Language: English
Jake Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio pretends to be a superhero from another universe; but in reality, he’s just a disgruntled ex-Stark Industries employee, who uses fancy hologram tech and drones to fool people into believing in non-existent destructive beings. In shutting him down, unfortunately, Spider-Man’s secret identity as teenaged Peter Parker of Queens, NY is revealed to the whole world.
There are two reasons why I did a quick refresher on the previous film, Spider-Man: Far from Home, right up top. Firstly, that’s exactly the point at which No Way Home picks up. Secondly, I can’t go into any detail at all when talking about a true event film like this latest one, for fear of spoiling it. So, I just thought I’d get spoilers from the last film off my chest instead. (If you haven’t watched that one and are reading this, it’s on you.)
Now, with the revelation of Spider-Man’s identity, the lives of everyone in Peter’s immediate circle is thrown out of gear. This particularly applies to MJ (Zendaya) and Ned (Jacob Batalon). So, in a quest to see what can be done about this situation, he visits his ‘friend’ over at Bleecker Street, the good Doctor Strange. If you use magic to meddle, things usually tend to go awry, and that is all I’ll say about the plot.
No Way Home will remind you why Spider-Man is likely the most popular superhero the world over, because it centers on the things that make Spidey so regularly special. He will always be a wunderkind teenager, his heart always beats for those around him, unlike most adults in his world (and in ours). First and foremost, he’s just looking out for the folks in his neighbourhood.
That the neighbourhood now casually encompasses the ‘multiverse’ is another matter altogether. At one point in No Way Home, Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) says something on the lines of ‘the multiverse is a concept we know frighteningly little about. I fear this might be true even of the suits and boots at Marvel. They are now playing fast and loose with the very idea of choices and consequences, so there’s a chance they’ll run out of stakes that the audience cares about. Thankfully, we’re not at that point yet. Far from it.
At a time when nostalgia is in high demand and throwbacks aren’t just restricted to Thursdays, along comes a jolly good Spider-Man movie that ratchets up said nostalgia a few notches, while simultaneously expanding the scope of the Marvel Cinematic Universe even further. The film does take a minute to wind, but once it does, the release packs a punch and then some. The critic-proof terms and conditions of a Marvel tentpole continue to apply, but this one has more than a few worthy flourishes.
Nostalgia apart, these flourishes also happen to come from those closest to Peter Parker. Tom Holland nails his nervous-adorable-chatterbox thing, but Zendaya, Batalon, and even Marisa Tomei as (just) May contribute so much more to proceedings this time around. May, in particular, was wasted in the films thus far (despite the occasional knock-out moment on Tomei’s part). And just a quick reminder that in 2021, Zendaya has had Malcolm & Marie, Dune, and now No Way Home. Safe to say she has owned every scene she has been in this year.
Wholesome friendships, emo relationships, unlikely heroes, charming bad guys – No Way Home is loaded on all counts. This extends to the plethora of actors served to us in the buffet of villains, who more than hold up their end across the board. Special mention to Alfred Molina’s reprisal of the electromechanically-tentacled Dr. Otto Octavius aka Doc Ock. He was one of the best things about Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 2, but this version of him is just that bit spicier. The MCU’s relentless brand of ping-pong humour while sh*t is going down, in the hands of a properly marvellous actor, is like sinfully calorific dessert. It makes no sense that you’re willingly consuming it over and over, but it tastes so good, so why the hell not.
Full credit to the film that, despite it feeling unwieldy at times, it manages to ensure too many villains don’t end up spoiling the broth. Neither does the excess of feel-good drama and checkbox-ticking on display. If you’re a Spider-Man fan, you’re already a sucker for that stuff. No Way Home isn’t competing with other Spider-Man films, but with Avengers: Endgame, in that regard. That was a bigger film and perhaps a more satisfying one, but I’d argue this one’s a better film because it remains focussed on Peter Parker/Spider-Man and his baggage. If your tear glands are trigger-happy, No Way Home might leave you moist.
This is now the ninth big-screen Spidey film in 20 years, so it’s a wonder that No Way Home packs in enough to rank pretty close to the top, with room to spare for subjectivity. (Though, in terms of sheer coolth, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse (2018), in all its animated glory, is probably the one that sets the bar.) If you do end up making a trip to the theatre to catch this one, make sure to stay all the way until the final credit rolls, and a little beyond.
Rating: 3.5/5
The film is playing in theatres.
Pradeep Menon is a Mumbai-based writer and independent filmmaker.
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