Film Review - Spider-Man: Far From Home (12A)

You are just a scared little kid in a sweatsuit.  

(This review includes spoilers for Avengers: Endgame.) 

A grand total of eight standalone Spider-Man films - that's including last year's animated Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse - have swung across our cinema screens this still-young century. It's a testament to multiple individuals, starting with Spidey's creators Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, that the web-slinger remains as fresh and entertaining as in his movie debut seventeen years ago. We love this high-school superhero's teen exuberance, never more so than right here in Spider-Man: Far From Home.

The new movie begins with its youthful characters coming to terms with the world post-'blip', their word for the chaos perpetrated by arch-villain Thanos in Endgame. Peter Parker (Tom Holland) is still feeling the loss of his mentor Tony Stark, and so embraces a school trip to Europe, intent on leaving spider-suit and alter-ego behind, while romantically pursuing classmate MJ. But ex-boss of SHIELD Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson of course) is pursuing him, so that the teenager might help counter new global threats. And the most imminent of these is a bevy of dimension-hopping elemental entities, being taken on single-handedly by caped newcomer 'Mysterio' (an impressively suited-and-booted Jake Gyllenhall). Peter's vacation, to quote best friend Ned, has been 'hi-jacked', and he must decide whether or not to shoulder the full weight of the super-hero burden.

Like it's predecessor Spider-Man: Homecoming, Far From Home must strike a fine balance between integrating itself into the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a whole and telling its own tale. On the one hand it helps to know what the 'blip' stuff is all about and why the protagonist is so down in the mouth over Tony Stark (Ironman's checkered legacy looms over the whole story). On the other, the film takes off as a fast-paced and frequently hilarious high-school comedy in its own right, enhanced this time around by vividly coloured European locations. It's got a revitalised and joyous comic-book feed in contrast to the sombre stylings of Endgame, never more so than when Peter is tangling with elemental adversaries alongside his new pal Mysterio. And that's only the movie's first half, before a series of rug-pulling plot developments steer it into darker territory that make unexpectedly heavy demands on our hero.

For all its teen-based jokery and romantic complications, Far From Home has surprising dramatic depth. Fans of the Sam Raimi films have seen Tobey Maguire's Spidey go through all this 'power/responsibility' angst already, but here it's in the context of the turbulent post-Thanos world and has a consequent sense of - well - consequence. It's a challenge to which Holland rises. He's better than ever as Peter, whether zipping around Venice and Prague in hero-mode, fumbling his efforts at romance or facing up to loss and self-doubt as circumstances turn critical. Spider-Man has never been more fully human than this.

There's sterling support too from all sides. Zendaya (The Greatest Showman) comes into her own as a self-protecting emo version of MJ, while the other 'teens' and their incompetent teachers dependably raise smiles throughout. (There's a particularly funny subplot involving Jacob Batalon's lovable Ned.) Meanwhile Ironman fans will love how the relationship between Peter and Stark employee Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau) is developed, supplying nicely judged moments of humour and sadness. And Jake brings the Gyllenhall magic like you'd expect, as the enigmatic and magnificently attired Mysterio.

Intricately constructed by the same directorial/writing team as Homecoming, Far From Home balances comic-book thrills and weightier moments with expertise, while switching up gears towards a suitably explosive conclusion. (If it does go a bit too CGI-mayhem at the end, the character drama sufficiently compensates.) Marvel fans have been expecting epic developments in this movie and they get them, though possibly not how they expected. Hang around for a end-credits double-whammy to knock your socks clean off. This movie isn't over till it's over, and Spidey's world - to say nothing of the MCU - might never be the same again.

Gut Reaction: Grins, laugh-out-louds, cheers and gasps - all that a Spider-Man movie should provide and lots of it. 

Memorable Moment: There were any number of those during the feature, but it has to be the first of the end-credits scenes. Cheer-inducing, then jaw-dropping. Nothing short of sensational.

Ed's Verdict: 8/10. A fun-packed ride for the casual viewer, with chewy delights for the dedicated MCU fan. In a perfect world all summer blockbusters would be this good.

Feature - 10 Reasons Why I'm Stoked For Avengers: Endgame

Whatever it takes.

I love independent films and I love serious studio titles that court awards and I love the obscure arthouse stuff that never makes it to my local Odeon. Hey, my favourite films from the past three years were Nocturnal Animals, Moonlight and First Man respectively, so I'm totally a proper film critic. But sometimes what I really need is a big, bold, attention-grabbing, eye-popping, popcorn-munching entertainment-fest. And no one except no one in 2019 does those better than Marvel. Avengers: Endgame opens on April 25th here in the UK and I'm counting the days. Literally. As I write this there are 35 left to go. So as my own contribution to the Endgame hype-machine, here are ten reasons why my anticipation is greater than for any blockbuster movie since The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. (For the record, it was really easy to find the ten.)

1. 11 Years Coming

The Marvel Cinematic Universe debuted with Iron Man in 2008, a post-credits sequence linking its hero Tony Stark to something called 'The Avengers Initiative'. Since then the MCU has expanded, deepened and interconnected, its characters popping up in each other's films, groups of them occasionally banding together as full-time or honorary 'Avengers' to face off against the really big foes. How clearly head honcho Kevin Feige envisaged this year's Endgame back in 2008 I'm not altogether clear, but there's a sense looking back to the early days that it was all headed somewhere flipping huge. I described Avengers: Infinity War last year as a 'culmination'. Well in truth it was only the first half of that culmination. Endgame is where a decade's worth of storylines and character arcs finally achieve their closure. We fans have been patient, and this is the payoff. 


2. Mother of All Cliffhangers

Let's not understate the hugeness of what happened at the end of Infinity War. Half the population of a very busy cinematic universe was rendered literal dust-in-the-wind by a snap of Thanos' gloved fingers. Among the crumbled were key players - Spider-Man, Black Panther, Doctor Strange, Scarlet Witch, Falcon... Audiences shared their heroes' desolation. Thor, having failed to deal Thanos a fatal blow, was lost and bewildered. Steve Rogers could only paw the ground, muttering 'Oh God'. And Tony Stark silently hugged himself, as though trying to embrace a no-longer-existent Peter Parker. Our guys had lost, while their brutal but strangely philosophical nemesis parked his ass on a mystery planet to enjoy the sunset and contemplate his misguided act of mercy. Man, it was tough to watch. So... what's next?

3. An Interweaving of Threads

The MCU is now famous for doing such interweaving (see 1, or better still read my full article on the topic here.). Infinity War combined the Avengers characters with those from Guardians of the Galaxy, Doctor Strange and Black Panther in the ultimate super-hero mash-up. And while there's been a certain amount of scaling down in personnel courtesy of Thanos and the infinity gauntlet, Endgame is still going to mix things up some more. Scott Lang will find some way to join the team (his Ant-Man and the Wasp outing left him ultra-miniaturised and inconveniently stranded in the Quantum Realm), while Carol Danvers is returning to Earth for the first time since her 1995 tangle with Nick Fury and the Skrulls in Captain Marvel. These movies have been dealing with character-clashes consummately well, so we can expect some wonderful drama and a few deft comic touches to leaven the gloom, as the old-guard incorporate the newbs. 

4. That Enigmatic Marketing Campaign

I've given vent on Filmic Forays to my frustration at spoiler-filled movie trailers (specifically here). My pet movie gripe to this day is having multiple plot points/key moments given away by the studio publicity machine, so that the viewing experience is robbed of its impact. What's refreshing about the Endgame trailer is that it reveals the absolute minimum of what we can expect in the film, while still managing to convey a sense of utmost urgency and drama. Our heroes are devastated, but they're going to fight back, that much we know. How exactly? Unclear. In what circumstances? Not a clue. To what effect? Nope, got nothing. The marketing team has striven to prevent the story's secrets from leaking, a task as strenuous as wrestling the infinity gauntlet back from Thanos (and we all know how that ended). Well if any major spoilers do make it out there (and I pray they don't), it won't be due to crass telegraphing on the part of the Marvel team. They're doing all they can to keep the big revelations under wraps, and dropping just enough hints to make us salivate like Pavlovian dogs.

5. Streamlining Earth's Mightiest Heroes

Infinity War did a commendable job of spinning multiple stories on multiple planets at the same time. Inevitably, however, there were characters who lost out. (Steve Rogers and Natasha Romanoff spring immediately to mind). In the aftermath of Thanos' radical cast-culling that should not be a problem. While there's still a scattering of characters who were introduced to the MCU following the first Avengers movie, Endgame seems much more focused on the original team - you know, the gang who had each other's backs when New York came under attack from the Chitauri seven years ago. Hawkeye is making a welcome (if grief-stricken) return to complete the Class-of-2012 reunion, which intensifies the prospect of an epic and potentially tragic last stand. If Infinity War was sprawling, Endgame should have a tight team-based focus.

6. Scintillating New Character Combos

There's still room post-Thanoid apocalypse for some intriguing MCU connections to take place. Along with the integration of Ant-Man and Captain Marvel with the core group, we have a couple of enticing prospects. What kind of marooned space-buddies will wise-cracking Tony Stark and vengeful humour-vacuum Nebula make? And how bad-ass a pairing will we have in Rocket Raccoon and War Machine? (Very, the above picture would suggest.) With Danai Gurira's Wakandan warrior Okoye still knocking around, plus who knows what other survivors waiting in the shadows, there's no knowing what additional encounters might be in store. That's the wonder of the MCU - the sense that all your 'What if character A met character Q?' questions will eventually be answered.

7. An Epic Runtime

Directing team the Russo Brothers recently spoke in terms of a three-hour final edit of Avengers: Endgame and there's little sign that they're trimming it significantly shorter. Movies of equivalent length were in vogue fifteen years ago, largely due to Peter Jackson's Middle Earth trilogy, but studio executives and cinema multiplex owners tend not to like them; the longer the runtime, the fewer screenings can be crammed in during the movie-going day. It's a sign of the production team's confidence (and that of the execs) in what they've created that they're keeping it close to the three-hour mark. In addition we can expect a finale that's got much more than spectacle. It's going to devote all the time required to those crucial character moments - resolving all those tantalising sub-plots and giving this classic crew the send-off they deserve.

8. Emotional Punch

Have you seen that final trailer? The one that gives virtually nothing away, save the height of the stakes involved? Everyone is grieving, everyone is lost, everyone is struggling to process the outcome of their war with Thanos. Steve and Tony can't believe they failed to stop the big purple guy. Thor holds himself personally responsible (because he failed to aim for the head). Hawkeye (above) has been bereft of all he truly loved. Natasha, it seems, is acting as everyone's grief counsellor. They should try to find a way to move on, but they can't. Not if there's some glimmer of a chance they could reverse the situation and claim victory where they failed first time around. And however tough their mission, this time they'll see it through - whatever it takes. Gives you chills, right? No? Seriously? Don't you have a soul??? 

9. Trust the Russo Boys (and their writing team)

Writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely knew their MCU already, having written screenplays for Captain America: The First Avenger (good) and Thor: The Dark World (passable). They found their perfect compliment, however, in directing partnership Anthony and Joe Russo. These talented siblings came from a background in TV comedy to helm some of the best entries in the Marvel cinematic canon to date - Cap America episodes The Winter Soldier and Civil War and last year's awe-inspiring first half to the Thanos story. While not necessarily fully-fledged auteurs, the Brothers Russo have nonetheless a terrific grasp of storytelling structure, pacing and tone. Their Cap stories are arguably the most bruising MCU titles (physically and emotionally), while their Avengers movie navigated a clean and hugely satisfying path through a narrative that was dauntingly ambitious. Since Infinity War and Endgame were made Lord of the Rings-style in a single shoot, we can be pretty damn sure that this closing episode will match the quality of the opener, if not surpass it.

10. That Climactic Feeling

Speaking of The Lord of the Rings (and why wouldn't anyone?), think back to Christmas 2003. Remember when Frodo and Sam were picking their way through the sulfurous ruins of Mordor, while Aragorn and his battle-weary troops squared up to the massed hoards of Sauron? Never in my cinematic adventures had I felt such a sense of desperate heroism in the face of insurmountable odds - and I'd read the book! That's until now, I think. The Avengers' final stand against Thanos has that nothing-left-to-lose Return of the King vibe - like its heroes are choosing to stand tall as the world ends around them. Yes we know there are other MCU movies on the way, that Peter Parker can't really be expected to stay dead and that Black Panther was too big a cultural phenomenon not to be granted a sequel. But time (to say nothing of contracts) is running out for the classic A-team, and this feels for all the world like their last hurrah. They've got the tiniest sliver of a chance (one in fourteen million six hundred and five, if Doctor Strange got his mystical sums right) to defeat Thanos and reverse the snap. But they're determined to beat those odds. Whatever it takes. 

So - do our guys, girls and raccoon really have a prayer? Will Hawkeye get his family back, Wakanda its King, Queens its friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man? Will Tony have his happy ending with Pepper, or a chance to kiss and make up with Cap? Will Bruce Banner get his Hulk on, and will Black Widow finally get it on with him? Will Nebula sort out her Daddy issues? Will Rocket remain the Galaxy's sole Guardian? Is there a way back from despair, and if so, will it come at a terrible price for some of our heroes? Am I geeking out just a little bit too much?

I honestly don't care. I'm way too stoked. See you on April 25th, everyone. It's going to be awesome.

Film Review - Captain Marvel (12A)

I want you to be the best version of yourself.

Captain Marvel is film twenty-one in the Marvel Cinematic Universe established back in 2008 and the first with a solo female lead. It's also surrounded by the kind of bogus culture-war controversy that really grinds my gears. So to make clear my thoughts on the matter - yes it's a splendid thing that the girls are getting equal time with the boys in the MCU and no it's not over-earnestly PC that such a thing should happen. Rather it adds greater interest and variety. Now having carried out that bullshit-bypass, let's get to what really matters - is the film any good? Short answer: yes it is. Not free of flaws, but as much pure entertainment as you might hope.

Set in the ancient retro-world of 1995, Captain Marvel is a stand-alone origin story with a good thick scattering of prequel elements for the regular MCU audience. It begins as pure space opera, with our soon-to-be hero (Kong: Skull Island's Brie Larson) going by the name of Vers on the Kree planet of Hala (stick with me here). She's being trained up by Jude Law to help fight the Kree people's shape-shifting enemies the Skrulls and is imbued with enough power to give her people a crucial advantage in the conflict. But when a mission gone wrong, she plummets to Earth, pursued by several Skrull nemeses. Having dusted herself down, she forms an alliance with government agent Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson as a younger version of his Captain America/Avengers character) and sets about uncovering what business the Skrulls have with this planet. Meanwhile Earth-bound memories are surfacing regarding her obscure past, suggesting that 'Vers' might be more than just Kree...

Even typing that detail-lite synopsis reminded me of what a good story there is at the heart of this film - both in the non-conventional way it deals with the super-hero's origins and in how it sets up expectations only to flip them on their heads via plot twists you simply won't see coming. Writer-director team Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, better known for character-driven independents than blockbuster behemoths, deal adequately with the initial interplanetary set-up, even if it's not really their forte. It's when the action hits Earth that they come into their own. The '90s nostalgia element is a constant source of fun, there's lots of political-thriller paranoia courtesy of the shape-shifting enemy and at the centre of it all is a smart buddy-rapport between out Captain-in-the-making and MCU favourite Nick Fury.

Larson's Vers/Carol Danvers/Cap Marvel is an enigma, trained to control and channel the power that crackles within her. She's remote but with an enjoyably wry sense of humour, subtly allowing her humanity to seep through as she reconnects with Earth. Jackson meanwhile has a ball as the young dual-eyed version of Fury, reverse-engineering his performance from the earlier movies into something lighter and more genial. True the digital anti-aging makeover on him (and on Clark Gregg's always welcome Agent Coulson) is remarkable, but no less so than his engagingly youthful performance. The scenes between the odd-couple are the film at its best, but there's room also for Ben Mendelson (Star Wars, Ready Player One) to shine as their layered Skrull antagonist Talos, while a cat called Goose pilfers every scene he's in. 

Not everything works. The first-act interplanetary conflict isn't as focused as it needs to be and the Carol Danvers backstory - while ingeniously introduced - is confusing, at least to begin with. While the action scenes on Earth are fun, some of the later physical confrontations don't engage like they should (possibly I've been spoiled by the Russo Brothers' more bruising confrontations in four other Marvel movies). And one long-time MCU mystery is solved by way of a gag that many fans are simply going to find cheap. 

That said, Captain Marvel succeeds on way more levels than it fails, chiefly though a nicely conceived story and the gleeful sense of fun with which it's told. Take its genre mash-up along with that injection of nostalgia for a bygone Nineties era, and this is largely a box of delights, one that's full of tease for the imminent Avengers: Endgame. The new Cap is too reserved for us to feel we know her fully yet, but she's an intriguing addition to this storytelling universe, one who promises interesting times in the very near future. April 26th to be precise. The Marvel A-team took a serious beating in Avengers: Infinity War, after all. Carol Danvers' super-duper-powers are going to be needed...

Gut Reaction: Not fully engaged till Carol D hit Earth, then caught up in a genuinely fun experience - one with quite a few thrills and just as much laughter. 

Memorable Moment: Goose reveals his secret. 

Ed's Verdict: 7.5/10. The more I think about this (albeit impertfect) MCU entry, the more I enjoy its smartness. A tantalizing prelude to the Endgame event craziness and a damn good story in its own right.