The highly anticipated Spider-Man: No Way Home hits theaters this week, and fans will finally get to see the effects of the multiverse on Tom Holland’s Spider-Man. Anticipation has reached a fever pitch, as fans are bursting with questions: Will we see the Sinister Six assemble in the MCU? Will Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield make appearances?
Jon Watts is back in the director's chair for Spider-Man: No Way Home, which will follow the events of Spider-Man: Far From Home, picking up after the superhero’s secret identity was exposed to the world amidst a terrorist attack in London. Now that the reviews are in, we have to know: How did the movie live up to the hype? Let’s check out what the critics are saying, and don’t worry, we’ll keep it spoiler-free.
We’ll start with CinemaBlend’s review, as our own Eric Eisenberg gave Spider-Man: No Way Home a perfect 5 stars, lauding the way the film tackled Peter Parker’s classic struggle to balance his abilities with his longing to be a regular teenager, while still adding to the character's universal storyline. In the most emotional MCU Spider-Man movie yet, No Way Home will make you laugh out loud and want to jump out of your seat.
It’s a blockbuster that not only has the intention of moving forward the story of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Peter Parker in the aftermath of the character’s previous adventures, but also aims to examine the awesome and mixed history of the titular web-slinger on the big screen. It’s an exceptionally complex assignment, but one that makes the movie’s extreme accomplishments all the more impressive to behold.
Kate Erbland of IndieWire gave the movie a B-, calling it “satisfying, emotional and occasionally unsteady,” as the script struggled a bit with its pace. But the casting was handled extremely well, she said, as the inclusion of surprise cameos added to the movie, rather than being used as a gimmick.
The film is filled with both familiar faces and surprising additions. The real trick, however, is that even bits that might, in a lesser film, feel like stunt-casting here exist in true service to the story. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has rarely balked at throwing in a winking cameo whenever the chance arises, but “No Way Home” is the rare MCU film to actually make them count, baking them straight into the story at hand.
Rosie Knight of Nerdist gave the film a 4 out of 5, praising it for being a “pure Spider-Man movie.” She called it “easily” the MCU’s best Spider-Man film, and amongst the best MCU movies overall. Like the other critics, she praised the action sequences we’ve come to expect from Marvel movies.
With great heart also comes great action. Stunt coordinators George Cottle and Jackson Spidell go all out here. This is some of the most exciting MCU action yet. It’s not the slick martial arts of Shang-Chi—which still represents a franchise high—but instead this is down and dirty brutality. There’s enough differentiation between fighting styles to keep things clean and entertaining, but when those punches hit, we feel them.
Mike Ryan of Uproxx was impressed with the way the film used the multiverse, saying that seeing all of those characters on the screen together evoked a nostalgic, emotional response. And while it’s not easy these days to make a superhero movie feel special, he said Spider-Man: No Way Home did just that.
Honestly, this movie kind of should be a mess. There are so many villains, played by great actors, who need attention here – keep in mind, even the Avengers movies all kind of focus on one main villain – that it’s pretty remarkable this movie feels so in control of itself. Now, it’s controlled chaos, but it’s still in control.
Spider-Man: No Way Home hits theaters Friday, December 17. And while you’re at it, take a look at what’s in store for the Marvel Cinematic Universe next year and beyond with our Upcoming Marvel Movie Release Dates. You can also start planning your next movie night with a peek at our 2022 Movie Release Schedule.
