NEWS
“Spider-Man: Brand New Day” Review
Starring Tom Holland as Peter Parker/Spider-Man and Zendaya as MJ along with an extensive cast of other characters, “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” takes place years after the events of the previous film. After prioritizing being a hero over being a civilian and having his former friends re-enter his life, Peter suddenly starts undergoing a series of transformations, developing new powers, and enhancing existing powers beyond his ability to immediately control. Meanwhile, a mysterious psychic is roaming the city with an unknown goal and a particular interest in the superhuman law enforcement agency, the Department of Damage Control.
While unraveling the puzzle of this new figure and thwarting their villainy, Peter must reconcile his hero and personal lives. Having to adjust to a life mostly alone while watching his former friends live their lives, audiences easily feel the emotional turmoil he's going through. Alternating between his more reserved persona as Peter and his more lighthearted persona as Spider-Man, Holland as essentially two characters easily shines as both. Zendaya is still entertaining as the ever-cynical MJ, easily managing to play off Holland whenever they're in a scene together. Jacob Batalon as Ned gives a heartwarming, lighthearted performance that rounds out this trio of friends.
"Spider-Man: Brand New Day" continues to bring the action while delivering a lot of fun as well as deeper, complex themes. The visuals and enactments are especially notable in how the psychic displays their power, possessing people in a type of jumping sequence in order to get where they’re going. Many main and background characters play the psychic, shining the spotlight on many different performers. Their mannerisms change at a moment’s notice to fit their possessed state, making for a very intriguing series of performances.
As the fourth film in the “Spider Man” series, “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” still manages to be a great film, keeping audiences engaged and making sure the “Spider Man” franchise isn't going stale anytime soon. With emotional performances and an interesting story, the film is definitely worth a watch.
8/10
George Guise loves movies. He has lived in Davidson his whole life, graduating from Community School of Davidson in 2016. He earned a B.A. in Creative Writing from Queens University of Charlotte. While he often watches movies on a platform such as Amazon or Netflix, he really prefers seeing movies in the theater.
Editor's Note: George Guise is using JG7 for his reviews to try to minimize anyone confusing him with his father, the other George Guise.