Spider-Man: Far From Home - Movie Review

Written by Shiggins

Goes down swinging.

The Infinity Saga is finally over! 23 movies, tons of tv shows (the best of which are cancelled because of stupid business decisions), games and cartoons inspired by the film designs, and way more to come. It's finished. And what better character to end on than the one Sony is refusing to give up to Marvel Studios, the icon of Marvel Comics and my personal all-time favourite... Mysterio Spider-Man!

Note: This is a spoiler-filled review. If you read this review, you will get full spoilers for Avengers: Endgame, and Spider-Man: Far from Home. You have been warned.

Set after the events of Avengers: Endgame, Far from Home follows Peter Parker (Tom Holland) as he has returned to his life of crime-fighting and neighbourhooding, having missed five years due to "the Blip", aka the Snap, aka Fuck You Thanos. The loss of Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) weighs heavily on the poor boy, especially because everyone wants him to be the next Iron Man, but he just wants a normal life. He's delighted to finally get a break from the superhero life when his school arranges a trip across Europe, but that is hijacked when Nick Fury (Samuel L Jackson) appears and tells him he's needed for a mission to save the world from the Elementals, and they've got a new ally in the form of Quentin Beck/Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal), a superhero from another universe who has fought the dastardly Elementals before.

The positives are what you'd expect from a franchise that's in it's 23rd instalment. The jokes are fun, the acting is strong, the villain is great, the effects are splendid, and it's still a treat to watch Marvel's biggest hero swing around, bash robots and web-grenade foes like it was completely natural.

To the marketing department's relief, this trip just happens to ensure Peter must don two brand new suits (and yes, I downloaded them on the PS4 as soon as I could).

Tom Holland is once again giving a worthy performance, this time displaying far more angst and brooding than before, which is welcome for a movie that is set right after Endgame's gut-punch. While I still wish we could have Peter think about Uncle Ben sometime, it's clear we're focusing more on his relationship with Tony and that brings up some good drama. One of the best scenes of the entire film is when he's talking to Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau) in a plane, and is given the confidence to be himself, rather than be this image of a hero that the world has created. "Nobody could live up to Tony. Not even Tony."

I'm finally going to say it; Happy Hogan is an underrated badass!

So what a shock, Mysterio is a bad guy. I don't think you even need to be a comic-book fan to realise the guy with the big glowing fishbowl head is a villain, which is why I'm relieved the film didn't take too long to reveal he was lying to Peter. It almost became frustrating to watch Peter trust Beck, but it was worth it in the end. Gyllenhaal might not have been as campy as I might have wanted, but he did bring an unstable and shaky flare to him in the second half that I just enjoyed immensely with a wonderfully diabolical scheme. The scene that ended with the train, in which Mysterio unleashes a barrage of illusions and tricks onto Spider-Man, was literally everything I had ever wanted to see from the villain since I was a kid. It was the most comic-book-y scene of the film, and it was brilliant.

The character sexier than both Marisa Tomei and Zendaya!

The one downside of Mysterio is his motivation, turning angry and cruel because of Tony Stark. Not that it's a bad motivation or ill-fitting for the film, but he's another villain angry at the Stark family. Stane, Whiplash, Justin Hammer, Killian, Ultron, Zemo, Vulture... and now Mysterio. And unlike the last Spider-Man foe, Mysterio's goal isn't as relatable or understandable. He's just crazy and wants Tony Stark's fame. To compensate for that, Mysterio is a much better allegory for today's situation and a smart social commentary on the way we perceive the truth and how much we want our own realities to be the only reality, exposing us to manipulation. We've all fallen victim to "fake news" in our lives, and there are those out there who wish to exploit that for their own gain, like Mysterio building himself up as a hero when the people were scared after the loss of Tony Stark. It's always been an issue, but the rise of social media over the past decade has only heightened our need to know the truth, and the technology provided helps to keep us away from it.

Is Mysterio dead? I think he is, with the way the scene was shot and the film ended, which is a shame because I feel like Mysterio joining the Sinister Six one day could have been a sight to behold. For what it's worth, I do believe that the power of fandom could bring him back one day, but he's dead for now, at least in my mind.

Wow, Watch Dogs: Legion is looking pretty damn good.

It's a good thing Mysterio was so much fun because the Elementals really weren't that interesting, which is why it's a bit annoying to hear they're meant to be the MCU versions of classic Spider-Man foes, including Sandman and Hydroman. I get that they were just meant to be big scary monsters and nothing else, but it is a glaring issue until Mysterio takes over, and the fight scenes suffer somewhat because of it.

Everyone's biggest complaint about Homecoming was how Spider-Man's suit and gifts from Tony caused him to lose part of what made him so great; His ingenuity and resourcefulness. He didn't need to do anything on his own because the suit gave him every power-up and ability he could ask for. Instead of figuring things out, he could just push a button and the suit did it for him. Here, we see that suit is gone and Peter needs to use his own skills and intelligence to figure out how to fight the technology of Stark. It's a clever twist on what we disliked, literally taking his webs away at one point and reducing him to using nothing but his fists, the scenery around him and his six senses.

The "Peter Tingle", also known as the Spider-Sense everywhere else, finally makes a proper entrance in this movie as well, in a big way. I love the scene where he uses it at the end, but someone I know made a good point that it could have been even cooler if the Tingle could have been visual in some way. The cartoon used to have weird lightning around his head, and Daredevil's senses were made to look almost like sonar. There was an opportunity missed here, but I'm not entirely sure what they could have done personally. Maybe pulses from the source of danger?

All the school characters are a lot of fun once again, with Flash Thompson (Tony Revolori) having a strangely-tragic subplot going on that really deserves a real conclusion next time, and the teachers getting some good laughs in. They're very over-the-top, almost like they're from the Disney Channel, but I enjoyed it. Ned (Jacob Batalon) is fun as always, but he felt a bit... off. I know he's in a new relationship and that when people get partners they become selfish and start forgetting everything about their single friends as if they don't even matter and no I'm not working through any issues thank you for asking, but he seemed a bit too self-centered this time around. When Peter is about to fight a giant fire monster, Ned's line of "Please keep them away from us" instead of "Please be okay" or "Don't die, bud" doesn't sit right with me. Again, he's still a great laugh and a good friend, but he was acting so odd sometimes I half-expected him to be a Mysterio trick or a Skrull.

This needs to be a reaction image. "Done with your shite, boi".

SPEAKING OF SKRULLS, OH MY GOD! Nick Fury was acting so odd this entire film, trusting Mysterio so easily and being weirdly determined towards Peter, and now we know why! Talos, played by the great Ben Mendelsohn, is back and he's as fun as ever! I'm still not sure if we'll ever get a Secret Invasion, but at least we're getting something. And it looks like the Avengers have gone missing or something, and the real Fury has started up S.W.O.R.D, which is basically S.H.I.E.L.D. In. Spaaaaaaace!

The other post-credit scene is also a mind-blower. Mysterio's last deception, revealing Peter Parker's identity to the world, and bringing in JK motherflipping Simmons into the mix, returning as J. Jonah Jameson! It's all too much! The best(?) performance of the Raimi trilogy, and one of the most intriguing twists to the Spider-Man formula ever, all in two-ish minutes! Where the hell are we going with this reveal? I'm genuinely on the edge of my seat, desperate to know! And yes, the sequel needs to have more JK Simmons!

Sorry Tom, but nobody beats Maguire's cry-face.

The last element(al) worth talking about is Michelle/MJ (Zendaya), the new love interest and definitely the second-best romantic lead in any Spider-Man movie, right behind Emma Stone's Gwen Stacy. While it's obvious we're never getting Mary Jane Watson in the MCU, I honestly couldn't care less thanks to this performance and her chemistry with Holland. She's fun, gloomy, dark but has a socially-awkward side that makes it difficult for her to be vulnerable to the boy she likes. She is ready for that upside-down kiss!

Spider-Man: Far from Home might not be the very best wallcrawler film, but it's definitely near the top thanks to it's performances, action and summer blockbuster freedom to enjoy itself. Fun, smart and strong, Spider-Man has definitely settled in to his new MCU home.

P.S Anyone else think Brad was going to be revealed to be gay? Or was that just me?

Film Rating: 8.5/10

Best Part: Mysterio's illusions.

Worst Part: Boring Elemental monsters.

Best Performance: Tom Holland as Peter Parker/Spider-Man.

You better say the damn line next time, Spider-Man! I'm fed-up!

Shiggins:[Admin]
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Born under the stars of the Dark Gods, Shiggins owns the power of the Great Eye and is utterly magnificent in his omniscience. If you dare to discover more about someone as great as him, then go ahead. And to all my friends and family members, YOU are wrong and I should be disappointed! Not the other way round!,. You can find out about him or ask him stuff on ask.fm/shigginsishere or go to his tumblr page http://otakugajeel.tumblr.com/