SHROUDED IN MYSTERIO

MOVIE
Spider-Man: Far From Home
Tom Holland, Jake Gyllenhaal
Director Jon Watts
Review Ray Chan

After the cataclysmic repercussions of Avengers: Endgame, where does the Marvel Universe go to next?
    Fortunately for the studio, with a character such as the immature and somewhat naive teenage Spider-Man, it has the perfect vehicle to create a follow-up that offers much-needed relief, being lighter in tone and much less cosmos-shaking.
    Tom Holland dons his costume for another solo outing, and continues his story from Homecoming, albeit set five years later after the time-altering chaos from Endgame.
    As Peter Parker, he goes on a European class trip with his peers from Midtown High, and it could not have come at a better time for the affable adolescent, as he really needs to take a vacation from the duties of the spider-suit after his Avenging adventures.
    Peter just wants to enjoy being a kid in high school and pursue his crush on MJ (Zendaya) and maybe get to hang out with his best buddy Ned (Jacob Batalon).
    But inevitably, where Peter goes, danger beckons, and inexplicably, colossal elemental monsters (earth, wind, fire, air) begin appearing in Europe just as the kids arrive for their vacation.
    Even more curious is the emergence of a new super hero who claims he's from another world (Jake Gyllenhaal), who along with Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders), plan to attack this planetary threat head on, subsequently enlisting the help of the friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man, who finds that the late Tony Stark has entrusted him with a fancy gizmo that comes with its own sophisticated Suri voice tech.
    The fish-bowl-headed alien, alias Quentin Beck but dubbed Mysterio, is a slightly different take on the classic Spidey character, although there is a link to his modus operandi which comic fans are familiar with.
    Beck and Peter become strong allies and forge an on-screen relationship that is a delight to watch, but, quite literally, nothing is as it seems with the character, whose specialty is the use of illusions.
    Interestingly, there’s no appearance of characters such as the Shocker or the Scorpion, minor adversaries who were shown momentarily in Homecoming in scenes that appeared to foreshadow their imminent appearance in a sequel. But that works in the movie’s favour, as the spotlight focuses on the main antagonist without any unnecessary sidetracks.
    Jon Favreau also turns up and reprises his role as Tony Stark’s right hand man Happy Hogan, who has always had a fun, annoyed avuncular vibe with Peter.
    In a nice twist to the tale, that expands even further in this film towards unexpected yet enjoyable territory.
    MJ’s character, meanwhile, has developed further in this instalment, and Zendaya carries the role well. However, it’s Holland who shines brightest as he threads the needle between heartbreak and hilarity for the entire film.
    All in all, Spider-Man: Far From Home succeeds by avoiding a retread of the original, while also forging ahead with a fresh approach.
    It emulates the style of movies like DC’s Shazam!, packing itself with genuine laughs yet taking it seriously when it needs to, but also remaining faithful to the coming-of-age humour that made its predecessor so enjoyable.
    As the film winds down, audiences will be sitting back in their seats smiling from this less exacting, wonderfully entertaining ride.
    But then, in keeping with the smoke and mirrors theme, the clouds concealing the apparent happy ending dispel. Make sure you stay to the absolute end for two of the best and most exciting post-credit cliffhangers from the Marvel Cinematic Universe in quite some time.
    They provide the perfect cappers to a film that serves as a great bookend to the first era of the MCU, and a superb start of the next chapter.


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