3.5 stars out of 5
I thought we could get some peace and quiet while the Avengers are still off in disintegrated-into-ash land. But nope, the new Spidey flick starts yanking favorite old baddies from the Multiverse (registered trademark Zuckerberg Industries), and I bet the hack screenwriters were kicking themselves for already using Homecoming as a title for an earlier installment. Hey, it’s Alfred Molina from the days when these movies weren’t such cynical money-grabs! And Willem Dafoe! And, uh, that guy from Wings! And Jamie Foxx, was he in a Spider-Man movie?!? Oh yeah, one of those crappy Andrew Garfield jobbers.
There are a bunch of thrilling, well-executed action sequences in this, so if you like that sort of thing, you’ll likely enjoy the movie. And if you’ve bought the “Marvel Universe” hook, line, and stinkers — all the films, all the shows — then you’ll have extry fun connecting all the dots. But for the rest of us, you not only get that sneaking suspicion that you’ve seen it all before; in this one they actually laughingly elbow us in the ribs, confirming that we have seen it all before! And will probably see it again, and again, and again.
Tom Holland, Zendaya, and the heavy-set kid are again believable and likable as young pals, this time applying for college. There is some decent humor and in-jokes. But again it feels like the movie was plotted out by a focus group of 8-year-olds, and that Holland’s people insisted that he doesn’t have to wear a mask a lot, even when that doesn’t make any sense. Cumberbatch’s jokey Dr. Strange still doesn’t ring true to me. And brace yourselves for a lot of Psychology 101 in the back stretch. I can’t get too upset: the sweet-spot demographic for these movies is teenage-and-below, and for that crowd I think life lessons on the importance of friendship, self-awareness, and self-worth are a worthy addition. Bottom line, I enjoyed this movie, but all the multivitamin multiverse stuff was a nagging reminder how much better and cooler Into the Spider-Verse was.
Personal highlight: As Peter Parker is returning to school, we hear “Scraper” by Liquid Liquid. So while all the nerds were waiting for the obligatory bonus scenes in the end credits, I was waiting to see the names Sal Principato, Dennis Young, Scott Hartley, and Richard McGuire up on the big screen. Awesome!
Jack Silbert, curator