Spider-Man: Far from Home

Director: Jon Watts

Starring: Tom Holland, Samuel L. Jackson, Jake Gyllenhaal, Marisa Tomei, Jon Favreau, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Tony Revolori, Angourie Rice, Remy Hii,

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 129 minutes

WARNING: SPOILERS WILL ENSUE, BUT ONLY THE REALLY OBVIOUS ONE.

Wow.

Just wow.

I was expecting to enjoy Spider-Man: Far from Home. After all, the odds were more than in their favour. Of the seven previous Spider-Man films, there’s only one I actively dislike (The Amazing Spider-Man 2). But I wasn’t expecting to enjoy it as much as I did and to be as absorbed into the film as I was.

Far from Home is both an emotionally charged film (as you’d expect with something that has to deal with the aftermath of the behemoth that was Avengers: Endgame), but it’s also incredibly funny. I was laughing consistently throughout the film, which is a very nice palette cleanser following how intense the previous movie in the MCU was.

Plot-wise, Spider-Man: Far from Home is pretty basic but very fun and it works well. Peter Parker is going on vacation with his class (which in-universe is acting as a way for him to clear his mind because he’s just gone through some immense trauma), he wants to admit to MJ that he has feelings for her and just relax. Then the elementals attack, and Peter is forced (unwillingly) into action against them. From there on Peter learns a series of lessons about trust, responsibility and that a true hero never stops being a hero.

The performances are all great, too. This is probably Tom Holland’s best and most emotionally involved performance as the character to date. Quite how he keeps managing to one-up himself is anybody’s guess, but if this is going to become the ongoing trend for Spider-Man, I am very much here for it. Jake Gyllenhall’s turn as Mysterio is great too. It’ll come as no surprise to anybody that he’s the villain of the piece, and he’s so intensely campy it’s hard to not love him. And some of the visuals that Jon Watt’s has been able to do with him are just brilliant, stuff I wouldn’t have expected to see. The side cast is great too, with Jacob Batalon (Ned Leeds) and Zendaya (Michelle Jones) sticking out the most. Both are wonderful, and really don’t get enough credit for quite how funny they are in these films. Oh, and I’d really like to see more Jon Favreau in these films. I don’t really care how you do it or where you do it, just give me more Happy Hogan.

Upping the stakes immeasurably from Spider-Man: Homecoming, and really exploring the aftermath of Thanos’s snap, Far from Home is a wonderful epilogue to this saga of the MCU, and a tantalizing taste at what’s to come. It’s fun, emotional and funny in equal measure, and a joy for any Spider-Man fan, be they long-time fans of the character, or new fans of the character.

Simply put, Spider-Man: Far from Home is absolutely amazing. No, it’s Spectacular. No, it’s Ultimate. No, it’s Web of… Wait that last one doesn’t work at all.