Spider-Man: No way home
The Marvel movies are hit and miss for me. Most are entertaining enough but there are very few I would like to see more than once. I am a fan of the “Guardians of the Galaxy”. I liked the third “Thor” a lot. And I do like the “Spider-Man” movies, although I still think Raimi´s second Spider was the best comic book movie after - of course - “Superman: The Movie”.
I also like Tom Holland as Peter Parker, the younger generation, but this third film, a box office behemoth, confirmed something I always thought: for my taste Holland´s take on the role is the least interesting of the previous big screen portrayals. And while this third film in his trilogy does something extraordinary it also is revealing how the Spider-Man films have changed.
For those one or two who haven’t seen this pandemic super success yet, I’ll explain in the hidden text.
Summary
As you who have seen it know, the multiverse brings back Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield to fight along Tom Holland against all the previous villains.
Which is a great idea, tieing the Sony films together with the Marvel ones, and actually honoring what the other actors did and could have done even further if the films had not been rebooted.
But it really shows that Marvel, while offering light-hearted popcorn entertainment (which is no small feat and actually a consistent Herculean task they succeed at), have homogenized the “Spider-Man” character in order to maximize the appeal. The consequence: Peter Parker has become quite… boring, without any edge at all.
Look at Tobey Maguire. Raimi cast him, I think, because Maguire has the aura of a loner, kind of sardonic, withdrawn, with a dark side just barely hidden. When he appears as the oldest (?) of the three, he does not even enter in the Spider costume. And still he draws our eyes onto him, making us wonder what he is hiding behind his eyes.
Also, look at Andrew Garfield. Webb cast him, I think, because he is versatile and can play emotional and charming and funny and yet in the next moment be serious. And you never see the effort, you are immediately drawn in. His Spider-Man was already playing to a larger crowd than the more sinister, horror-influenced Raimi films, and if he had been surrounded by better villains and put into better stories, Garfield would have been celebrated in that role.
When he enters the film, at that point I had almost lost interest. The plot, while thankfully not as overcomplicated as other Marvel pics, was a nice surprise (Parker trying to give the villains a chance to redeem themselves) but utterly predictable in its progress.
Then Garfield appears - and I forgot about Holland immediately. Garfield radiates charisma, acts circles around Holland and proves how relaxed he can put humor in the scenes while also giving us a glimpse at the deep wound inside of his Peter Parker.
Sure, Holland gets a traumatic event in this film, too. But neither his acting nor the writing give him the same amount of impact - despite aiming to go for a big finale. In other words: even if nobody remembers him being Spider-Man at the end, would it be so hard for his Peter Parker to again charm M.J. and his best friend?
In contrast to that, Garfield’s Peter Parker will never forgive himself for not being able to save the love of his life from falling to her death. That is so much more powerful. And when he actually manages to save the other M.J. from falling to her death, the look in his eyes is just perfect; Garfield’s Peter finds the redemption he so desperately needed in this universe. For me, that was the best scene of the movie.
But here you have it: Raimi dared (and was allowed) to give a sinister edge to his films. Webb tried to concentrate on the personal in his films and was overpowered by Sony’s attempt to build a bigger universe, neglecting the storytelling. And now Marvel has built that well-oiled machine which, basically, needs a Peter Parker who is appealing to all quadrants and does not irritate anyone with individuality.
It still pretends to be emotional and surprising. But it is not really allowed to do that. It is prepackaged to not irritate or involve anybody too much. It´s like a pop song produced so everybody can hum it - without really being special.
Welcome to studio blockbusters in the 21st Century.
