat to the world around Peter, not to mention a threat to his reputation that is already tainted with controversy.

Besides the action, which requires no discussion because MCU movies have established a clear pattern of doing action so well, Spider-Man: No Way Home really works because of the story. It's a plot that is driven mainly by the choices Peter makes, not just in the beginning but also later as events progress. That's essentially the prevailing theme of this movie: the choices one makes as well as the consequences that one must live with. There is especially conflict for the main character when the actual consequences differ dramatically from the expected ones. That, in turn, leads to questions about whether the choices made are the right ones. In time, though, there is realization that perhaps no choice is perfect. It may often be the case that painful personal sacrifice is required for the greater good. The ultimate question is not whether the choices made are the right ones, but whether they are the choices one can accept and be at peace with.

You know why else this movie is very good? The crossover scenes. If you've watched at least several MCU movies, you understand that this massive superhero franchise does crossovers in plenty of films. When you have separate MCU movies focusing on specific characters and their unique abilities, likes, dislikes, and motives, each movie is enjoyable by itself. When you have a crossover film that places these characters in the same scenes together, you have a platform for lots of interesting character dynamics. If the writers are both careful with exploration of the characters and creative with what to do with them, the audience can be delighted to see how previously separate characters can appreciate each other's similarities, react to differences, and pool their resources together toward a common cause. I say all of this because Spider-Man: No Way Home is perhaps one of the best MCU movies involving crossovers. Sure, the Avengers series has plenty of interesting crossover moments, but even they may be no match for what's in store in Spider-Man: No Way Home.

Lastly, I want to comment on how this third MCU Spider-Man movie is essentially the conclusion of a trilogy, following Homecoming and Far From Home. Besides the story of Spider-Man, there is the story of Peter's last year in high school. He, MJ, and Ned are applying for college, and they would love it if all three of them could be accepted to the same college so that they could remain together as a tightly knit group. I'm not saying that the high school drama is a big part of the story. If anything, it's not touched on much. But the movie still heads toward a moment where Peter is really confronted with the question of what will happen to him, MJ, and Ned going forward. Needless to say, emotions will probably run strong here. Get out your tissues if you are the teary type.

Spider-Man: No Way Home is another superhero movie triumph, for both Marvel Studios and Sony. It's one of those movies that is both a somber end to something we cherish and a hopeful beginning to something exciting. Just as Peter Parker is going through a life transition, we MCU fans are going through a cinematic transition, with more changes to the fictional universe that we have come to know and love. The MCU movies will certainly go on, just as life does. That means there will be more to come, meaning more exciting possibilities. The phrase "no way home" may sound like you are stuck away from your place of familiarity, but if you think about it, a journey away from home may be more fulfilling than making no journey at all. For both Peter Parker and MCU fans, this means new and exciting territory to explore.

Anthony's Rating:

For more information about Spider-Man: No Way Home, visit the Internet Movie Database.