Skip to main content

Spider-Man: Brand New Day | Review


 2026 | PG-13 | 145 mins | Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton

It has been five years since the last Spider-Man movie hit theaters. Spider-Man: No Way Home was one of the biggest post pandemic movies and was able to capitalize on bringing together all three live action Spider-Man actors. After taking some time off, Spider-Man is back with a new director and a new look at not just the superhero but Peter Parker himself.

Picking up right where the last movie left off, everyone has not only forgotten that Peter Parker is Spider-Man, but everyone also has forgotten Peter Parker altogether. Now, living on his own and mostly keeping to himself Peter tries to live a life without his aunt, his best friend and the love of his life. Continuing with his duties as Spider-Man, he has been collaborating with the local police to help track down any villains that try to destroy the city. He still keeps tabs on Ned and MJ as they are now attending MIT and living their life post-Peter Parker.

A new threat makes it's way into the city, and it is something that Peter has never dealt with before. This new threat can take over the body of anyone that it wants to making it even harder for Peter to take them down. While this new threat emerges, Peter deals with his own problems as his body starts to change. His spider side is starting to take over his human side causing some side effects that make him angrier, more violent and sometimes out of control. It will take Peter everything that he's got to try and fix his own problems while also defeating this new threat to the city that he loves.

Brand New Day is the first of the MCU Spider-Man movies that mostly focuses on Peter and his own personal journey. The other movies have a little too much involvement from Tony Stark, Happy Hogan, and previous Spider-Man heroes and villains. That's not to say that this movie doesn't feature other characters and tries to expand the MCU, but its focus is set on Peter and how he must deal with being alone for the first time in his life. This adds more depth to Peter, and it finally gives him time to shine and not feel like he is being overshadowed by other characters.

Director Destin Daniel Cretton does a great job behind the camera. He has a great flair when it comes to directing the character of Spider-Man. Watching the character swing around the city and web sling from building to building has never felt more immersive. The cinematography during these scenes is some of the best in any Spider-Man movie and it really makes the audience feel closer to the character.

The rest of the visuals throughout are mostly solid. At times there is some questionable CGI, just like there is in all of these movies. Thankfully, it looks better more often than it looks wonky. There are some fantastic action set pieces mixed in with some good-looking fight choreography. In the beginning of the movie, Peter is shown fighting and saving the city from a variety of different villains. The character designs look great with most of these villains looking just like they do in the comics. 

After playing the character seven times already, this may very well be Tom Holland's best performance so far. Holland dives deeper into the character than he's done before and this bodes well as the story requires more from him than in previous movies. His chemistry with the rest of the cast is top notch. Without much spoiling, the scenes Holland shares with Zendaya are extremely well done. Obviously, they have a lot of chemistry given that they are a real-life couple, but with MJ having her memory erased it adds a new dynamic to the characters that makes everything feel fresh.

Jacob Batalon returns as Ned, and he is as good as ever. The movie allows him to be even funnier than he typically is and seeing Batalon in scenes with both Holland and Zendaya makes for a great trio. As has been revealed in the trailers there are some other heroes that make appearances. Jon Bernthal returns as Frank Castle and the story utilizes him quite well despite being an R-rated character in a PG-13 movie. Mark Ruffalo is back once again as Bruce Banner. While he isn't given as much to do, he does well with the time he is given. Sadie Sink adds a new element to the storyline once she is brought into the picture. Her character must remain a mystery, but she is a nice surprise and is a great addition to the cast.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is a top tier Spider-Man movie. It manages to walk a fine line between focusing on Peter Parker but also expanding the MCU without overshadowing Peter's personal journey. The action sequences are a lot of fun, and the character interactions make for some of the best moments of the movie.

Grade: A- 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Swapped (2026) | Review

  2026 | PG | 102 mins. | Directed by Nathan Greno Swapped is the latest in what seems to be a never-ending cycle of animated talking animal movies. With the success of Zootopia 2 last year and recent movies like Hoppers and Animal Farm also getting into the mix, how does Swapped separate itself from the pack? On paper, it looks like just another generic animal movie with a heavy-handed lesson that the characters must learn and then everyone feels good in the end. Thankfully, Swapped stands on its own and separates itself by being creative with its character designs as well as taking big chances in its plot point. Throughout the movie we follow a small woodland creature named Ollie (Michael B. Jordan). When he is younger, he befriends a young bird, called a Javan, that he shows how to eat the food of his species. After doing so the bird invites the rest of her flock to come and try this food, which makes things difficult for Ollie and his family. Ollie's species, called Pookoos, ha...
Post a Comment
Full Review »

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie | Review

  2026 | PG | 98 mins. | Directed by Aaron Horvath, Michael Jelenic, Pierre Leduc After striking out in the 90s with a live action attempt at the character, Universal and Illumination finally struck gold with Mario and his pals in the 2023 smash hit The Super Mario Bros. Movie. The movie went on to gross over $1.3 billion at the box office and was the second highest grossing movie of 2023. It was inevitable based on well the movie did that a sequel would be right around the corner. Now in 2026 The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is hitting theaters with a bigger story and even more characters.  When Princess Rosalina (Brie Larson) is kidnapped by the son of Bowser (Jack Black), Bowser Jr. (Benny Safdie), it is up to Mario (Chris Pratt) and the gang to try and save her. Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy) and Toad (Keegan-Michael Key) set out on their own journey to try and find where she is being kept. Meanwhile, Mario and Luigi (Charlie Day) stay back to help protect the Mushroom Kingd...
Post a Comment
Full Review »

Toy Story 5 | Review

  2026 | PG | 102 mins. | Directed by McKenna Harris and Andrew Stanton For over 30 years the Toy Story  series has remained one of the most consistent franchises. The original movie was the first computer animated film and has gone on to be remembered as one of the greatest animated movies of all time. After spawning three sequels, the franchise has gone on to become a cultural phenomenon. Now with Toy Story 5 , the toys are back once again and this time they are taking on a new foe that is putting their jobs in jeopardy. Buzz, Jessie and the gang have their hands full when their owner, Bonnie, has a problem making friends. While Bonnie still loves playing with toys and likes to be imaginative and creative, the kids in her neighborhood and in her dance class only want to do one thing, play with their tablets. Bonnie and her parents are unsure of how to get other kids to want to play with her so the parents end up getting Bonnie her own tablet so she can hopefully interact wit...
Post a Comment
Full Review »

The Mandalorian and Grogu | Review

  2026 | PG-13 | 132 mins. | Directed by Jon Favreau It's been seven years since the last time a Star Wars movie hit the big screen. After The Rise of Skywalker premiered in 2019 and was met with lukewarm reception, Disney decided to shift their focus for Star Wars. Over the last seven years the franchise has seen several series make their way to Disney+. These series have allowed Disney to expand the universe and create new stories within the world. The first series, and arguably one of the best, to hit Disney+ was The Mandalorian. Fan and critic reception has been mostly positive for the three seasons of the show. After toying with a fourth season, Disney decided to scrap the idea and do a new Mandalorian movie and return Star Wars to the big screen. With The Mandalorian and Grogu , the movie follows Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) and Grogu on a new adventure. Now working for Colonel Ward (Sigourney Weaver) and the New Republic, Mando and Grogu are hired by the Hutt family to track d...
Post a Comment
Full Review »