With all the hype around “Spider-Man: Brand New Day”, it would have been very easy for the movie to falter and under-deliver, but instead the latest entry in the Sony and Marvel co-production has truly delivered in a truly brand new way.
Directed by “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” director, Destin Daniel Cretton, the latest entry blends the heart of what people fell in love with in the first three movies, while elevating on the action, and grounding it in the street-level drama viewers have been craving.
According to the film’s logline: “Four years have passed since the events of No Way Home, and Peter Parker (Tom Holland) is now an adult living entirely alone, having voluntarily erased himself from the lives and memories of those he loves.
“Crime-fighting in a New York that no longer knows his name, he's devoted himself entirely to protecting his city - a full-time Spider-Man - but as the demands on him intensify, the pressure sparks a surprising physical evolution that threatens his existence, even as a strange new pattern of crimes gives rise to one of the most powerful threats he has ever faced.”
What was highly enjoyable about the newest movie is that it truly felt like a Spider-Man movie through and through. Cretton, who brought on his Shang-Chi stunt team, helped craft clever and imaginative action sequences which really did keep you engaged and invested in the story.
Another standout detail was the attention Cretton gave to the swinging sequences, which also had elements filmed practically.
Paparazzi footage taken around August last year, showed how the movie had recorded Spider-Man swinging through the streets, and this translated to screen in a very dynamic way.
I really liked how the movie handled the relationship between Peter and MJ (Zendaya). It could have easily conflated the off-screen relationship between the two stars, but the film keeps it grounded in who their characters are, and what that dynamic looks like for people who used to know each other.
I am looking forward to seeing where that relationship goes especially as Peter gets older. Holland and Zendaya are truly magnetic on screen, and their chemistry is what helps these movies sing.
Added to that is the dynamic of Sadie Sink’s character, whose name I will not spoil here, but she presents a real moral conundrum for Peter Parker, and he has to learn how to use his brains while also struggling with internal conflict of his own.
While the movie could have found more intriguing ways to use Sink’s character, “Brand New Day” does tie their arc up in a way which feels narratively fulfilling and emotionally true for who their characters are.
There are other clever additions of Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) and Frank Castle (Jon Bernthal), who enter the story in ways which help make the world feel expansive and narratively rich.
They are not cameos for the sake of it, but are narratively motivated and Holland’s Peter Parker really does benefit from what they bring to the story. They are involved in fun action sequences in various points, all of which keep the movie fresh and craft unique stakes that Peter has to face.
“Brand New Day” does a good job of keeping the stakes at a lower level while not undermining the perils and dangers that Peter Parker faces. That is a delicate balance because after the big and bombastic scope of “Spider-Man: No Way Home”, they could have gone bigger and louder, but then the story would have felt empty.
In “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” there is a real appreciation for who Spider-Man and Peter Parker are, and to see the film re-invest in understanding his character and who he is, it only sets them up for success in future films.
The elements which do not work as well are tied to Sadie Sink’s character. The narrative story of who she is and what motivates her comes later in the movie. It does feel like the secrecy around her character distracts too much from having the central story at the forefront.
One of the film’s strongest relationships is the Peter and Ned (Jacob Batalon) dynamic which reminds the audiences the power of male friendships, and in the male loneliness epidemic that we are in, seeing a man miss his friends and then do something about it, is a wonderful message.
Overall, “Brand New Day” is not just a brand new entry in the Spider-Man film work but it does feel like a brand new day within the world of Peter Parker and like all new days, there is a lot of excitement and avenues to explore and build upon, and personally, I can’t wait to see where it goes.
★★★★ (4/5): The movie really sticks the landing, and does a good job of setting up Spider-Man for continued instalments while allowing his character to grow and evolve. The movie is fun and is really entertaining, given that it is already a billion dollar success, we'll likely see more instalments to come.
theolin.tembo@national.mg.co.za