Odd that it’s called “Brand New Day” when it’s so fixated on yesterday and tomorrow.
“Brand New Day” is set four years after the events of “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” Following the spell that erased memories, no one knows Peter Parker, but everyone in New York City is aware of, and loves, Spider-Man. The webslinger is popular with law enforcement and the public alike.
His personal life isn’t as good as his hero time, though, as he still misses his girlfriend MJ (Zendaya) and best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon). Because they have no memory, he just has to watch from afar. His overall life only gets more complicated when a new threat arises and his powers start to fluctuate.
“No Way Home” not only concluded the first MCU “Spider-Man” trilogy in an exciting, emotional way, it also set up a fantastic future for the webslinger. Peter Parker was alone, he no longer had access to Stark technology or the guidance of Aunt May. He was even without his friends.
He’d have to start from scratch, but it left the door open for new characters, fresh adventures and the introductions of more rogues from the gallery. “Brand New Day” offers a viewer a sliver of that. The rest of the movie is either spent going back to the well of the past or setting up the MCU’s future.
It felt like a prime opportunity to introduce new figures in Peter’s life. Maybe Gwen Stacy or Harry Osborn could be brought in. Instead it felt like the movie at times was going in reverse, going over a lot of ground with old characters in a way that came across as more than just tying up loose ends.
It doesn’t end there, either. The film also digs up the Hulk and the Punisher from previous MCU series to toss in and maximize the movie’s crossover ability. The inclusion of the former just feels like it’s there to show off some Hulk action and set up Bruce Banner’s status for “Avengers: Doomsday.”
His presence in the movie is little more than some fanservice for people who’ve been clamoring for Hulk smashing things. The Punisher, meanwhile, is a guy who lives in New York, so he’s thrown in to the mix because the movie is set in New York.
It’s not like his inclusion is entirely bad, Jon Bernthal is fine in the role and has some fun as an outlaw counterpart to Peter, but it also takes away from this movie really being a Spider-Man film. This applies to the new elements added as well.
A huge portion of this movie is spent revolving around another character, so much so that it almost becomes their movie. Not only does it take focus away from Peter’s story, there’s also the fact that the entire situation the character is in puts them in an antagonistic position, and it could all be resolved by a simple conversation with Spider-Man.
Now, it is true a review should cover what the film is, not what it should have been. To be transparent, while the film leaves plenty to be desired by what’s not on screen, it does offer plenty of material to a viewer. How is that material? It’s fine, but really stands out.
The buddy dynamic Spidey has with Punisher is fun at times, and an audience can sympathize with what Peter is going through in terms of not having fully moved on. Exploring the idea of how grief and longing linger in a person is good stuff, and the way it ties into how Peter’s powers fluctuate is a nice dynamic.
Yet it regularly feels underdeveloped or sidelined by the film retreading old ground in the series or connecting it to other MCU elements to set up for the fifth “Avengers” in December. There’s a sense that the movie never really lives or exists in the present. It ultimately creates a frustrating viewing experience.
It’s a flick that doesn’t quite earn its two-and-a-half-hour runtime, either. There’s really not that much narrative meat on the bones to explore. The bloated length more comes down to a few extra action set pieces, such as the moment involving the Hulk, than important storytelling.
It’s perfectly fine to have plenty of action for a thrill ride, but it still could be trimmed. Even “Spider-Man 2,” which shares some elements of this picture, came in nearly 15 minutes shorter. However, that’s certainly not to say the movie’s bombastic moments are bad.
There are quite a few entertaining sequences throughout. Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, the flick does create tense moments with how battles and heroic acts play out. But at the same time, it’s not like it’s anything really fresh. Keep in mind this is the ninth film to feature the character and the 12th overall to show the webslinger, and that’s not including animated series.
We’ve seen the character do all kinds of theatrical types of fighting and daring moves over the last 25 years. While moments of him taking down baddies with web and superior strength aren’t dull, they don’t blow a viewer away, either.
The film at least boasts strength in its acting. Tom Holland has come into his own as an actor and is entirely natural as Peter Parker, having played the character for a decade. He captures the character’s good nature, his sadness and overall, eternal optimism. Zendaya remains a good addition as the snarky and emotionally honest MJ, too.
“Brand New Day” doesn’t feel brand new. While there’s plenty of expositional MCU fodder and comic book movie action for fans to chomp on, the film in the grand scheme seems like a missed opportunity. The acting, action and some segments of the protagonist’s arc are, at the end of the day, fine. Yet none of it is in the upper echelon of the genre, either, and too much time is spent away from the main hero. 2.5 out of 5.
Photos courtesy Marvel Studios and Sony
