(Spoilers for Spider-Man: No Way Home below)

Have you ever dreamed about what it would be like to see a Spider-Verse live action film as a kid? If so, you’re in luck, because with No Way Home you get just that. Directed by Jon Watts, No Way Home picks up right where Far From Home ended. J. Jonah Jameson broadcasts that Spider-Man murdered Mysterio and that Peter Parker is Spider-Man, so Spider-Man has to figure out how to deal with this new development. The first act of the movie focuses on this issue, as Peter Parker now has to live in a world where people know he is Spider-Man. He’s also dealing with the repercussions of the events of the previous film. This first act was strong and engaging, as it was the first time the new Spider-Man films focused on the toll being a superhero can take on you, your friends, and your family. However, the film quickly shifted from telling this new, interesting story to telling one focused on driving home nostalgia. While this was fun, the narrative didn’t dive deep enough into the new content for me to care about it. It also wrapped up the murder charge too quickly with a Daredevil (Charlie Cox) cameo. While this was cool, it felt rushed and unnecessary.

The latter 2 acts of the film focused mostly on nostalgia, as Peter asks Doctor Strange to cast a spell to have everybody forget he is Spider-Man that goes horribly wrong. Doc Oc, Green Goblin, Electro, Sandman, and the Lizard all make appearances as the villains, and the main focus quickly becomes catching them and sending them back. This section of the movie is fun, especially with the addition of Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire’s respective Spider-Men. Andrew Garfield in particular is a standout, and his development is well-executed. Unfortunately, the script is riddled with plot holes and tedious (and occasionally cringeworthy) jokes. It also loses some focus, which took me out of the film a bit. There were also numerous plot conveniences, such as Ned being able to cast a portal spell despite having no training and the villains being the exact same villains from the original films. My final criticism of the film is a big one. Aunt May gets killed by Green Goblin in the 2nd act of the film, and what was supposed to be a sad moment felt incredibly empty. This death is a key motivation for Tom Holland’s Spider-Man’s actions in the last act of the film, but Aunt May has been treated as a running joke for the entirety of the new films. Thus, the film’s attempt to make you care about her death did not work at all for me. Overall though, No Way Home is a fun, if flawed, nostalgia trip that features solid performances (particularly from Dafoe and Holland), good visual effects, and a great soundtrack.

8/10