HOLLYWOOD—I didn’t know what to expect from the fourth outing of the new “Spider-Man” franchise with Tom Holland in the driver seat after ‘No Way Home.’ That movie seemed to bring some finality to the current franchise, but when you have a box-office hit, you know a sequel is coming, which brings us to “Spider-Man: Brand New Day.” I love ‘Home-Coming,’ ‘Far from Home’ was a bit iffy, but where does this forth one stand? It is on the lower echelon for me right above ‘Far from Home’ and I will explain why.
This movie is really focused on the heart of Peter Parker aka Spider-Man (Tom Holland). It has been some time since the events of ‘No Way Home’ where Aunt May (Marisa Tomei) died, Peter was forced to erase the memories of his bestie Ned (Jacob Batalon) and his girlfriend, MJ (Zendaya) in order to protect them.
Peter is a bit of a loner; he doesn’t have many friends, and he keeps to himself as he struggles with that loneliness, while still trying this best to protect New York City from criminals. ‘Brand New Day’ doesn’t have a villain that pops in my opinion. Yes, you have the Scorpion, but I never considered that character that villainous in my opinion. We also have The Punisher aka Frank Castle portrayed by Jon Bernthal, but he is more of an anti-hero who actually aides his mission against the actual big bad.
Do not worry, I will not spoil who that villain is because it even caught me by surprise, where I was attempting to scratch my head to try to make things make sense. It works to a degree, but for me, considering that I am such a Marvel fan and I have an infinity for Spider-Man, X-Men, Fantastic Four, Iron Man, The Avengers, Captain America, Thor and so much more, I wanted a more destructive and vicious villain.
As a spectator, I wanted to feel like the characters I have come to adore for the past 3 films are in serious danger this go around and I didn’t get that. A lot of the narrative revolves around the Department of Damage Control and its big man in charge, Bill Metzger, who has a liking for policing individuals that contain superpowers to say the least. We do have a few appearances from Bruce Banner aka The Incredible Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), who Parker goes to when he realizes his DNA is mutating and his senses are more heightened than normal.
Are there incredible action-sequences in “Spider-Man: Brand New Day?” Without a doubt. Do you get the laughter and chuckles? Yes. Do you get the heart-warming and edge-of-your seat thrilling moments? Yes. You would think with everything you get, it would be satisfying, but I wanted just a bit more. Holland is incredible in the role, but Zendaya’s MJ seems to be a bit of a throw-away because once the character serves her narrative pinpoint, we don’t see her anymore.
‘Brand New Day’ gave me the inkling the chapter is being shut on Holland’s outing as Spider-Man and we’re going to see our possible fourth iteration of the iconic character portrayed by someone else. We’ve already had two Brits take on the role, with many considering Tobey Maguire the original and only Spider-Man.
