Movie Reviews

In “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” Peter Parker’s toughest battle is with himself.

In press interviews for “The Odyssey,” Tom Holland said that Christopher Nolan’s epic was probably his “last chance to play a boy.” And yet a month after his 30th birthday, the actor is back for another go-round as the eternally youthful Peter Parker in “Spider-Man: Brand New Day.”

Holland is finally beginning to show subtle signs of aging in the latest installment, which dovetails perfectly with the film’s more emotionally mature approach to the perpetually sunny series. Though Spider-Man still dispatches a parade of villains in frequently thrilling action sequences, ultimately the toughest battle he must endure is with himself.

Following the events of “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” in which he asks Dr. Strange to wipe the world’s memories of his secret identity, Peter is now dutifully and unceasingly fighting crime on the streets of New York City as Spider-Man without the help of his best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon) and his girlfriend MJ (Zendaya).

Though his NYPD point of contact (Liza Colón-Zayas) encourages him to build a life outside of the suit, Peter spends his limited free time sitting in his dingy Queens apartment, scrolling through Instagram reels of Ned and MJ at MIT and wallowing in his feelings.

Even Spidey’s crimefighting is tinged with melancholy. The New York City on screen styled by director Destin Daniel Cretton is perpetually gray, and when Spider-Man rips through a montage of lesser baddies at the start of the film, he’s soundtracked not by a triumphant ditty like Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now,” but TV on the Radio’s “Wolf Like Me.” (Sample lyrics: “Mirror my malady / Transfer my tragedy / Got a curse I cannot lift.”)

The 2007 indie hit, about a man turning into a werewolf, ends up being a fitting anthem for “Spider-Man: Brand New Day.” Whether due to his unique physiology or the stress of his self-imposed isolation, Peter starts to become more spider and less man. What was once easy to control – his web, his strength, his spidey sense – is now a misadventure waiting to happen. The second puberty of sorts couldn’t come at a worse time, as a faceless villain – whose superpower involves possessing any individual in its orbit – is attempting to break into a shadowy government org known as Damage Control, headed by Bill Metzger (the always welcome Tramell Tillman of “Severance”).

During one of several universe-expanding cameos, Yelena Belova/Black Widow (Florence Pugh) tells Peter his body-hopping villain sounds like “small potatoes.” But one of the great strengths of “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” is its commitment to small-scale storytelling. Beyond Black Widow, Peter certainly runs into some familiar faces in New York City (which we won’t spoil here), but he’s never hurtling into space or hopping between multiverses. He’s primarily concerned with waking up in a web of his own making, or about whether MJ has a boyfriend.

Speaking of MJ, Zendaya is another of the film’s highlights. In the first three “Spider-Man” movies, Zendaya was used more for comic relief; though coded as dark and quirky, she was mostly used to throw deadpan one-liners at Peter or Ned. Thanks to a sharp script from Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers, she finally gets the chance to showcase the full range of her talents – not to mention the undeniable chemistry she has with Holland, her real-life husband.

“Spider-Man: Brand New Day” only begins to lose its way when the film begins its inevitable quest to get audiences to care about what comes next. You can’t jump instantly from a self-contained story like “SM:BND” to “Avengers: Doomsday,” which will bring together basically every MCU character in a single film come December. Though the story Cretton teases is actually pretty interesting (and thus won’t be spoiled here), it gives the film a bifurcated quality. There’s the moment where most of the film’s A-plot is neatly wrapped up, and then there’s almost 40 minutes of building a runway to the rest of the MCU while the audience idles on the tarmac.

Nevertheless, after a long layoff between installments, the thrill of being back in the world of Spider-Man is pleasure enough. Though Tom Holland says he has outgrown boyhood roles, something tells me Marvel will find a way to keep the Brit perpetually twentysomething for a few more films. I, for one, am not complaining.

Rating: **1/2 (out of 4)

“Spider-Man: Brand New Day” is now in theaters.

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