Spidey takes a needed MCU break in 'Far From Home'
Don’t expect “Spider-Man: Far From Home” to dive deep into the lingering questions of the Marveling Cinematic Universe following “Avengers: Endgame.” In fact, the movie gets better whenever it steers away from the overall saga and focuses on Peter Parker’s life as awkward high-schooler/moonlighting superhero.
Director Jon Watts, returning from “Spider-Man: Homecoming,” and his writers are faced with quite a conundrum at the start of “Far From Home.” We’ll dance around the spoilers for now, but let’s just say the entire world has been forever changed, and Peter/Spider-Man (Tom Holland) must also reckon with his newfound distance from Tony Stark/Iron Man.
On the Stark front, “Far From Home” does a nice job connecting this relationship to the movie’s primary adventure. Some giant elemental beasts are threatening the world, and Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) decides to lean on Peter for help. While Stark always saw Peter as a possible successor, Fury has doubts about Spider-Man’s ability to face down world threats. This leaves Peter questioning his own abilities and motivations.
Peter, fresh off a trip through space and battle with an alien army, understandably just wants to enjoy a class trip to Europe alongside Ned (Jacob Batalon) and MJ (Zendaya). Peter also hopes to finally declare his true feelings to MJ on this trip, but of course the big water and lava monsters get in the way.
For brief stretches, “Far from Home” plays like an amusing travelogue, anchored by the lively young actors and comic relief from Martin Starr and JB Smoove as teachers/terrible chaperones. Watts also utilizes these characters to “talk over” and eventually dismiss many of those “Avengers: Endgame” consequences. This approach is a tad dismissive of those consequences, but the movie’s momentum plays much better once it locks into its own Spidey story.
“Far From Home” also benefits from a compelling and complex performance by Jake Gyllenhaal as Quentin Beck/Mysterio, one of the great and often underutilized characters in the Spider-Man universe. Mysterio and the Elemental monsters seemingly hail from a different dimension, and Fury recruits Mysterio to lead the attack against the ghouls. While Fury barks orders at Peter with little compassion, Quentin takes the young webslinger under his wing.
The monster attacks work fine enough, though Watts makes a smart decision to stage some more visually-complex confrontations later in the movie, including a sequence that longtime fans of “Spider-Man” will especially love.
It’s incredibly difficult to talk about the success of the movie’s overall narrative without spoiling certain aspects. The cast powers the movie through, and the Peter-Quentin relationship, as well as MJ’s increased involvement, help keep the movie feeling fresh through some of the more standard superhero action moments.
As with most of these MCU movies, stay through the entire credits. One stinger teases big things, while the other recontextualizes “Far From Home” in a fun way that will enrich a rewatch.
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Tyler Wilson can be reached at twilson@cdapress.com.