Rated PG-13 | 129 mins.
Directed by Jon Watts
Starring Tom Holland, Samuel L. Jackson, Zendaya, Cobie Smulders, Jon Favreau, J.B. Smoove, Jacob Batalon, Martin Starr, Marisa Tomei, Jake Gyllenhaal
Picking up right after the devastating events of Avengers: Endgame, we find a sad Spidey, aka Peter Parker, in desperate need of an extended vacation. For the past few years, he's been through some of the most intense situations and battles that are too much to handle for any young teenager, so it only makes sense that he wants to get away from it all. Especially since his "Spidey Sense" (or "Peter Tingle") isn't working as well as it used to. He goes as far as ghosting Nick Fury himself just to have time for himself. However, no one is allowed to ghost the head of S.H.I.E.L.D., so Peter finds himself in a little bit of trouble that leads to bigger trouble.
Before all of that, we learn that Peter and his classmates all disappeared when The Snap happened and returned what is now known as The Blip, five years later. This forces them to continue on in the grade they left as if nothing ever happened. This means that kids they previously knew as grade-schoolers are now their classmates and it makes for an intriguing story. Once summer break rolls around, Peter, Ned, MJ, and others take a trip to Europe to blow off some steam. Danger, of course, ensues.
Fury then finds Peter, gets understandably upset, and let's Peter know that S.H.I.E.L.D. needs him to help defeat Elementals, which are monsters made up of the four elements (duh). Their goal is to destroy the planet as told by Quentin Beck, aka Mysterio, brilliantly played by Gyllenhaal. Beck is from another reality in the multiverse and informs Peter that he entered this reality in order to stop the Elementals that destroyed his Earth and killed his family. More things happen after that, but I'm not here to spoil anything.
What I can say is that Far From Home is better than Homecoming and is easily a Top 5 MCU movie. They removed Peter from his home of New York, gave him an unfamiliar setting, and had him face these villains all on his own. No real team; just Peter. Not only that, but from beginning to end, the action sequences were breathtaking. They're probably the best I've seen (so far) in the MCU and are reason enough to watch Far From Home. Additionally, the jokes and humor were just funnier and more unforgettable than Homecoming. There was something to laugh at in every scene, so I truly appreciate the work that went into writing the script. You can just tell that a lot of meticulous hard work went into crafting Far From Home.
Tom Holland has solidified himself as the best live action version of Spider-Man and perfectly embodies everything the character is supposed to be. There was much more emotion and heart into this specific performance that you can't help but attach yourself to him as well as the ones he cares about. As mentioned earlier, Jake Gyllenhaal plays a great Mysterio and I can't imagine anyone else playing the role. He conveys the right amount of charm and is a true man of mystery when you watch this film. Will he be back in future MCU movies? I'm really hoping so.
Far From Home had the right ingredients to make a standout feature and it exceeds all expectations. All of the events unravel perfectly and there are so many twists and turns that it legitimately feels like you're on a roller coaster. It's going to be tough to top this one in a likely third installment in the far future, but for now we'll just have to see how the rest of Phase Four plays out. ★★★★½
★★★★★ Classic | ★★★★ Excellent | ★★★ Good | ★★ Fair | ★ Poor