The newest, highly secretive MCU project, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, hits theaters this Friday. I had the chance to see it Monday night, and it’s one of the more contained films in the multi-dimensional universe that we’ve received in a long time.
Let’s talk about why.
Spoilers ahead!
Character, Character, Character
Peter Parker has been in a bit of a rough place since the last time we saw him in No Way Home nearly five years ago. He’s lost Aunt May, and nobody remembers who he is. This includes both his best friend, Ned, and the love of his life, MJ. He lives alone, and occasionally spends time fighting crime with the city police and Jon Bernthal’s Punisher.
There is a lot of ground that this film needed to cover in terms of Peter’s much-needed development, and how side characters like MJ, Ned, Bruce Banner, and Jean Grey are to be involved in it all. And the film uses quite a large percentage of its 145-minute runtime to sit quietly with these characters and bring a level of depth to them that, even after nearly ten years, we haven’t gotten to see yet.
Once MJ and Peter have their heart-to-heart in Punisher’s compound, the decision to make this new MJ not in love with Peter at all was an inspiring choice, not dissimilar to Gamora’s arc in Guardians 3. It opens the door for even more organic relationship growth in potential future installments, and it gives MJ a level of agency that is incredibly welcome in a world of infinite universes.
Additionally, where other films in the franchise have stumbled trying to integrate characters naturally from other projects, Brand New Day finds consequential narrative reasons for everyone to exist. If anyone like Punisher or Yelena were removed from the film entirely, it would hurt the emotionality. That’s the biggest sign that your characters are working the way they should in a project as big as this one.
Other little moments like Sadie Sink’s Jean Grey’s benchside talks with her sister and Peter, Peter’s reconnection with Ned, and Punisher being moved by Peter’s bravery in the closing act of the film mirror many versions of this character we’ve seen before, but are presented in a way that feels uniquely catered to Holland and co.’s interpretation. We even get a brilliant re-interpretation of the “great power, great responsibility” monologue from Aunt May in a flashback that deeply moved me.
Grounded Stakes and Action Setpieces
‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’Credit: Sony Pictures Releasing
The world is not doomed to end via some faceless, intergalactic army in Spider-Man: Brand New Day. And that is the best decision the team made. Jean Grey is obviously a threat to the general population, but the film wisely decides to make the threat most focused on the intimate one of MJ and Ned being caught in her crosshairs.
Jean’s character is explored in a way she has never been before in other live-action iterations, and her past trauma greatly mirrors that of Peter’s. This makes her a seriously compelling antagonist, and one of the best we’ve gotten in a long time from Marvel. But it also makes her a key ally for the future after her arc is complete. Both she and Peter learn a lot from each other by the end, and while she metaphorically flies off into the sunset, it’s clear she’ll be back somehow.
Not to mention that the film boasts some of the best action choreography we’ve gotten from an MCU film in a long time. Daniel Destin Cretton’s frenetic but smoothly mobile style of shooting lends itself beautifully to the hand-to-hand combat moments in particular throughout the film. The action scenes are shot in tangible, lived-in interiors, and blended exteriors to give the film a much more grounded sense of realism than even some of the more recent NYC-set projects.
Where Do We Go From Here?
The film doesn’t give many hard-hitting answers as to where any of these characters are off to next. And once again, that’s a brave, brilliant choice. There is, of course, a cryptic end credits scene, but it doesn’t explicitly reveal anything about the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday, or any other Spidey side projects.
The film ends as any stand-alone superhero film might. The city is saved, loved ones are happy and healthy, and Peter’s reputation is restored and his secret identity maintained. Jean flees on her own, and Dr. Banner is recovering. And that’s about all we’ve got. The film wisely understands that it needs to follow through on the immense character work already discussed before we can focus on the epic setup for a future brawl. This is a point that many projects in recent years have struggled to fully follow through on, so it’s refreshing, to say the least, to see an MCU project this far out have the confidence to stand on its own two feet.
