Cast: Tom Holland, Jake Gyllenhaal, Samuel L Jackson, Jon Favreau, Zendaya, Marissa Tomei, Jacob Batalon, Angourie Rice
Director: Jon Watts
Marvel recently announced an animated series based on the What If... comic line. These are opportunities for writers to run riot without worrying about continuity or how to fit things in the larger scheme of things. Like, what if the Hammer was Loki’s weapon? What if Tony Stark dealt in drugs instead of weapons? What if Thanos believed in ahimsa? That kind of thing. Far From Home seemed to be a movie that keeps asking the question What if…
What if the story was stronger? The earlier Spider-Man movie – Homecoming – came as a breath of fresh air, despite our hero having an epic prologue in Civil War. Here they didn’t exactly have a story. They decided to string together a set of sequences around Europe while having heavy call-outs to what happened in Endgame. Of course, now that Zendaya was the love interest, that would also play a good part. A lot of okay parts adding up to a not-okay sum.
What if Jake Gyllenhaal had a better role? Make no mistake, Gyllenhaal is fantastic. But it was always a case of the character trying to catch up with the performer. And falling short. At some places, the dialogues makes him look silly. I really couldn’t take another Green Goblin, but Mysterio? Now with the news going on that Spider-Man is going away from the MCU, it would have been better to give Gyllenhaal a different role. A brother-figure to Spider-Man as opposed to Tony Stark’s father-figure?
What if Zendaya wasn’t in the movie? That would be bad news indeed. She brings a sense of quirkiness that was missing, a kick-ass heroine in her own right. Well, at least that was what the set up was for. And they completely ruined it. By the end she turns out to be the meek girl who longs for a kiss from the hero. Way to go, Marvel!
What if Jacob Batalon stopped stealing the Spider-Man movies? That would be a big mistake. As Peter Parker’s best friend Ned, Batalon is the audience surrogate. Numbers will tell that we are all much likelier to get close to a superhero than be one. After stealing the show on his own in Homecoming, here he teams up with classmate Betty (Rice) in one of the most hilarious and perfect relationships on screen. Also, Night Monkey is a cool superhero name!
What if the special effects were less effects-y? The plot allows for the visual team to go bonkers. And it is not jarring, mind you. But when the wind blowing over tulips make a much better shot than all that the illusion tech stuff, you realise the special effects don't stand ou. Or was that also CGI? I miss the times where cinematographers would wake up before dawn for days to catch one perfect shot of the sun coming up.
What if Spider-Man was not part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe? That’s the million-dollar question, isn’t it? I still rank Raimi’s first two movies to be the best of the standalone Spider-Man films. But I loved seeing him in the shared universe. We are not teenagers anymore, but isn’t it strange that a teenager is still the most relatable superhero?
Stan Lee cameo: The universe we live in does not have Stan anymore. I would have hated to see him have a posthumous cameo. Right call, Sony and Marvel.
Post-credits scene: The first one is stunning. A beloved character from earlier movies makes an entrance. Now, continuity goes for a toss! The last one is intriguing. Where the hell is Nick Fury?
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