Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
Cast: Tom Holland, Samuel L. Jackson, Jake Gyllenhaal, Marisa Tomei, Jon Favreau, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Tony Revolori, Angourie Rice, Remy Hii, Martin Starr, J.B. Smoove, Jorge Lendeborg Jr., Colbie Smulders, Numan Acar, Zach Barack, Zoha Rahman, Yasmin Mwanza, Joshua Sinclair-Evans, Sebastian Viveros, Toni Garrn, Peter Billingsley, Clare Dunne, Nicholas Gleaves, Claire Rushbrook, J.K. Simmons, Dawn Michelle King.
Where Avengers: End Game had the expanse and managed to give the Superhero fan all that it could have ever asked for, the last film in the Marvel Phase Three cannon, Spiderman: Far From Home managed to emulate just by reducing its scope down to the level that the friendly neighbourhood crime fighter is more accustomed to, and one that brings out the best in one of the unsung villains of the Marvel house.
After the sheer colossus in size and ambition that Avengers: End Game provided, a culmination in its own right of stories that have left a lasting, indelibly stamped impression on audiences, the second of Tom Holland’s own starring roles as Peter Parker/Spiderman is a joy ride through the fan fiction whilst wonderfully acknowledging the depth in which the studio can now afford to go.
Whilst Tom Holland has garnered the adulation of crowds taken with his youthful prowess in the lead role, it is perhaps to another couple of actors and effects that the film really takes off in such stunning value. The role of Spiderman has always divided audiences, there is a set in the mind look to how we see one of graphic novels most endearing creations, yet we as a society embrace quickly because we want the stories to continue. It is to the fringe players that perhaps we have more staunch opinions, more decided views on how the character should be portrayed, and whilst Zendaya’s MJ is not meant to be a parallel of Mary Jane Watson as depicted by the excellent Kirsten Dunst, the actor proves a magnificent foil and full blooded version of Peter Parker’s love interest.
It is also to the excellent Jake Gyllenhaal as Quentin Beck/Mysterio that the film has the adversary it, and the fans, fully deserve, one that captures the silver age of Marvel with ease, but also drives a magnificent wedge between Spiderman and the general public. The deception in which the premise of the film is staged is one that marks it out as one of the best in which the Marvel Cinematic Universe has had the honour to host and a lot of the applause and congratulations should be laid at the feet of Jake Gyllenhaal.
We take for granted now that the house of Marvel is able to see the whole picture as one founded in the extraordinary, the epic space battles, the encompassing of the galaxy and all it has to offer, is all well and good, but sometimes we have to see the world as how it is reflected in the ordinary, that our biggest concern is not alien invasion, but the hidden face of those who seek our friendship, who hide their morals in smoke, mirrors and double dealing, out for their own purpose to destroy the neighbourhood.
A near perfect, amazing fantasy, a film in which to love Marvel for its broad appeal.
Ian D. HallÂ