I have been a fan of this installment of Spider-Man. Tom Holland has proven to be a great choice for this character, being wholesome and earnest. Shout-out to one of my many Hollywood crushes, Andrew Garfield, because I loved his Spidey too. His movies are too glossed over and received unnecessary hate. I thought they were great. Anyways, back to the current Spidey…
SPOILERS IF YOU ARE NOT CAUGHT UP OR HAVEN’T SEEN THE LATEST.
Ya’ll, I cannot keep track of all these Marvel movies. I fully lost track of these Spider-Man movies. I’d convinced myself Brand New Day was the 3rd of the series, but it’s the 4th. I’ve seen them all, but they’re all jumbled in my brain at this point. I remember the plot lines of them, yet somehow made myself believe Spider-Man trio and Jake Gyllenhaal were all in the same movie. Twas not.
There were definitely some gaps in my brain. Even still, I think you can catch on pretty well even if you don’t remember or haven’t seen the previous ones.
We left No Way Home with Peter asking for his loved ones to be wiped from their memory of him. Hoping for them to have a safer life without him after the fate of his beloved Aunt Mae. In Brand New Day, Peter is busying himself as Spider-Man, even to his physical detriment, as a distraction from his loneliness. When he stumbles on his old BFF Ned, Peter follows him back to his place and sees the new life of the old friends and the love he chose to let go. Something in Spidey’s makeup changes when the weight of his sadness and anger kicks in.
I appreciated this storyline in that I think it shows how being isolated can impact your day-to-day. And how repressing your emotions will always ultimately come out to the surface one way or another. Even when we think we’re doing it for the greater good, it will ultimately take a toll. I found that was showcased really well throughout the movie.
The main “villain” arc was okay. I’m a fan of Sadie Sink. She was a great addition in Stranger Things, and I think she will be a great addition to the Marvel universe. My biggest gripe with this storyline was that it was a bit too obvious. Not so much the reveal of who she was, rather the storyline of how things were going to play out. I don’t want to spoil that aspect of the movie. I’ll say, it was a tad underwhelming. Yet, I am curious to know what’s next…
The Punisher steps into this movie as Spidey’s sidekick, and they work well together. A rash, violent, bit off the rocker Punisher really plays off of the do-gooder, responsible Spidey. They have great banter, and ultimately a lot of respect for each other.
I loved Mark Ruffalo. This is a hot take, because I’m so not excited about Doomsday. I have no interest in seeing Robert Downey Jr. again, and I was even more irked to see Chris Evans return. Obviously, I don’t know the specifics, and I can hope it’ll be an interesting storyline… I just wish they’d let the ‘next gen’, ‘new school’, whatever you wanna call it, lead the charge. If it’s a money grab or if it’s trying to get people interested again, then I think it’s time to call it on these movies. Repeating over and over is tiring. On the flip side, I was always upset Ruffalo never got a solo Hulk movie, so I was more than happy to see him in this movie. He contributed to the story, but didn’t outshine or take away from Spidey. If anything, I woulda liked a lil more.
I don’t know that the overall story was as strong as the last two (movies two and three). I honestly barely remember the first. But I still really enjoyed Brand New Day. This installment showed Spider-Man a bit more grown, yet with the same wholesomeness I love. It’s a movie I would happily watch again.
I am curious how many more there are going to be of this installment. Going back to the previous topic… I love Tom Holland in the role. I’ve seen him mention that he wants to mentor the next gen, and if that is bringing Miles Morales, I’m in. Otherwise, for him and all these other actors, there is always a time to move and close the chapter.
Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ✨
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