What Critics Are Saying About the New Spider-Man

Reviews are strong for move and star Tom Holland
By Newser Editors,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 5, 2019 11:06 AM CDT

The new Spider-Man is out, and both the movie (Far From Home) and its star, Brit Tom Holland, are getting strong reviews. (That's also true for Jake Gyllenhaal as Mysterio.) The premise is that Peter Parker goes to Europe with friends, hoping to get a vacation from his superhero responsibilities, especially after what happened in Avengers: Endgame. It doesn't quite work out that way. The movie has a strong 92% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and audiences like it even more, at 97%. Review samples:

  • Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: Sure, it lapses into "silliness and CGI overkill," but Travers forgives. "It’s Holland who keeps us invested," he writes. "At 23, he’s the ideal choice to play a teen who’s lost five years of maturity. His wide-eyed innocence is genuine and infectious."

  • Katie Walsh, Tribune News Service: It goes beyond being an action movie. "This is a journey about Peter surrendering to his destiny, leaning in to what it means to be a 'superhero' in the wake of the Avengers," she writes. "If Into the Spider-Verse explored all the different ways to be Spider-Man, Far from Home dives into the heart of what it means to be hero, a responsibility that isn't always easy. Good thing Spidey is one of the best."
  • Christy Lemire, RogerEbert.com: She's not as enamored of the movie. It "works best as a high school comedy ... with teens figuring out in adorably awkward fashion who they are and how to express what they feel within this brave new world." But this is a superhero flick, after all, and thus it must also function as a "massive action extravaganza, and here’s where the film is at its weakest."
  • Kerry Lengel, Arizona Republic: The setup will feel familiar, and how it unfolds might even be predictable, writes Lengel. "And yet Far From Home ends up being one of the more entertaining and satisfying installments in Marvel’s never-ending story cycle, thanks to a tautly constructed narrative that packs in plenty of fan service without getting overly complicated."
(More movie review stories.)

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