Thursday 3 October 2019

Spider-Man: Far From Home (12A)

It would seem absolutely everyone has now seen the latest, maybe even the last, Spider-Man outing – everyone, that is, except us.

So, a mere 76768686587689686876 days after release, we finally managed to tear ourselves away from everything else claiming our attention and went and sat in a darkened room to enjoy Spider-Man Goes On Holiday.

We'll be honest, though, with a mixture of Jake Gyllenhaal (sadly never a name that makes us rush to the tickets-parking-and-snacks desk) and the whole 'character goes abroad' shtick, this was not a film that we'd been eagerly anticipating.


Especially when the on-off romance between Sony and Marvel seemed to be more engrossing (back on at time of typing, but keep an eye...).

But anyhoo, we digress...

So, where we at?

Far From Home is the post-Endgame universe, and the disappearing of the people is being referenced and discussed, and the state of the Avengers is very much at the forefront of things.

Peter Parker, meanwhile, just wants the summer off and when school plan a trip to Europe this seems to sort things out nicely.

He can take in Venice and Paris, buy a thing, give MJ the thing, not be a hero and all will be well.

Which would obviously make for a short film....

So Nick Fury pops up, Happy is around, bad things happen in Venice and we get to meet a new hero – Mysterio (the aforementioned Gyllenhaal) and travel to other places for Reasons.

For those of us of a certain age, this has the feel of an On The Buses or Are You Being Served, where they took the characters abroad because they couldn't think what else to do with them.

Which, granted, is a tad harsh – this is a much better film than either of those – but you can't shake the feeling it really didn't need to go fighting its way across Europe.

That's not to say this isn't a fun film – it really is. There is a lot of humour, some quality slapstick, and the teenage angst of a boy just wanting to be a normal boy is handled deftly and with poignancy.

It just didn't need to happen abroad.

Or in 3D for that matter.

To be fair, the bits that are entirely done for 3D are far less intrusive than was the case back in Andrew Gardield's day, but in a 2D environment they really don't add anything.

All of which is a shame, because beneath all the bluster and extra trimmings is a damn fine film, and arguably one that is needed after Endgame.

It's light and frothy in places, weighty in others without going OTT, and the central trio of Parker (Tom Holland), MJ (the utterly superb Zendaya) and Ned (Jacob Batalon) steal the show from their more seasoned co-stars.

And the central story is strong and engaging, with twists and turns where you want them, while using existing technology to keep believability levels within a reasonable range.

And it possibly sets up the next wave of Marvel movies, depending on the final deal Disney hacks out with Sony.


In a way, Far From Home feels like it's being thrown out as an after-thought, so huge was the finish to things in Endgame.

But in the other paw, there is a warmth and humour here that feels like Spidey has finally found his own little niche in the movie world (something that never quite happened with the previous incarnations).

Overall, while not up there with the greats, this is a welcome palete-cleanser ahead of wherever Marvel are dragging us next.

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