Spider-Man: Far From Home
This is an absolute blast from start to finish, and probably Marvel’s funniest film since Thor: Ragnarok. Tom Holland continues to cement his position as the best onscreen Spider-Man, supported by a great cast and a plot that serves as both an emotionally satisfying continuation from Spider-Man: Homecoming, and an epilogue to Avengers: Endgame.
Premise: In the aftermath of Avengers: Endgame, Peter Parker/Spider-Man (Tom Holland) struggles to deal with the burden of being a fully-fledged superhero, while also trying to enjoy his school trip to Europe and spend some quality time with MJ (Zendaya). As Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) pressure Peter to step up, help comes unexpectedly from the new hero on the block, Quentin Beck/Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal).
Review:
The bar was set pretty high with the unexpectedly good Spider-Man: Homecoming, but the good news is that this return to Midtown High School is just as enjoyable. Far From Home manages the unenviable job of dealing with the aftermath and loose ends from Avengers: Endgame (and, fair warning, there will be spoilers for Avengers: Endgame later in this review), while also being a continuation of the storylines from Homecoming, in particular, in respect of Peter’s relationships with his classmates.
Speaking of which, it is perhaps a stretch that all of Peter’s main supporting characters were “dusted” and then “returned” five years later (a phenomenon they casually refer to as “the blip” in the film), but it’s a small price to pay to reunite the fantastic supporting cast. All of them get a bit more to do in this film (with the possible exception of Marisa Tomei’s Aunt May, who is left behind when the school trip travels to Europe), and all are given their own comedic moments in which to shine.
“…one of the film’s strengths is the depth of talent in its supporting cast…”
Zendaya’s part is bumped up to leading lady, now that we know she is playing “MJ” and not just a random classmate called “Michelle”. For the most part, MJ is kept at a distance from Peter (as she’s the secret object of his affection, but he doesn’t know if she feels the same way about him), but when they are together, their mutual teenage awkwardness is a joy to behold. Jacob Batalon is back as Peter’s best friend and confidante ned, although this time he’s as concerned about covering for Peter’s secret crush as he is about covering for his super-heroics.
One of the film’s real strengths is the depth of talent in its supporting school-based cast. As well as the main three teenage characters, Angourie Rice gets a lot more to do as Betty Brant this time around, and Tony Revolori is back as Flash Thompson – although this time, Peter’s main schoolyard nemesis is Remy Hii’s Brad, a hunky rival for MJ’s attention. After stealing so many scenes in Homecoming, Martin Starr is also back as ever-stressed Mr Harrington, who this time is in charge of the students’ disastrous trip to Europe. And even though Jorge Lendeborg Jr. is only in one scene as returning student Jason Ionello, he’s absolutely hilarious.
“…Tom Holland captures the pressure of living up to the legacy left by Iron Man…”
In terms of the adult cast, Tom Holland’s co-leads are Samuel L. Jackson and Jake Gyllenhaal. Jackson appears to be having fun playing a version of Nick Fury that is, himself, struggling to find his place in the world again having been “dusted” for the last five years. Meanwhile Gyllenhaal is fantastic as the new hero Quentin Beck, nicknamed “Mysterio” by Peter’s classmates. The death of Tony Stark has obviously deeply affected the entire world (as shown by the many touching murals seen in various cities), but for Peter Parker, it’s a far more personal loss. Tony Stark was a father figure and mentor for Peter (bearing in mind that we’ve never seen his relationship with Uncle Ben in this iteration of the character), and so Peter’s dealing not only with the pressure of living up to the legacy left by Iron Man, but also the emotional void left by the loss of his relationship with Tony.
It’s this particular plot threat which really elevates Far From Home compared to some other sequels. Let’s face it, Far From Home embraces two tried and tested sequel clichés: the European road-trip (a la National Lampoon's European Vacation), and the hero’s wish to give up his superhero status for a “real life”. Toby Maguire in Spider-Man 2, Christopher Reeve in Superman II, and even Christian Bale in The Dark Knight all contemplated hanging up their spandex for love. But one of the things that makes Tom Holland’s dilemma in Far From Home feel very different, is he’s not thinking of walking away for good … he just wants to enjoy one summer with his friends after the recent trauma of Infinity War and Endgame, and that really isn’t too much to ask?
“…Peter’s trying to find his place in the new ‘post-Avengers’ world…”
Tom Holland does a fantastic job of portraying the emotional burdens that Peter is struggling with. Not only does he have the “usual” teenage social pressures to deal with, but he’s also trying to find his place in the new “post-Avengers” world. Tony Stark’s legacy casts a long shadow for Peter, and while some (like Nick Fury) seem keen to press him into becoming Iron Man’s successor, Peter clearly doesn’t feel ready to fill those shoes (or in this case, wear those sunglasses).
To counter the pressure being put on him by Nick Fury (and, surprisingly, by Aunt May now that she knows his secret), Peter has new relationships with Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau) and new-comer Quentin Beck. Happy is now far more supportive towards Peter than he was in Homecoming, obviously feeling an obligation to keep a watchful eye on Tony’s young protégé now that he’s gone. But it’s in his relationship with Quentin Beck that Peter really finds a kindred spirit.
“…Jake Gyllenhaal brings a lot of different facets to Quentin’s character…”
Jake Gyllenhaal does a great job of establishing a relationship with Peter that is reminiscent of Peter’s relationship with Tony Stark, but also subtly different. If Tony was a surrogate father to Peter, Quentin Beck is more like a cool uncle – supportive and understanding, but also willing to let Peter off the hook and not be too hard on him. Gyllenhaal brings a lot of different facets to Quentin’s character, and all of them feel believable.
Amidst all the drama, Far From Home somehow also manages to be laugh-out-loud funny from start to finish. It’s the funniest Marvel film so far (Ragnarok aside), and perfectly balances the humour alongside the surprise-packed, multiverse-spanning, world-threatening main plot, and there’s even a mind-bending scene that gives Doctor Strange a run for its money. Interestingly for long-time fans, the plot also ties back to characters and events from previous MCU films, including the very first Iron Man back in 2008.
Far From Home is quite simply a joy to watch – a hugely successful blend of comedy, adventure, teen romance and super-heroics. I was already going to wait with bated breath for the next instalment in the series … but then I saw the two, plot-relevant, post-credit extra scenes, and now I really can’t wait to see what happens next!
