Spider-Man: No Way Home (2022) Movie Review
Spider-Man: No Way Home picks up right where its predecessor, Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019) left off. Spider-Man’s real identity as Peter Parker has just been outed to the entire world by Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal). Parker returns to high school where he is mobbed by those who both praise and criticize his actions. His university applications for the following year are all rejected because of the drama surrounding his true identity. In the midst of all the chaos, Peter pays Dr. Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) a visit and asks him to cast a spell that would make people forget that he’s Spider-Man. During the casting of the spell it becomes destabilized. This causes an opening in the multi-verse and everyone who knows Spider-Man’s true identity in each universe converge.
Spider-Man has to fight Otto Octavius (Alfred Molina) on a bridge and eventually captures him and brings him to Dr. Strange’s sanctum. Curt Connors (Rhys Ifans) has been captured by Dr. Strange and both are put into a holding cell. Norman Osborn (Willem Dafoe) is found at a homeless shelter and Peter takes pity on him and wants to help him. I should mention, if you haven’t seen the original Spider-Man trilogy with Tobey Maguire or the subsequent Spider-Man movies featuring Andrew Garfield you will probably want to watch these otherwise you really won’t know who these characters are. As Peter and Dr. Strange round up the villains from other Spider-Man movies, Peter advocates to help “cure” them before sending them back and putting the universe back in order again. In the process of Peter trying to develop technologies to help them, Norman is overtaken by the Green Goblin persona and the villains wind up escaping. Now Peter must track down each villain in the hopes of curing them so Strange can send them back to their rightful universe.
Perhaps the best part of Spider-Man: No Way Home is the appearance of the other Spider-Man characters from other universes. Of course I’m referring to Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield who both got to put on the suit again and reprise their roles, this time as an official part of the MCU. This made for some really fun moments for fans as we get to see the three iconic Spider-Men interact and fight the bad guys together. This could definitely be viewed as a heavy dose of fan service, but I’ll admit it was a blast watching Maguire, Garfield, and Holland team up. Plus the variety of villains who show up made for some intense fight scenes and ensured that the story was never boring. Peter’s desire to “cure” the villains of their bad ways seemed a tad callow but it’s the goodness in Spider-Man that has always been appealing so at least it was on brand.
The action sequences are the typical Marvel-level magic and there is a lot of CGI. But this is balanced by the emotional turbulence of having three Spider-Men who have all suffered greatly to serve the greater good. Garfield proves he was always too good of an actor to play Spider-Man in a scene where he rescues MJ (Zendaya). The scene eerily mirrors how he lost the love of his life, Gwen. Garfield’s face as he peers down at MJ with tears in his eyes says everything and you’ll be reeling from the history of his loss.
Plus, the ending of Spider Man: No Way Home is not a happy one for Holland’s Parker. You’ll be on the verge of tears as he looks longingly at the love of his life, who doesn’t even recognize him. This isn’t the end for Spider-Man (there will inevitably be a reboot), but it feels like a worthy ending for this trilogy and for Holland, Zendaya, and Jacob Batalon whose portrayals of Peter, MJ, and Ned have been endearing and entertaining. So long, Spider-Man — AKA Tom Holland. Thanks for the ride.
You’ll like this movie if:
1. You love Spider-Man
2. You have nostalgia for the other Spider-Man movies featuring Toby Maguire and Andrew Garfield
3. You like action sequences
