Spider-Man: Far from Home a fun, breezy European holiday

Tom Holland in Spider-Man: Far from Home. Image courtesy Columbia Pictures.

Spider-Man: Far from Home's biggest success is simply not dropping the ball following one of the biggest movies of all time. It's breezy and funny, pretty well written with an inspired villain for the young webslinger to tangle against. Yet it still feels slightly hollow in comparison to the gravitas of the film preceding it in the Marvel franchise and the excellent Spider-Man movie that came out just six months prior. Good is a fine thing for any movie to be – many movies aspire to meet that expectation – but Far from Home would rather be good than aspire for greatness.

Months after the events of Avengers: End Game, Far from Home shows what has happened to the world following the Hulk's un-snapping (called the blip in this movie). Peter Parker (Tom Holland) is forced to start the school year over again with his best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon), his crush MJ (Zendaya), Ned's new girlfriend Betty (Angourie Rice), the hunky Brad Davis (Remy Hii), and the disgustingly wealthy Flash Thompson (Tony Revolori). As they travel to Europe on a class trip, Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) recruits Peter to fight alongside the peculiar Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal) to stop the final Elemental monster from destroying the world. As Peter battles an unknown villain, he grapples with his feelings for MJ, the budding romance between Aunt May (Marisa Tomei) and Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau), and his doubts that he is qualified to replace Iron Man.

In terms of character development giving Spider-Man an epic case of self doubt makes sense. Despite battling Thanos and traveling through space, Spider-Man hasn't really proven himself against a large-scale villain. He's still just a kid from New York, more accustomed to fighting muggers and thieves and the parents of his crushes instead of world-destroying monsters. Add in the pressure of replacing Iron Man (and to a degree Captain America) and it produces a kid who really just wants to be on vacation and be honest with his crush. Spider-Man's battle is as much against the villains as it is against himself as he searches for his true self, and it's a narrative the film does well to mine to differentiate this Peter Parker from previous iterations.

 

Truth though is a hard thing to find in Far from Home. The film dedicates ample time to exploring the subject both in Peter's dive into his inner truth and the loss of a true reality for people to grab onto. Nothing in this movie is as it seems, and it becomes more and more difficult to parse out the real from the manufactured. As one character references as the film ends, the people will believe what they want them to believe because they control the narrative. Endless points about the modern state of media and the inability to believe the narrators can be tossed right in here, but for the film it's a pretty clever way of building suspense and giving Spider-Man a new sort of villain to fight. This also contrasts nicely to Spider-Man's inherent decency. His first instinct is to believe in sincerity; a villain that takes advantage of that is one capable of rocking Spider-Man's worldview.

The film's psychology is far more interesting than the action sequences. Far from Home doesn't get a lot of traction from the fight scenes with the Elementals, as the choreography is mundane and shot with little craft or care. The villain is a part of the issue on this – the villain isn't much of a fighter – which leaves few if any opportunities for Spider-Man to brawl. This should be the character's specialty, as the webs are designed to bring the fight to him and not as a projectile to launch like Thor's lightning or even Captain America's shield. The film went for big on its action sequences, but exchanging practicality for grandiosity does the character a disservice. The movie would be far more satisfying if Spider-Man could just punch a guy every now and then.

Admittedly the film's greatest failing is one that can't be helped – being released six months after Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. Far from Home just can't compare to the brilliance of Into the Spider-Verse, and it feels a bit lacking as a film because audiences have already seen a better, more interesting portrayal of this character. The comparison isn't completely off base – Far from Home references and gently mocks the premise for Into the Spider-Verse, which isn't a favorable look for the former film. Far from Home is a little underwhelming, which fits a franchise about trying to live up to expectations. 

 

There's still a lot to like about Far from Home. Portraying MJ as a smart, morbid, awkward teen is a smart reinvention for the character fitting both the actress and the tone of the film. The breezy tone is a nice shift following End Game, a nice treat after the three-hour marathon of the last Avengers movie. Far from Home is the walk-off double in the bottom of the ninth; it's not quite a home run, but it's more than enough to win the game.

Review: Four out of Five Stars

Click here to see the trailer.

 

Rating: PG-13

Run time: 129 minutes

Genre: Action

tl;dr

What Worked: Humor, Jake Gyllenhaal, Zendaya

What Fell Short: Action Sequences, Length

What To Watch As Well: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Spider-Man 2, Spider-Man: Homecoming

Sisters Brothers a ponderous, existential Western

Joaquin Phoenix and John C. Reilly in The Sisters Brothers. Image courtesy Annapurna Pictures.

There ain't much that moves fast in The Sisters Brothers. Aside from the rapid gunfights and the trigger fingers of its stars, the movie mostly takes its time to set up the action, drifting from scene to scene with a simple, logical flow. Sometimes the wandering begins to feel more like meandering, but The Sisters Brothers mostly takes fully advantage of the time it gives itself, telling a philosophically heavy story about family and dreams complete with violence and some wicked dark humor. 

 

John C. Reilly and Joaquin Phoenix star as the eponymous siblings/legendary Oregonian gunslingers Eli and Charlie, respectively. They work for the wealthy, powerful, and mysterious Commodore (Rutger Hauer), who sends them on a mission to kill chemist Hermann Kermit Warm (Riz Ahmed), a pseudo-prophet with ambitions of building paradise in Dallas. Assisting the Sisters is detective John Morris (Jake Gyllenhaal), who becomes entranced by Hermann's message, humility, and abundant love of humanity. Hermann and John travel to San Francisco in search for gold, although Eli and Charlie pursue them relentlessly. Along the way the Sisters must overcome nature, alcoholism, and a rival gang of bounty hunters under the orders of the powerful Mayfield (Rebecca Root).

Despite a fairly action packed and dramatic opening, The Sisters Brothers is far more about the adventure of the journey than the mission. It's an existential trip through the woods of Oregon and California, with discussions ranging from fathers and horses to changing the world one commune at a time. Director Jacques Audiard, who wrote the adaptation alongside Thomas Bidegain, effectively winds the clock and lets the characters stumble into profundity and self discovery. For a Western in which brains and blood splatter everywhere, The Sisters Brothers spends significant time pondering the meaning of the violence.

All of the malaise results in The Sisters Brothers suffering from a notable genre malady. Westerns aren't known for telling stories quickly; the preference is to mosey toward a conclusion, minimizing the urgency to keep the audience in the same mindset as the characters. There isn't much else to do in the woods besides talk and think. When done well it's a great, often engaging cinematic technique, especially for movies with ambition and a lot of characters to corral. Sisters Brothers lingers a little too long in the second act though, going from an easy pace to a crawl before the calamity that ensues in the final act. Given the plot's lack of direction, a little more urgency transitioning from act two to act three would have done wonders for the film.

The issue is less of a true fault than an annoyance, because even with the slowdown the movie offers more time spent with the eponymous siblings. Charlie and Eli have a relationship that's equal parts destructive and supportive, enabling their very worst behaviors but saving each other from ever being too far gone. Charlie's a dangerous drunk, but Eli is around to keep him upright and on the horse. Eli is lonely and lacks the social ease of his brother, but Charlie is around to keep an eye out for his older brother. Reilly and Phoenix have a brilliant rapport with each other that makes their squabbles and bonding believable, and The Sisters Brothers gives them ample room to grow their relationship. 

 

At the same time, the film uses their discussions to contrast their wants and desires. Westerns are often driven by ambition, spurred from the historical pursuit of gold, opportunity, and the allure of the American Dream. As a result of fulfilling their Manifest Destiny, Westerns often reward characters for their ambition, emphasizing the theoretically heroic nature of the quest in which the wilds must be tamed. But unbridled ambition is a dangerous thing, luring otherwise smart and logical people to pursue quixotic schemes while ignoring the dangers of the situation, as is the case with Sisters Brothers. Charlie, John Morris, and Hermann seek greatness at the cost of their personal being, not caring about the potential for disaster.

Then there's Eli. Even though he is considered the lesser Sisters, Eli has the simplest, most direct vision of his life. He seeks neither fame nor fortune, but instead just wants a life with a small farm, a shop, and his brother at his side. Sisters Brothers shows him the greatest favor, because he is generally sweet and kind even amid his murderous sprees. Eli does his job very, very well, but he views it as a means toward a peaceful life. Even toward the end when the dynamic flips and Eli gains control the film prevents him from going too far, because this film isn't about the big dreamers like Charlie, Hermann, or John. It's about folks like Eli, whose wildest dream is the simplest life.

Review: Four out of Five Stars

Click here to see the trailer.

Rating: R

Run time: 121 minutes

Genre: Western

tl;dr

What Worked: Story, Dialog, Themes, John C. Reilly, Riz Ahmed

What Fell Short: Pacing of the second act

What To As Well: High Plains Drifter, Dead Man