It’s almost always an event when a new Marvel movie comes to theaters, but there was something about Spider-Man: Brand New Day that felt particularly grand. Whether it was the new creative team or the more grounded approach to superhero storytelling, anticipation felt as big as it’s ever been for the web-slinger, which eventually led to the biggest weekend of all time at the domestic box office. With millions around the world flooding sold-out theaters, they were luckily treated to as good as quality can get in the superhero genre.

Taking place four years after the events of No Way Home, Spider-Man: Brand New Day follows a lonely Peter Parker as he continues to stop crime in New York City as the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. Attempting to remove himself from his past, a powerful new foe and strange new powers force Peter to reconcile with who he is and what kind of person he wants to be.

The first three Tom Holland Spider-Man films, while successful in their own rights, act more like an origin rather than a one-to-one adaptation of the character, which allows Spider-Man: Brand New Day to prosper. With all the set-up out of the way, the fourth film in the series finally delivers a grounded, tried-and-true Spider-Man story stripped straight from the comic run. Director Destin Daniel Cretton beautifully captures the action and heart of Spider-Man, littered with dynamic web-slinging sequences and deep dives into what makes Spider-Man who he is. With the film limited to a single city, it allows for a more in-depth look at the characters while still finding moments of grandeur. From New York City feeling like a character to the intimate, human moments, no film in the Spider-Man franchise has felt more faithful to the source material in live action since the Raimi trilogy.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day isn’t just a movie for Spider-Man fans. It still retains the signature MCU humor and worldbuilding that created millions of fans throughout the past 20 years. The banter between Peter and The Punisher(Jon Bernthal) in particular gives the film some of its strongest comedic moments, with their contrasting characteristics bringing much-needed levity during the intense action sequences. Not only does the film combine characters from the Netflix Marvel projects, but it also introduces new characters who are likely to play a pivotal role in the MCU going forward. Introducing a slew of old and new characters into one film could’ve easily made the film a jumbled mess, but screenwriters Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers find the perfect ways to implement them into the story organically.

It continues to be a topic of debate who the best Spider-Man is, but after Spider-Man: Brand New Day, it’s become harder and harder to argue against Tom Holland. Performing many of his own stunts, Holland’s passion for the character is seen in every frame, whether he’s fighting dozens of villains or soaking in his emotions. More than his previous films, Brand New Day finds Peter fighting a mental battle, and Holland captures the character’s sadness with such beauty and empathy that it’s impossible not to get wrapped up in it. Although he retains some of the character’s childish charms, Tom Holland’s first performance as an adult Peter Parker ranks as his best performance as the superhero so far.

Telling sympathetic stories within superheroes is often a difficult task, but Spider-Man: Brand New Day succeeds by giving the characters real-world problems. The film takes a similar route with its characters as Thunderbolts* did this past year, using depression and loneliness as a physical and mental challenge for both the heroes and villains. Sadie Sink’s turn as the mysterious villain could’ve easily been portrayed as one-dimensional, but she finds excellent moments of empathy in both the loud and the quiet. A hero versus villain story is always more interesting when the characters share elements of common ground, which is exactly what this film offers, leading to some of the strongest emotional moments in all of the MCU as they both learn to overcome their inner turmoil. The MCU is mostly known for its universe-building and fun character moments, but what makes Spider-Man: Brand New Day feel so special is how much the story and themes stand out.

With the MCU releasing fewer and fewer projects as the years go by, it leaves a lot of pressure for every project to succeed. While Spider-Man: Brand New Day overall excels in telling a great story, there were times when the film felt weighed down by its universe. Acting as a pseudo-epilogue to Spider-Man: No Way Home while also setting up the future of the MCU, the film sometimes felt less like a singular story, which made some emotional moments hit less than they otherwise would’ve.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is more than worthy of holding the record for biggest opening day of all time, telling a faithful Spider-Man story that is equally compelling in the action and character moments. Following No Way Home is no easy feat, and this film took the best possible route in terms of where to take the character. If it takes another five years to get another Spider-Man movie, I would have no problem as long as Tom Holland and his creative team are willing to create a project of the same quality as this.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is now playing in theaters nationwide.

Rating: 8/10

Oscar Prospects:

Best Visual Effects