With the number ofSpider-Manmovies in the franchiseand themany Spider-Man actorsto choose from, it may be hard to decide on a favorite. However,Spider-Man: No Way Homeis a mixture of the best elements of the different franchises. Tom Holland’s Peter Parker deals with something never before seen in aSpider-Manmovie: his identity has been revealed to the world. People either love him or hate him, and privacy is a thing of the past. However, when Peter’s actions affect MJ and Ned’s chance to go to MIT, he refuses to sit back and watch his friends lose their futures because of him.
Naturally, teenage Peter Parker does not think to call the school, choosing instead to jump to the next logical solution — magic. Doctor Strange’s (Benedict Cumberbatch) attempt to help Peter ends in chaos when he continues to interrupt the spell. But, it also opens the door to something Marvel has teased in the past, the Multiverse.No Way Homebrings in villains from different universes, including Doc Ock (Alfred Molina), Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe), and Doctor Connors (Rhys Ifans). Ultimately, thisSpider-Manmovie understands what viewers want to see, while addressing characters from their previous films in a serious light.No Way Homedoes its job as the movie fans would not want to miss. Here’s why it’s the bestSpider-Manmovie ever.
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Spider-Man Team-Up
There is only one Peter Parker in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, who is Spider-Man. However,No Way Homedeclares that is not enough. Although it remains Holland’s movie, it could not have been complete without the vital inclusion of Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield returning to their portrayal of the beloved characters. Holland’s Peter may be dealing with a lot, butNo Way Homestill finds time to update the audience on what has happened to the other two versions of the character. Maguire’s Spider-Man continued his hero work while working out his romantic relationship withKirsten Dunst’s MJ. Meanwhile, Garfield’s Peter Parker, although remaining Spider-Man, took a slightly darker turn, eventually stopping from pulling punches and still holding onto the grief and guilt that came with Gwen Stacy’s death. However,No Way Homegrants him redemption when he catches MJ before she can hit the ground from a significant fall. In fact, in an interview withIGN,No Way Homescreenwriters Erik Sommers and Chris McKenna discuss the importance of the three Spider-Men’s meeting and how it took them 10 tries to get the scene right.
Being Spider-Man takes up a lot of time, and it leaves less space for Peter Parker to be a person on his own, no matter which version it is. But, the movie also does well in having each Peter interact with a previous villain they had once fought. This time, rather than concluding in tragedy, curing the villains gives everyone a greater sense of closure, even if it is unknown if things changed once everyone was sent back to their universe.
A Devastating But Unexpected Ending
Superhero movies can be predictable. Something will go wrong, or a new villain will rise, and it will be up to the hero, and possibly their friends, to stop the impending threat.No Way Homefollows this formula to a degree. It is how the most prominent villains are cured before being sent home. But, that is not the final action that concludes the movie. Even though the villains are fixed, the effects of the botched spell are still in action and are tearing a hole in Peter Parker and Doctor Strange’s universe. Although Doctor Strange tries to close the gap, they only continue to grow, and Peter has one final idea to stop things from getting worse.
People are only pouring in because of Peter himself, as it called out to anyone from any universe that knew Peter Parker was Spider-Man. But, if no one knew Peter Parker at all, that may save the day. Although Doctor Strange is not thrilled, he agrees as it means saving the universe. The result isa devastating endingthat finds Peter Parker, once filled with love in his life, completely and utterly alone. Everyone he cares about either has no memory of him or is dead. So, where does he go from here? After hearing they were both accepted to MIT, Peter’s decision not to tell MJ and Ned the truth opens the door to a potential opportunity to make it a bigger deal in a future movie. But, in the meantime, Peter will be running around as Spider-Man, trying to rebuild his life in the best way he can while everyone else walks around with no memory of him. Although the ending is tragic, it is also a decision that sets the film apart from other superhero movies. Removing everyone’s memories of Peter Parker was a big swing for the film to take and suggests a possible darker tone as the Marvel Cinematic Universe moves forward.
No Way Home Presents Wide Emotional Range
Marvel movies, in general, have gotten a reputation for being comical in addition to their action-packed scenes and world-building storylines. It was an element inSpider-Man: HomecomingandSpider-Man: Far From Home. However, whileNo Way Homedoes have comical scenes and action-packed adventures, it is also one of the most emotionally impactful movies in anySpider-Manor Marvel film. Peter Parker’s life is falling apart at the seams, and there is no way not to feel bad for him. But, when things grow worse with Aunt May’s death,No Way Homeofficially reaches a more devastating level.
Maguire and Garfield’sSpider-Manmovies showed Uncle Ben’s death. However, Uncle Ben was not in the film particularly long before dying, as his death was the catalyst Peter Parker needed to become a hero. In this case, Aunt May has been around for several movies since her introduction duringCaptain America: Civil War. Given that she had remained safe thus far and so many others had died, it was a shock thatNo Way Homedecided to go for that aspect of Peter Parker’s origin story and kill Aunt May to trigger the movie’s final act.
