Alex Wheeler Movie Ops

The MCU still won’t let go of Spider-Man. Sony has retained rights to the character, and his inclusion in the Disney-owned MCU is through a strange agreement between the companies. He appears in Disney-backed films, his stand-alone Sony-backed films are considered a part of the MCU, but all the villainous spinoffs like the Venom films aren’t part of the MCU. It leaves the stand-alone Spider-Man films in a strange place, beholden to two studios, a labyrinthine mythology, and a fan base that adores the scrappy crime fighter.
Tom Holland’s previous appearances as Spider-Man/Peter Parker have been the young, teenage iteration of the character. He was learning the ropes, being deferent to his more experienced superhero buddies, and getting into shenanigans with his best friend, Ned (Jacob Batalon), and girlfriend, MJ (Zendaya). But as Spider-Man and Holland have grown older, the character has come to the point where he must age up. The previous Spider-Man film set up the jump by forcing Peter to choose between his private life and his superhero responsibilities. He chose the latter, having Dr. Strange remove the memory of him from MJ and Ned for their protection.
As the film begins, those two head to MIT and have the college life the trio had dreamed of. Peter, meanwhile, has set up a dark and dirty bachelor pad, almost a parody of the run-down bunkers his tortured friends like Jon Bernthal’s Punisher uses to whittle their lives down to just their work. That’s how he’s dealing with the pain, filling his time fighting crime in New York City, increasing his collaboration with the police, and building his popularity. Spider-Man is adored. Peter Parker is forgotten. At the same time, his powers are changing. He’s begun producing webs of his own, which he finds disgusting. His strength has increased, but alarmingly, so has his aggression. He tries to regain control by building an inhibitor like Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) uses to suppress The Hulk.
This sets up the film’s personal dilemma for Peter: to live life or not. Does he suppress his powers and his life, or does he let loose and see what he can really do? The Spider-Man films have always leaned on personal stories to fill out his relatively low-stakes villains. And that’ where a lot of Brand New Day’s time is spent, drawing out the sparse plot to well over 2 hours. Problem is that this is a very familiar dilemma for superheroes, and now that we’re several decades into the deluge of superhero films, the subject has been well-explored. Despite its title, Brand New Day doesn’t actually bring new ideas, so all the time Peter spends mulling over the problem isn’t particularly engaging.
Also taking away from the fun is the separation from MJ and Ned. The chemistry between the trio has always been delightful, and we all know it’s real enough to have led to the real-life marriage of Holland and Zendaya. You notice just how key their spark is the few times group meet up, particularly when Peter and Zendaya are alone and she’s slowly relearning about Peter. MJ is always feisty, but Zendaya’s MJ has rough edges that come from self-confidence. She’ll tell you what she thinks, and she’s usually right. She’s honest enough to break Peter’s heart by admitting she doesn’t love him, even after learning everything they’ve done together, because without her memories, the feelings aren’t there. It’s a poignant moment, not because it’s a novel stance, but because Zendaya is able to say these things firmly but tenderly, standing her ground without closing herself off from him entirely.
Zendaya doesn’t have much screen time, but she does a lot with what she has. Sadie Sink as the film’s villain isn’t able to pull off anything as affecting. She’s shrouded in mystery for most of the film, an unknown presence controlling people telepathically, leaping from person to person as needed. Director Destin Daniel Cretton has fun with this trick, having a bevy of bit players and extras flail as she moves in and out of their heads as if being struck. The visual makes her movement clear and comes off a bit silly, which occasionally undercuts the horror of what’s occurring. But it’s not nearly as detrimental as the film’s withholding of info about Sink’s character. After a time, you find out she’s Jean Grey, the X-Men member whose psychic abilities are so powerful she frequently loses control. But even then you’re unsure about why she’s attacking the Department of Damage Control in NYC and what connection she shares with Spider-Man. Because of how long this information is withheld, the Spider-Man and Peter Park storylines feel disconnected, and it’s hard to shake the feeling that the film could’ve cut out about a half an hour of drag.
And yet this is still a Spider-Man film full of familiar and loveable characters to hold it together. Cretton, as well, is a seasoned pro, having directed Shang-Chi, and he brings the same lively energy to the action as that MCU installment contained. So it’s hard not to like Brand New Day, despite its faults.

Release: now in theaters
Director: Destin Daniel Cretton
Writer: Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers
Cast: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Sadie Sink, Jacob Batalon, Jon Bernthal, Florence Pugh, Tramell Tillman, Marisa Tomei, Mark Ruffalo