SPOILER: This column contains potential spoilers for “Spider-Man: Brand New Day.”
With eight previous live-action film adaptations and three different actors, Spider-Man has been portrayed with so many different storylines, charismatic side characters and notorious villains. Two weeks ago, I would have told you “Spider-Man” (2002) is my favorite, no question. But after seeing “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” the conversation has changed entirely.
“Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” released July 31, takes place four years after the events of “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” The film ended with Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) casting a spell at Peter Parker’s (Tom Holland) request to make everyone, including his girlfriend, MJ (Zendaya), and best friend, Ned (Jacob Batalon), forget who he is in order to undo the multiversal chaos he previously caused.
Initially, I was worried that Marvel would soften the blow of that sad ending because Spider-Man was characterized as a joyful teenager in Holland’s last three films, but thankfully they didn’t hold back one bit. When the film opens up, we see that Peter lives alone in a shoddy apartment, and instead of reconnecting with his past friends, he spends his time watching them enjoy their years in college through Ned’s social media posts.
It was heartbreaking to see someone who would’ve killed to build Lego Star Wars and make nerdy references with his best friend be reduced to merely observing their lives through his phone.
Peter’s loneliness was also emphasized through clever shot compositions that utilized the negative space to further alienate him from the rest of society. One of my favorite examples of this is when Peter is looking at his phone while hanging on a metal beam high above New York City. The sweeping view of the skyline shows how distant he is from his closest friends, both literally and figuratively.
Holland does an excellent job of portraying the emotional turmoil that Peter is going through, and I would even go as far as saying this was a career-best performance from him. Holland had a great flow between the upbeat web-slinger persona during quip-filled fight scenes and the dark, isolated man struggling to connect with others.
While the film initially started in a gloomy tone, the introduction of The Punisher (Jon Bernthal) added the perfect touch of humor that I was looking for.
Bernthal previously played Punisher in Netflix’s standalone series centered around the character. Punisher is often known for his brutality and lack of filter, something that frequently clashed with Spider-Man’s PG-13 persona, but Bernthal did a great job of shifting his mature character into a more family-oriented project. I was genuinely impressed by how well he fit into the film despite their differing personalities, and his character’s distinctly coarse speech was hilarious without becoming cartoonish.
Spider-Man and Punisher made for an excellent duo, and I found myself wishing we had more of them together earlier in the film. It felt very fitting for a street-level vigilante to interact with a New York superhero, and I’m eager to see more of Bernthal’s character fighting alongside other city heroes.
Opposite Spider-Man, Sadie Sink had a fantastic introduction to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the film’s primary antagonist, Jean Grey. Sink felt menacing in the film, especially when she used her telepathic powers to tease Peter by manipulating his perception of reality and forcing him to relive painful memories, similar to how Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal) played mind games with him in “Spider-Man: Far From Home.”
At one point, Jean possesses MJ’s mind to trick Peter into believing she remembered who he was, a trick that works so well that the entire audience in my theater gasped when Jean taunted him for falling for her deceit.
Later in the film, MJ discovers who Peter is through an old letter that he wrote to explain everything to her, and her confrontation with Peter is easily the most heartbreaking moment. While the letter proved that they once had a strong relationship, MJ has no recollection of who Peter even is, while Peter is still deeply in love with her.
While this was incredibly difficult to hear, I think it was a very realistic choice for her character, and it would have felt forced if she threw herself back into a relationship with him. I have hope that they may end up back together eventually, but I think it’ll be interesting to see how these two navigate this awkward dynamic in future films.
Aside from the outstanding performances, the soundtrack choices in this film were impeccable.
When Peter is sitting alone on a train, looking at Ned from afar, we hear Tame Impala’s “Loser,” which perfectly captures the emotional distress Peter feels from being away from his friends. The film ended with a gorgeous end-credits sequence showing the beauty of the New York City landscape with Steve Lacy’s “Oh Yeah?” playing in the background. Lacy’s powerful vocals combined with the stunning visuals reminded me of the emotional growth that Peter went through and the mark of a new chapter for Spider-Man.
“Spider-Man: Brand New Day” truly felt like a breath of fresh air for the MCU and made me more excited than ever for the upcoming “Avengers: Doomsday,” which is set to release Dec. 18. It’s not yet confirmed if Holland will make an appearance in the film, but I would be thrilled if we even got a cameo in the form of an end-credit scene.
Nevertheless, I’ll be looking forward to whatever exhilarating adventure comes next for the web-slinger.
