Spider-Man: No Way Home

Life for Peter Parker (Tom Holland) is complicated thanks to his dual life as Spider-Man and the challenges of being in High School. Unfortunately for him; his best intentions are about to make things much worse in “Spider-Man: No Way Home”. Taking place where “Spider-Man: Far From Home” ended; Peter must deal with his secret identity being leaked by Tabloid Journalist J. Jonah Jameson (J.K. Simmons); and the throngs of people, helicopters, and protestors who follow his every move and camp outside his home. As if this was not bad enough; being accused of being a murderer has drawn the attention of the authorities which further complicates his life as does returning to a school where everyone knows his identity. Desperate to get away from the constant scrutiny and observation; Peter seeks out Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), and asks him to cast a spell that would make the world forget that Peter Parker is Spider-Man. Strange agrees but mid-spell Peter requests that there are some exemptions from the spell which include his Girlfriend MJ (Zendaya); his Aunt May (Marisa Tomei); and his friend Ned (Jacob Batalon). Strange agrees but in doing so; complications aris

Rewatched for the Once Upon a Franchise podcast. Listen to the full episode here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3TmI9YlTkUtOFndxmNBetG?si=ce79729dc45c4b2c Rating: A- SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME is still one of the most emotionally devastating and rewatchable entries in the MCU. It's proof fan service can be done right: every returning character serves Peter's arc, so the film works even if you've barely seen the earlier movies. Willem Dafoe is the villain standout, Andrew Garfield's redemption and Tobey Maguire's mentor role are beautifully handled, and Tom Holland delivers the best performance of his career. Aunt May's death and the responsibility line hit with real weight. The "cure, don't kill" throughline is pure Spider-Man, and I love that the trilogy is Peter's extended origin story. What holds it back is the messy, convoluted first half, the lazy way Doctor Strange fumbles the spell, and a CGI-heavy finale that I blame on the secrecy around the project. Michael Giacchino's score is the best of the trilogy. It's a tearjerker with tons of heart.

**" THIS IS POP-ENTERTAINMENT; AT ITS FUNNEST, WILDEST, WHACKIEST, MOST CREATIVE, "SUBLIME-EST"... B E S T 💜 😉 😃 "** A -{ B I G }- Screen MINI Review ; Film Seen all of FOUR times( soon to be 🖐 ); as of Dec.15, '2021. ________________________________________________ Tom Holland's Peter: { to MJ }: "What's that thing you always say? ...expect disappointment..." MJ: "No, no, no... NO ...we're gonna Kick Some Ass !" Tom Holland's Peter: "O.k !" Toby Maguire's Peter: -{ "Cure. Cure Some Ass" }- . Ned Leeds: CURE THAT ASS !!!                                         ________________________________________________ Somewhere, "In An Alternate Universe", Spider-Man: No Way Home { to be hitherto referred to as NWH }, is already -Well- on the way to winning the "Best Motion Picture Of The Year" Award. { Here on Earth 🌎, incidentally, the Oscar Awards are, ( as things stand as of -Now- ), slated to be held on March 27, 2022 }. And -Speaking- of which, in our -{ OWN }- breathtakingly ravishing universe unfortunately, that particular proposition is likely to be a -FAR CRY- at best ; given the Academy's characteris