Movie Breakdown: Spider-Man: Far From Home
Pre-Screening Stance:
Spider-Man: Homecoming is a great movie and Far From Home looks like it will be, too, but there’s a little part of me that feels like the Marvel Cinematic Universe should be on break after Avengers: Endgame.
Post-Screening Ramble:
In a lot of ways, Spider-Man: Far From Home serves as both an epilogue to Avengers: Endgame and the start of a new chapter for the titular character. The former covers a variety of things, such as Thanos’ snap now being known as The Blip, Earth’s sudden lack of active superheroes, the outcome of snapped/blipped people suddenly returning, Peter Parker and his pals’ high school status and more. I can’t say that every single post-Endgame question gets an answer, but most of the big ones get something and it’s pretty satisfying overall.
As for the part of Far From Home that features the further development of Peter Parker/Spider-Man (Tom Holland), it makes for a more than satisfying experience. The film begins with Peter anxious to go on a European vacation with his classmates. He’s tired, he wants a break and he’s anxious to tell MJ (Zendaya) that he has feelings for her. Because he is who he is though, his trip gets interrupted by Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders), who want him to help a super-powered fella from an alternate Earth, Quentin Beck (Jake Gyllenhaal), take down a powerful creature. Parker initially balks, as he is desperate to just be with his friends, but the weight of both the world’s and Tony Stark’s expectations prove to be too much, and he begrudgingly agrees to participate in the mission. From here there’s a handful of really fantastic action scenes and some fun twists and turns – none of which I’ll be spoiling – but most importantly there’s some real growth for the 16-year old. The phrase “with great power comes great responsibility” never gets muttered, but it’s definitely the central theme in Far From Home. Parker isn’t in a position where he can just enjoy a normal personal life or simply assist whenever some villain pops into the picture, he has to step up and become something more, and the film does a really great job of showcasing his progression from super helper to superhero. I can’t wait to see where the character goes from here.
This movie is a real winner. Go see it immediately.
One Last Thought:
This movie’s post-credits stinger is my favorite out of the entire MCU. It not only sets up something important for the next Spider-Man movie, but it also adds a huge exclamation mark to Far From Home.
