Spider-Man: No Way Home - FINALLY TOM IS PETER!

                                                    

Production: Kevin Feige, Amy Pascal

Directed by: Jon Watts

Screenplay: Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers, Stan Lee, Steve Ditko

Cast: Tom Holland,

Zendaya, Alfred Molina, Benedict Cumberbatch, Benedict Wong, Jamie Foxx, Jon Favreau, Marisa Tomei, Rhys Ifans, Hannibal Buress, JK Simmons, Tony Revolori, Jacob Batalon, JB Smoove, Thomas Haden Church, Willem Dafoe, Angourie Rice, Paula Newsome , Harry Holland, Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield

Genre: Action, Adventure

Duration: 148 Minutes

Anyone who follows the blog knows that I'm not one of those who expects the best movie or series in life when it comes to Marvel.

While the world freaked out waiting for Spider-Man: No Way Home, I just enjoyed the memes and laughed with the high anticipation being created and nurtured both by fans and content creators and by the studio itself.

I'm not going to recap the entire soap opera made by Sony and Marvel here because, well, it doesn't even matter anymore.

Here I will only talk about the successes and one or two little mistakes that bothered me, however, they didn't take anything away from the astonishment I felt during the session.

I love being wrong

As I'm very incisive in my positions and opinions, people think I want to be right all the time. In fact, it's the other way around. As I always expect the worst, it's much better when I'm proved wrong.

What I expected was another film with the Marvel formula, which, to me, doesn't really feel like it, and, again, a Spider-Man who has no idea of ​​who he is or who he wants to be. If Tobey and Andrew were in the film, fine, if not, fine, too, because I was already taking defeat for granted. My faith in the writers and especially in Jon Watts was nil.

And again, what a mistake! How wonderful! What nonsense entertainment! And not just entertainment. If there's one thing Spider-Man does with primacy, it's give a valuable moral lesson to an old war soul who's already lost faith in humanity. Peter was never selfish or reckless. He's already screwed up, yes, in every comic there was at least one blunder, but he always learned his lesson and afterwards, he didn't repeat the mistake. Something that was practically ignored by Watts in previous films. Parker's childishness was bordering on neural deficiency! And if there's one thing the Stubborn doesn't have, it's a neurological problem. The boy is extremely smart! Seeing this return of the character's super logical intelligence was another beautiful thing to see. Pleasant indeed.

Almost perfect script

One thing I was sure wouldn't work was precisely one of the main factors for a feature film to work: the script. In the other two, it didn't work. In Homecoming, not even the protagonist's love interest convinces, only one scene of the entire film is saved and the good performances of both Tom Holland and Michael Keaton (Marisa Tomei only appears to make it clear that it's Aunt May-hot-version, they didn't leave the woman to act). Away from Home is terrible. Again, only two good scenes, both emotional, and both linked to the loss of Tony Stark.

Jake Gyllenhaal could have spared himself.

But here, no, there was no honourable mention of Stark (who, to put it bluntly, was my favourite character on the MCU until Doctor Strange was so masterfully adapted), nor Spider-Man as an assistant to another hero, none of that. Finally, Tom became Peter, finally he understands that actions have consequences, and that sometimes, even with the best of intentions, people get hurt, and there is no way to change what was done, however, it is necessary to deal with the future. and that doing the best for others, unfortunately, sometimes also means giving up things that are dear to us.

The script works because it is intelligent, well-thought-out and developed. However, it is necessary to clarify that, yes, there are some problems, inconsistencies and conveniences. However, the pros are much more numerous and important, and as the cons are circumvented, they make them almost irrelevant, for anyone wanting to have fun with the film.

The reveal of the direction

Jon Watts didn't make a good impression, at least not on me, and that changed in the very first sequence of No Return Home, as not only the events but also the camera movements, the dialogues, and right away, the conflict between Peter and his heroic persona, grips and instigates, and one realizes how lost and tormented Peter is with the consequences of being who he is, in the lives of the people he loves. This is just the beginning of the whole journey the boy has not had since his first appearance in Civil War, knowing and facing the reactions that his actions trigger.

Driving the scenes, the talent shown by Jon when filming, both the actors in close-up, as well as more open shots, is a pleasure to see and follow. The action and fight scenes were not only well choreographed and easy to follow, but also, and very importantly, they didn't become as childish as they normally are in this type of film.

Acting

If direction is the brain of a film, the script is the lung, is the cast the liver? The heart? Some vital organ, certainly. In Spider-Man: No Way Home, this organ works perfectly (or almost).

Tom Holland was always a good actor. Most of his pre- and post-Marvel work did at least what was expected. Here, his acting is, in addition to being sincere and emotional (and emotion here, it's not just as far as the drama is concerned, but in every scene, every expression where Peter is confused, happy, angry, Tom manages to get through it all in a matter of seconds, in a glance, a movement), is very consistent, coherent and sober. Tom is finally able to become Peter Parker and is comfortable and determined to do his best. Finally, Tom is Peter!

Another who was visibly excited reliving his Webhead days was Andrew Garfield. What an actor. What a performance. What a delivery.

Andrew suffered a lot from criticism at the time of his films, as they thought his Peter was too cool, and the films were bad (in that I agree). In my opinion, Andrew was great, if not the best Web Head so far, he owes nothing to Tobey. Even when it comes to acting, Garfield is incredibly superior. Although, in No Way Home, Maguire is also doing very well. Much better than usual.

In the villainous cast, there is no one going wrong either. Jamie Foxx, Thomas Haden Church, Alfred Molina, they're all excellent, but there's nothing to compare to Willem DeFoe.

The man is superbly competent. Norman Osborn is not just terrifying because he is an evil genius, but because he is completely insane and unpredictable. He causes real fear, as his villainy is realistic and plausible. His uncontrollability is pitiful at times. Norman is a sad victim of himself who panics Spider-Man and the world, but none other than the person staring at him in the mirror. Terrible character, complex, but also captivating and tragic. Only one genius could interpret another.

Speaking of geniuses played by genius actors, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to break up with Benedict Cumberbatch.

Doctor Strange/Doctor Strange has been my favourite male Marvel character since I was a kid, and there couldn't be a better choice to play him than one of the best actors around. Benedict understands, therefore, represents his characters like few others. I've never seen him perform in a way that wasn't excellent once. Here, although there are some facilitations for the protagonist, because, after all, the film is his, Strange remains imposing and powerful, giving Benedict an important and coherent participation in this Spider-Man epic.

Zendaya and Jacob Batalon also have great moments, although the character of Batalon has been arbitrarily added an important feature, the actor has a solid charisma, which helps to lighten this problem in the script, and makes his lines and expressions that could sound forced, are just welcome jokes.

The eternal Miss Disney Channel is still a darling. What she wants is to pick Michelle Jones on my lap and take her out for ice cream (at least for me, over thirty, I understand that younger people have a different impulse).

Some people said they were surprised by the delivery of Marisa Tomei as Aunt May, especially in a scene decisive for the story and character of Parker. It's worth remembering that the actress is an Oscar winner and was one of the sensations in the 90's. She's great, excellent, but like Tom, she didn't have a script and direction (in her case, there wasn't even space) that they knew how to work properly in the others two films in the franchise. Now they let the girl play and look, the audience was amazed.

What I really need to say about this movie, this story and about heroes in general:

I saw a few embittered souls cursing the best thing about this plot: Peter's naive, pure, even innocent, and deeply disinterested heroism. On the bridge, when the MIT vice dean says he's a hero, Parker just replies "No...no" and when she says she's going to talk to the university not only about MJ and Ned, but also about him, the boy insists. that that's not about him.

And these troubled souls found something forced there.

The same problem enraged me when Wonder Woman came out 1984. That movie isn't great. There are good scenes, but a lot of things don't work (this time you can't blame anyone, Warner let Patty Jenkins do what she wanted, she who forgot Rivotril), I particularly like a lot of things and the final balance, even with the huge problems, it's positive. However, I understand almost all complaints. Except one: "Wonder Woman is too heroic. Too nice."

I mentioned above that my favorite male character before Stranger's entry into the MCU was Iron Man, and that's because I'm not very fond of characters with clean morals intact, because it sounds hypocritical and sloppy most of the time, but it doesn't was the case for neither the DC heroine nor the Marvel hero. Both failed, made mistakes, some very serious, even, but there was a greater good to fight for and not let the pain go, appealing to revenge.

Spider-Man: No Back Home is about maturation, self-knowledge (which is the greatest form of power we have available), unconditional love, altruism and second chances. Everyone there needed all these things. All characters had something to learn, something to grow, overcome and rescue. That's why comic books have always been necessary and their film adaptations, when done well, attract so much, because, in a playful way and totally outside the known standard reality, they access exactly the part of our consciousness (or soul) that needs to learn a certain thing, which needs to turn a key, but which with practical examples does not apprehend, does not take root, because they are lessons that need to go so deep that they are addressed to our inner child, so that the adult can be shown that he can and should be good, loyal, upright and even naive, because heroes are in short supply, and we know how much we need them, and anyone can be as admirable as Peter Parker or Wonder Woman, if you like.

                                                                                                       

Ps: The scene when the lawyer catches the brick is one of my favourites in the whole MCU. Love that character (since always), even his appearance fast as it was, still, I loved every second of it.