Movie Review: “Spider-Man: Far From Home”

“Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown.” — Nick Fury, “Spider-Man: Far From Home”

I’ve been wondering lately how the vaunted Marvel Cinematic Universe will fare now that “Avengers: Endgame” majestically wrapped up a decade’s worth of superhero movies in a neat, heroic bow. (Spoiler alert: If you haven’t seen Endgame, see it, then come back and read this.)

With “Spider-Man: Far From Home” spinning a web at the box office, the future of the MCU starts to take shape. 

I really enjoyed the first Tom Holland-led Spidey movie when “Spider-Man: Homecoming” debuted in theaters two summers ago. In my review of that movie I wrote, “it was nice to see something that had the tone and heft of pink bubblegum.”

My enjoyment of “Homecoming” left me with fairly high expectations going into the latest web-slinging adventure featuring “our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.”

This time out, Queens teen Peter Parker (Tom Holland) and a group of his classmates from Midtown School of Science and Technology are headed to Europe on a summer trip. 

“Spider-Man: Far From Home” takes place after the events in “Avengers: Endgame,” so the school had to restart its academic year to accommodate the students who “blipped” (a term the students use to refer to students who disappeared during the events of “Avengers: Infinity War.”)

Those who “blipped” are the same age. Those who didn’t are five years older. 

Parker longs for a return to normalcy after his heroics in the two most recent “Avengers” movies. 

He hopes the class trip will allow for a much-needed break, and present an opportunity to further his relationship with classmate MJ (Zendaya). He doesn’t even want to bring his Spidey suit along, and has been “ghosting” calls from Nick Fury. 

Unfortunately for Peter, the class trip experiences an attack by a water creature (an “Earth Elemental”) while they are visiting Venice, Italy.

Peter — sans Spidey suit — leaps into action, and meets a new superhero wearing an outfit that looks like it jumped out of Thor’s Asgard — with a helmet that’s a cross between a crystal ball and a snow globe. 

The students are stunned, but impressed, with the mystery hero. As classmate Brad (Remy Hii) declares, “he’s kicking that water’s ass.”

Our webbed crusader soon finds himself back in the S.H.I.E.L.D. fold — working with Agent Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), Agent Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) and the new superhero whose name is Quentin Beck (Jake Gyllenhaal) — dubbed “Mysterio” by Peter’s classmates as a result of an Italian media reference. 

Beck claims to be from an alternate reality, suggesting there are multiple parallel universes.

Before we know it, Peter and his friends are twisting around Europe (S.H.I.E.L.D. starts to influence the group’s itinerary) so Spider-Man can help thwart the threat of other Elementals wreaking havoc.

Things aren’t as they seem, though, and there are some pretty decent twists and surprises in “Spider-Man: Far From Home.” 

Peter has to come to terms with his role as a superhero, his relationships with his friends, and his desire to move forward after the loss of mentor Tony Stark in “Avengers: Endgame.”

Peter laments, “I didn’t think I was gonna have to save the world this summer.” 

“Spider-Man: Far From Home” is far from perfect, but I had a terrific time watching it. 

I started writing this review on July 2 (when I first saw the movie). In the intervening days, I’ve seen the movie two additional times. I’ve enjoyed it more on subsequent viewings.  

“Far From Home” is directed by Jon Watts (who directed “Homecoming”). 

There are some uneven moments in this latest Spider-Man adventure, and I thought Gyllenhaal’s role could have been developed a bit better. 

The Quentin Beck character is pretty interesting. It’s kind of a shame they weren’t able to integrate Beck into earlier MCU movies as a bit player. If they had, I think his character’s arc could have developed in a “slow burn” fashion leading up to “Spider-Man: Far From Home,” giving “Mysterio” greater depth.  

Marvel also seems committed to the “Iron Spider” concept of making Parker the heir apparent to Tony Stark. We are treated to more scenes between Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau) and Parker in “Far From Home,” including questions about Hogan’s feelings for Peter’s Aunt May (Marisa Tomei). 

(I really like the wit Favreau brings to the role. I think he’s a grounding force in “Spider-Man: Far From Home.”)

Peter’s friend and sidekick Ned (Jacob Batalon) is another bright spot in the film. His charm and affable demeanor adds dimension to Parker’s. The character’s role in the story is something akin to Luis (Michael Peña) in the “Ant-Man” movies. 

Overall, I had a fun time watching this movie. 

It was a smart move for Sony and Disney to finally find a way to integrate this character into the Marvel Cinematic Universe (after the Sony’s “unconnected” Spider-Man films starring Tobey Maguire and Alex Garfield). 

One of the little moments I enjoyed in “Spider-Man: Far From Home” is a sequence where Parker is presented with a gift from the late Tony Stark (there are monuments, shrines, and tribute videos dedicated to the character strewn throughout this movie). 

The stylish sunglasses serve as an “AR tactical intelligence system,” allowing our hero to connect to a digital assistant named E.D.I.T.H. The acronym stands for “Even Dead I’m The Hero.” 

In a cinematic universe where things are not always as they seem, I still believe we haven’t seen the last of Mr. Stark. 

“Spider-Man: Far From Home” is the cinematic equivalent of chasing down a bag of Doritos with a cold can of Mountain Dew. It might not be fancy cuisine, but it sure tastes good. 

P.S. — Be sure to stay through the ENTIRE end credit scroll. You know the drill — all the way to the end. There are some “easter eggs” that have a pretty significant bearing on the events in “Spider-Man: Far From Home” — and upcoming films in the MCU. 

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