Warning: article contains spoilers
The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has a reputation for fun films for casual people. While this doesn’t necessarily detract from the enjoyment, as Martin Scorsese puts it, they are largely seen as the cinematic equivalent of a theme park attraction. Kevin Feige, producer of the MCU, clearly disagrees, going so far as to try and get Spider-Man: No Way Home nominated for a Best Picture Oscar. While Best Picture seems to me a step too far, we should recognise No Way Home for what it is: a film that honours the legacy of Spider-Man while at the same time striking at the heart of Peter Parker’s character.
Jon Watts, the film’s director, had to do a lot with this movie: it had to make a profit; it had to exist within the MCU, and respect the mould of the money-making machines; it had to close the trilogy he began with Spider-Man: Homecoming; and it had to honour twenty years of cinematic legacy. On all of these accounts, he succeeded. The first two are fairly obvious to see: just before the new year, the film made $1.37bn worldwide; and the film is peppered throughout with jokes and gags in line with the rest of the extended universe. It is a fun film packed with high-quality CGI and well-choreographed action sequences, all typical of a Kevin Feige production.
Within this framework, the film pays close attention to the story it has been telling since Homecoming. In the first film, we see Spider-Man (Tom Holland) learn that being a hero is not simply a fun game; in Far From Home, he learns that he cannot simply give up being a hero; here, he learns that he must do the right thing no matter what. The film presses his character to his limit. Just before his Aunt May (Marisa Tomei) dies, she gives him a final, familiar lesson: “with great power, there must also come great responsibility”. Twice, he is given the chance to ignore it, first when he is given the box that can send all his villains away to be killed, and again at the climax of the film when he tries to kill the Goblin. However, the lessons he has learned prevailed: he is persuaded the first time by the other Spider-Men (Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire), and the second, he cures the Goblin, and sends him home to (hopefully) a better world. At the close of this film, Peter’s journey is complete: he has learned just what it takes to become a hero. Retrospectively, the conclusion of the trilogy enhances the first two films, and brings the story, and the development of his character, to a satisfying close.
It was clear that at the beginning of the trilogy, the filmmakers were trying to set the film completely apart from the previous films, such as with the decisions to exclude Uncle Ben and to avoid using Peter’s catchphrase about power and responsibility. However, by having Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield reprise their roles from past iterations of Peter Parker, Watts is setting his trilogy directly next to those that came before. Their inclusion risked being mere fan service and disrupting the integrity of the story. Instead, they point to the fundamental truths of Spider-Man: he goes through pain, loss, and tragedy, but he always comes out the other side, as highlighted when the other Spider-Men first speak to Tom Holland’s character. In this film, they act as a foil to the MCU’s version of the character, hammering home the lesson he has to learn. And as such, they enhance the story, rather than distract from it. And similarly, they pay tribute to the legacy of the previous films (especially to Andrew Garfield’s performance), and the impact they have had on the current iteration of the character.
It is worth pointing out the somewhat lacklustre pacing of the first act: despite the aesthetically pleasing and well-choreographed fight scene between Dr Strange and Spider-Man, it feels as though it drags. Likewise, the epilogue feels rushed: Peter’s grief over his aunt does not feel truly reconciled, and one wonders if it would have been necessary to extend Peter’s address to his aunt’s grave.
However, everything in between the first act and the epilogue flows smoothly. A particular highlight is the apartment fight scene at the close of the second act: Willem Dafoe’s turn as the Green Goblin is terrifying, as he delivers some of the best lines in the film and then brutally beats down the hero.
This fight, combined with his other appearance towards the end of the film, in which he praises Peter for trying to kill him, works well in the context of the film. His role is to be unhinged, and cause chaos; his motivation appears to be to corrupt Peter’s morals. This sort of dynamic could have fallen flat in a movie where the central conflict lies between the hero and villain. But here, it works perfectly: it highlights even further the internal struggle for Peter. At its core, the story is about Peter Parker learning to do the right thing. As such, the villain does not need to do more than to voice and feed the hero’s inner demons. The story is all the more satisfying when Peter does not win through some big fight, but by accepting his final lesson: he must always do the right thing.
This excuses Dr Strange’s incredible irresponsibility. He neither counsels a clearly distraught 18-year-old who asks him to brainwash the entire world nor talks him through the spell, but it becomes clear that we are focussing on Peter. Even if we lay the blame with Dr Strange, we watch Peter choose to help the villains rather than simply take the easy solutions.
That is why the reliance on interconnected cinematic universes is passable here. No Way Home does leave casual fans a bit more in the dark about their villains’ motivations, such as Electro’s desire not to be ignored, or Doctor Octavius’ science experiment gone wrong. However, this is because the film does not want to distract from Peter Parker. No Way Home concludes the trilogy excellently. Much more could be said about other aspects of the film, including the score, the choreography, and the acting, particularly Tom Holland’s performance. But let it be sufficient to say that, for the first time in a while, the MCU has produced a story that stands on its own two feet, without simply relying on their audiences’ love for their interconnected universe. This is certainly, to my mind, the MCU’s best cinematic outing.
Image Credit: Spider-Man: No Way Home / Sony Pictures / Facebook
