Spider-Man: Brand New Day review: A mature Peter Parker navigates heartbreak, loneliness and new evil
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Tom Holland in Spider Man: Brand New Day
Spider-Man: Brand New Day movie review: Tom Holland is back playing the web-slinging superhero but this time Peter Parker is more mature and lonely who must fight his inner demons as well as the new faceless villain in town.
Not so long back, post the release of Avengers: Endgame, the world declared it was suffering from superhero fatigue. As Marvel Studios churned out stand alone shows of all its characters- heroes, side heroes and villains alike- and introduced new superheroes on screen, the audience felt jaded watching the same stories. Clearly, Marvel Studios took note of the fatigue, reassessed its content and then reinvented a new template. Films like Thunderbolts and the series Loki have all attempted to explore the inner demons more than villains in physical form. Thus, MCU’s latest Spider-Man: Brand New Day fits right into the same framework where the friendly neighbourhood superhero is no longer a funny, slightly reckless but humorous high schooler, but a grown-up man, fighting loneliness and warding off evil from New York City in equal measures. Tom Holland returns as the web-slinging superhero along with his wife, actress Zendaya, who plays MJ and Jacob Batalon as his buddy Ned Leeds. But the trio, unlike the previous films, are not together anymore thanks to Doctor Strange setting things differently in No Way Home.
Instead, Peter Parker is now just a vigilante who protects New York City and lives alone, far away from his friends just to protect them.
What's the plot of Spider-Man: Brand New Day?
It's been a few years since Doctor Strange recalibrated the world order. MJ and Ned are now roommates in their final year of MIT- a dream that they had envisioned with Peter Parker back in high school. They do not remember Peter now, as their memory has been wiped clean. Peter, however, remembers them, quietly follows their life through social media and works full time as Spidey, keeping the crime rate at an all-time low in New York.
He is afraid to show his face to anyone, even to Punisher and General Rivera, the authorities who help him in fighting crime in the city.
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One day Peter realises that he is fighting a crime that is beyond the human form and something that can manipulate the psyche of any human and make them do evil. The faceless evil soon catches up with Peter, who has been riddled with guilt ever since the death of Aunt May and even threatens to kill MJ. Peter now must fight his inner battles in order to protect the city he lives in and the love of his life.
What works and what does not
Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, Brand New Day has Peter Parker coming of age. You go in expecting a goofy superhero complete with his humour and punchlines. The humour is there, but Peter is now a grown-up man, responsible for the people of New York, guilty of his past work and terribly lonely, who keeps having imaginary conversations with MJ in his head. While he is now more brazen and unafraid to take risks, he is also constantly honing his skills and the technology that aids him.
Some of the funniest scenes involve Spidey letting go of his guard. A scene featuring him and the new Black Widow (Florence Pugh) having a serious discussion about saving the world inside a hamam stands out. They are stripped naked and submerged in the bath, but Spidey decides to keep the mask on, just to keep his identity a secret from Yalina. Then there is also a brief appearance of the Hulk in all his glory and Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) never disappoints even if he has limited screen time.
I wish Holland and Zendaya had more screen time because the scenes involving the two are crackling with chemistry, despite the Indian censor board cutting their on-screen kiss completely.
Holland is undoubtedly the star of the film. He has grown up as an actor, projecting the right amount of restraint that is needed for this sad, melancholic Peter Parker who pines for MJ and a family of his own.
The other star of the film is Sadie Sink as Jean Grey, who possibly can be seen in future Spider-Man films. She plays a conflicting character and comes much after the film’s plot is established but leaves a lasting impression.
Since Thunderbolts also dealt with the fighting of inner demons, the plot of Spider-Man: Brand New Day feels familiar and a tad formulaic. I wish it had explored more about the problem at hand, of Parker’s inner battles juxtaposed with the crisis at hand. But the film skims over it and leaves only half an impact compared to one that was created in Thunderbolts.
Final verdict
Spider-Man: Brand New Day is Holland’s best performance as the web-slinging superhero. He truly has come of age much like Peter Parker. This isn’t the best Spider-Man film in the franchise, but it still makes for an entertaining watch for its interesting cameos, Peter and MJ’s love story and the growth Peter shows as a superhero.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day is out in theatres now.
