Spider-Man: No Way Home review: Tom Holland as web-slinger entangles the multiversal 'mess' in one of the best MCU films

4/5

For the first time in Spider-Cinematic Man's history, our friendly neighbourhood hero is unmasked and unable to separate his normal life from the high stakes of being a superhero, so he seeks assistance from Doctor Strange. The stakes rise even higher, forcing him to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man.

With great power comes great responsibility, and I got the power (chance) to watch Spider-Man: No Way Home before millions of them. Thus, I am taking the responsibility of making the review a spoiler-free one, just like how Tom Holland takes the responsibility of being a superhero Spider-Man/Peter Parker. It is in this movie that we finally get to also hear the epic dialogue from Tobey Maguire’s film. The film starts where Spider-Man: Far From Home ends.

Jake Gyllenhaal as Quentin Beck/Mysterio reveals the real identity of Peter Parker as Spider-Man, which never happened in the former franchises featuring Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield. Thus, he has to do damage control. Knowing that Doctor Strange is the man of altering realities, Parker seeks help from him, which opens the impending multiverse, the topic of discussion for a very long time. However, the situation takes a 360° turn and all hell breaks loose for Parker.

This is something that you must have watched in the trailer and a few short promos unveiled by the makers. The untangling of the cobwebs thrown by Parker sets the stage for the rest of the plot.

I think after Avengers: Endgame, Spider-Man: No Way Home is the MCU flick that excited me the most and it kept me on the edge of my seat throughout the story. The film will keep you hooked from the moment it shows the emotional Marvel montage.

It's not easy to watch Parker go through so much turmoil after he loses Tony Stark, aka Iron Man, in Avengers: Endgame and the aftermath in Spider-Man: Far From Home. But sometimes, tragedy makes you stronger, which is a common aspect in superhero films.

He is not a dumb kid from Queens, but the one who uses math to get out of a confusing situation. The best part of No Way Home is that there's no baggage from the previous films. Parker takes the matter into his own hands, and yes, he does the right thing to make it worth the cinematic experience.

The villains in the film, of which there are five, have already been unveiled and include Jamie Foxx as Max Dillon/Electro, Alfred Molina as Otto Octavius/Doctor Octopus, Willem Dafoe as Norman Osborn/Green Goblin, Thomas Haden Church as Flint Marko/Sandman, and Rhys Ifans as Curt Connors/Lizard.

The sequences, including all of them, are stupendous, but once again, Dafoe takes the cake. He brings back the same sadistic Green Goblin vibes that he did about two decades ago. Even Fox is a treat to watch, but seeing Octavius getting de-aged slightly comes as a shocker. However, he is a winner too.

The previous franchise of Spider-Man had three films each, but they failed to fare well among the masses. But No Way Home is hands down the best of the lot for many reasons that you can see for yourselves when you watch the movie.

The film doesn't waste time getting to the point, and with its justifiable runtime of 2 hours and 28 minutes, it gives justice to every character.

If you thought MCU was facing a curse in 2021 after hardly any shows in 2020, then you are wrong. It is ending the year for the MCU with a bang, and of course, you need a Friendly Neighbourhood Spider-Man for that.

Marvel and Sony showed why Spider-Man has been a fan favourite even before the MCU era kicked off. It will continue to do so despite new actors playing the iconic role after a gap of a few years.

Coming to the technicalities, there's no doubt that each department contributed beautifully to making this visually delightful film.

Mauro Fiore is the man behind the lens, and man, he knows how to even weave a story with the way the camera moves along with each character and the landscape that has been used. Moreover, it just blends flawlessly with the VFX, and every person involved in that department deserves a round of applause.

Michael Giacchino's music also gives depth to the sequences and makes them thrilling during the scenes that involve enormous fight sequences.

Why not? Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers, who wrote No Way Home, got the assignment right. They know how the minds of MCU fans work, and they just tweak it in such a way that fans will gasp for breath while experiencing it on the big screen. Jon Watts also helmed it with the utmost care as it levels up with Avengers: Endgame, which is holy for MCU fans.

The performances by the actors are no doubt the cherry on the cake, as there's hardly any negligible character. Tom Holland as the web-slinger has brought out the maturity in his character and made him by far the most responsible Spider-Man. The character arc brought by Holland doesn't make him look lost amid the ensemble cast. Oh well, he is on his path to being among the strongest Avengers, I must say.

One of the best scenes in No Way Home is the fight sequence between Parker and Osborn, which is gut-wrenching to watch as it has a lot of emotional value too.

Zendaya and Ned Leeds are his pillars, and it's a joyful ride they go on together. They are both shown as ordinary people who have the superpower to trust the superhero for the right reasons. They don't see them as threats, but as people who can change the world for the better.

Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange will prepare you for more of him in the coming films. But his camaraderie with Holland will constantly remind you why Peter Parker is the youngest Avenger and why he deserves every chance he gets.

Even Marisa Tomei, as May Parker, gets a different arc in the film and is not just eye-candy like in the previous films. Meanwhile, villains have been discussed before, and that's all I can write about them.

Spider-Man: No Way Home is a tribute to the Spidey fans rather than the MCU, and your friendly neighbourhood superhero deserves undivided attention.

Spider-Man: No Way Home will tangle you in the multiverse of cobwebs, but it entangles then and there to unleash further madness.