SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME (2019) MOVIE NEWS & REVIEW

spider-man: far from home (2019) movie

Genre              |   Science Fiction 

Classification   |   M

Running time   |   130 minutes

Released         |   4 July 2019

cast

Tom Holland ... Peter Parker / Spider-Man
Jake Gyllenhaal ... Quentin Beck / Mysterio
Marisa Tomei ... May Parker
Zendaya ... Michelle Jones
Samuel L. Jackson ... Nick Fury
Cobie Smulders ... Maria Hill
​Jon Favreau ... Happy Hogan

director

Jon Watts

writer

​Steve Ditko ... (based on the Marvel comic book by)
Stan Lee ... (based on the Marvel comic book by)
Chris McKenna ... (screenplay by)
Erik Sommers ... (screenplay by)

cinematographer

​Matthew J. Lloyd

music

​Michael Giacchino

film editor

Sarah Finn
Jina Jay ... (UK)

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box office result

Worldwide               $​1,131,927,996

Australia                 $​25,999,041

North America        $​390,532,085

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the best dialogue

Peter Parker: Peter Parker here to pick up a passport please!

Peter Parker: I think Nick Fury just hijacked our summer vacation.

Mysterio: You don't want any part of this.

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related movies

SPDIER-MAN: HOMECOMING (2017)

SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME (2019) MOVIE IMAGES

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Posters

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SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME (2019) STORY SYNOPSIS

​Peter Parker's relaxing European vacation takes an unexpected turn when Nick Fury suddenly shows up in his hotel room. Parker soon finds himself donning the Spider-Man suit to help Fury stop the evil Mysterio from wreaking havoc across the continent.

SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME (2019) MOVIE REVIEW

Reviewed by Mark Geraghty   |   Review date 4 July 2019

Pop ​Movee Rating

Back in 2013 IRON MAN 3 rode a wave of post-AVENGERS goodwill. Robert Downey Jr. was the hottest Box Office property in movies and Marvel Studios was well down the path of asserting itself as the most successful entertainment production company in the world…

While SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME isn’t produced directly by Marvel, thanks to the historical cinematic rights sell-off the old Marvel comic book company undertook in 1998, there’s a significant amount of collaboration between Sony and the Disney-owned entity that ensures the most current version of the “Spider-Man” feature films don’t veer too far from the ongoing narrative of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

This is where the latest SPIDER-MAN movie bears a strong resemblance to IRON MAN 3…

FAR FROM HOME picks up not too long after the events of AVENGERS: ENDGAME. 

The world has been changed forever.

Like his prior attempt to overwhelm Earth in THE AVENGERS (2012), Thanos, post-ENDGAME, has been defeated, but its come at great cost to the planet’s “Mightiest Heroes”.

In IRON MAN 3, the psychological aftermath of Tony Stark’s heroics at the “Battle of New York” were brought into focus. Tony was no longer certain that Nick Fury’s “Avengers Initiative” was enough to protect the Earth. Conflicted, Stark let his guard down long enough to become vulnerable to a far more Earthly threat.

FAR FROM HOME places Tom Holland’s Peter Parker in the same quandary.

In the post-ENDGAME world, the spotlight has been thrust upon SPIDER-MAN and Peter is feeling the pressure of being not just AN “Avenger”, but THE “Avenger” destined to take over Tony Stark’s mantle as Earth’s Number One defender.

While IRON MAN 3 was quite dark in tone, FAR FROM HOME writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers (both responsible for the previous SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING) take a more juvenile approach to the story; making it less about the psychological pressure in dealing with the fate of the Universe and more about Peter trying to enjoy what little is left of his anonymity as he tries to harness the courage to express his feelings for Zendaya’s MJ on their High School Summer Vacation trip to Europe!

In IRON MAN 3, Tony was left vulnerable with the destruction of his Malibu residence; the epicentre of his vast research and engineering efforts to enhance his “Iron Man” suit and make the Earth safe. 

In FAR FROM HOME, Peter’s vulnerability comes from his lack of access to vast resources. He has his suit and that’s it. Sure, it continues to operate with the help of Stark Industries tech, but Parker is pretty much on his own; reliant more upon his “Peter tingle” enhanced senses than anything a technologically-superior suit can help him with.

Peter’s talked himself in a particular headspace:
He’s a teenager. 
What business does he have protecting the planet?

Arriving in Venice, and as if on cue, Parker is confronted with an “Avengers-size” threat that sees Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury emerge from the shadows in an attempt to enlist “Spider-Man” to help Jake Gyllenhaal’s “Mysterio” battle the new menace. Parker, however, isn’t having any of it. He wants to be left alone and focus on his attempt to woo MJ and win her affection.

Fury is not so easily dismissed…

Upon learning their entire school trip has been rerouted to Prague, Peter laments, “ I think Nick Fury just hijacked our summer vacation”.

To an extent, Jackson’s Fury also hijacks the movie.

This is not necessarily the best outcome for the story…

It’s always fun to see Jackson in Fury-mode, but his presence in FAR FROM HOME diverts attention from both Holland and Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio.

In the comic book mythology, Mysterio is one of Spider-Man’s greatest adversaries. In FAR FROM HOME, his importance is marginalised and there’s a twist to the character that delivers yet another parallel with IRON MAN 3.

The film’s balance is disrupted by the presence of both Fury and Mysterio and their competing agendas. 

For some reason, SPIDER-MAN films, on more than one occassion, have, over the years, suffered from writers cramming way too much into a two hour movie. Sam Raimi’s SPIDER-MAN 3 and THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN: RISE OF ELECTRO were both overstuffed with more characters and “world building” than either could handle. The results were jumbled and confusing, leaving audiences scratching their heads; not entirely sure what to make of them.

FAR FROM HOME is not quite on the level of either of those two films, but the film’s finale certainly presents some challenges as McKenna and Sommers attempt to “peel the onion”...

What prevents FAR FROM HOME becoming a complete jumble is the lightness of the performances Director Jon Watts manages to get from his cadre of young actors. Tom Holland, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon’s Ned, Angourie Rice’s Betty, Tony Revolori’s Flash and Reny Hii’s Brad all contribute to make the “High School” elements of the story the most enjoyable to watch. 

Holland and Zendaya continue to build on the chemistry they established in HOMECOMING, while Batalon and Rice are the film’s most unlikely, but funniest pairing.

Martin Starr also returns as the inept Teacher-guide Mr. Harrington, while J.B. Smoove reprises Mr. Bell, the character that featured in the three minute short “Peter Parker takes his driving test” from 2017.

Despite being an entertaining, popcorn extravaganza, FAR FROM HOME doesn’t capitalise on the post-ENDGAME narrative opportunities that crystalize Spider-Man’s place in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the same way the comic book version of the character has since his first appearance back in August 1962.

The film also fails to capitalise on the presence of Jake Gyllenhaal. Again, this is a Marvel movie villain feels like a one-note riff. He tries valiantly to milk the material for all he can, but the writing just isn’t up to the task.

Of course, there’s also the obligatory mid and post-credit sequences, but even these fall a little flat and, truth be told, the film’s last sequence will cause some consternation among some viewers that whole film has been one big, elaborate set-up…

Not unlike the reaction to the revelation of Ben Kingsley’s faux-Mandarin in IRON MAN 3, SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME is not quite the movie audiences might think or hope it pretends to be...

SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME MOVIE (2019) USEFUL LINKS

Spider-Man: Far From Home - Wikipedia
​Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019) - IMDb
​Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019) - Rotten Tomatoes

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