Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026)

When looking through the canon of movies in the MCU, which is now something I type out with a bit more resentment than affection, it's clear that Spider-Man remains a firm favourite. It's also pleasantly surprising to see that he's now the character to be featured in standalone movies (relatively speaking) that should remain at the top end of any ranked list of modern superhero movies.

After the events of the last movie, Peter Parker (Tom Holland) has to get used to a life of loneliness. He still pines for MJ (Zendaya) though. And misses his friendship with Ned (Jacob Batalon). Having fewer distractions does seem to help him fully grow into his "friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man" form though, but there's something within him that might be wanting to help him evolve even further. It feels dangerous, and Parker doesn't want to go out of control. That's why he heads along to get some advice from Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo). Meanwhile, a new villain is using people like puppets, which makes the city of New York an even more dangerous place, as if it wasn't dangerous enough with Frank Castle (Jon Bernthal) causing carnage as he delivers his own brand of justice.

Written by Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers, who have plenty of experience in the Spidey-verse, Spider-Man: Brand New Day feels like the most straightforward and well-plotted Marvel movie in years. While a couple of important plot points act as connections between the past and the future of the MCU, most people should be able to enjoy this without having to remember every detail of every past movie and TV show that Marvel have given us this century. You should be aware of the main characters who come in and out of the narrative, but none of the key players are minor figures in this long-running universe.

Director Destin Daniel Cretton, who previously helmed the very enjoyable Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings, seems very comfortable here, taking the opportunity to present numerous images and moments that could easily appear in any omnibus of Spidey comics. It's probably a bit lazy and tiresome to say that many scenes here feel as if they could have been ripped straight from the pages of the source material, but it's very true.

Holland has been growing better as an actor in line with the growth of his character, and this may well be his best Marvel performance yet. He also has the benefit of looking so young that it's even more hurtful to see his character being properly beaten down by various villains. Zendaya remains a great MJ, cool and considerate, and Batolon is still good fun as Ned. Ruffalo gets a couple of great scenes, in both Banner and Hulk form, Bernthal allows his Punisher to stay true to the essence of the character while also warily making a connection with someone he strongly suspects is just a bit too young and optimistic to deal with what the world will throw at them, and the plot creates reasons for both Florence Pugh and Marisa Tomei to be back in the picture. Liza Colón-Zayas is enjoyable in the role of Detective Jean DeWolff, Tramell Tillman continues to do well in roles that make the most of his ability to be charming and slightly unnerving, and there's very good work here from Sadie Sink, being introduced into the MCU in grand style. Other names to keep an eye/ear out for include Naomi Watts, Michael Mando, Keith David, and Marvin Jones III. 

Like most of these movies, it's a bit overlong. I'm also a bit irritated, as I have said many times before, when we get so many movies nowadays that can't just give viewers a standard and harsh villain. These are minor criticisms though. This works well enough as blockbuster entertainment. As a Spider-Man movie, specifically, it's right up there alongside the very best of them. I can't wait to rewatch it, and I may even allow my rating to move up after I've absorbed more of the details and treats packed in to so much of the runtime.

8/10

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Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse (2023)

I had quite the dilemma when I left the cinema after seeing the visual feast that is Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse. I wasn’t debating whether or not I liked it. I wasn’t bothered by the cliffhanger of an ending. I simply wondered whether or not I could immediately rank this as a superior film to the damn fine Spidey movie that preceded it. After wrestling with my conscience for a short while, I have decided that I can. Others may hold that ending against it. I won’t. In fact, the way the ending promises even more great Spider-Man adventures in this format means that I view it as a bonus. This is a perfect movie.

We’re back in the company of Miles Morales (Shameik Moore), but we only reconnect with Miles after an extended opening sequence that shows us the ongoing adventures of Spider-Gwen (Hailee Steinfeld). Viewers are brought up to speed about, or reminded of, the various incarnations of Spider-characters throughout the multiverse, and it isn’t long until Miles Morales is battling a foe (Spot, voiced by Jason Schwartzman) who puts multiple realities in serious danger. 

That’s all I want to say about the plot of the film, but I could write so much more here and still feel as if I was just scratching the surface. Let me just add that there is still a great energy to this material, a great blending of various animation styles, and characters depicted onscreen that many fans thought they would never see in a major movie.

Phil Lord and Christopher Miller are back on writing duties, alongside Dave Callaham, and they bring their patented brand of humour with heart, once again seeming to relish the chance to craft great moments for even the most minor Spider-figures. It also shows how to create a picture of great impending peril while keeping the focus on characters, real emotional turbulence, and natural and rewarding personal developments.

Directors Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K. Thompson may all be new to their roles in this particular movie series, but they all work in service to material that effortlessly (well . . . seemingly effortlessly) feels livelier, cooler, and more colourful and diverse than any other superhero movie we’ve seen so far. The only other film that comes close is, well, the previous Spider-Verse adventure.

It’s impossible to narrow down the praise for voice performances that are such a good fit for the animation, especially Moore and Steinfeld being so perfect in the lead roles, so I will just reel off the many names of the core figures: Jake Johnson (another welcome returning player), Oscar Isaac, Daniel Kaluuya, Karan Soni, Brian Tyree Henry, Luna Lauren Velez, Shea Whigham, Issa Rae, as well as some live-action incarnations, shown in archive footage very familiar to us Spidey fans. 

As already mentioned, the ending didn’t bother me, but I know some will be frustrated by the idea of another superhero film ending on a note that leads in to whatever the next instalment is due to deliver. I relish the potential ahead, because this movie series keeps delivering on that potential, and far beyond it. Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse crashes on to screens as one of the best ever superhero movies, one of the best ever animated movies, and simply one of the best ever movies, period. And to think . . . I didn’t ever seriously consider that anything would be able to supercede the first film. 

10/10

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Ani-MAY-tion: Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse (2018)

Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse is the best Spider-Man movie made, to date. That's not to say that some of the others don't come close, or to call this perfect. It just captures the spirit of the character, and the comic-book style, better than anything else put onscreen so far, helped in no small way by the stylistic choices made, and a fantastic voice cast.

Shameik Moore plays Miles Morales, a teenager who finds his life becoming a bit more problematic when he's bitten by a spider and turned into Spider-Man. It's confusing because, in the universe that Miles inhabits, there is already a Spider-Man (Chris Pine). And then another Spider-Man (Jake Johnson) turns up. And then quite a few other incarnations of the character also turn up: Spider-Gwen (Hailee Steinfeld), Spider-Man Noir (Nicolas Cage), Peni Parker (Kimiko Glenn), and Spider-Ham (John Mulaney).

Taking a cue from the character of Morales, this is a movie infused with the energy and colour of well-made street art. It has a sense of anarchy art times, and yet remains surprisingly on point when it comes to the kind of lesson that we're used to seeing delivered by a Spider-Man film. It's loud and vibrant for a lot of the runtime. It also takes some time to allow Morales to try sorting through his own muddle of thoughts as he figures out how best to adapt to his potential new life.

Directors Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman do a great job with the script, co-written by Rothman and Phil Lord. There's a reason for the events onscreen (a device being fired up by the main villain, Kingpin) and everything is balanced out perfectly. You get plenty of moments to make you laugh, plenty of fun action sequences, and a plot that actually makes sense and builds towards the sort of spectacular finale you get from any standard superhero movie, despite this feeling far removed from standard superhero movies in a number of ways.

The voice cast are absolutely superb, across the board. As well as those mentioned, you also have great work from Brian Tyree Henry (the father of Miles), Mahershala Ali (a cool uncle that Miles looks up to), Liev Schreiber (Kingpin), Kathryn Hahn (a scientist working for Kingpin), Zoë Kravitz, and Lily Tomlin.

The only thing holding this back from being a perfect movie is the fact that it's sometimes a little bit TOO loud and busy in scenes that have your eyes darting around to try and take in every single detail. And most scenes have plenty of details that will make this a treat to rewatch again and again.

Who would have thought that, while attempting to tell various Peter Parker adventures again and again, the secret to making the most satisfying Spider-Man movie to date would involve putting Miles Morales front and centre? Actually . . . a lot of Miles Morales fans have been saying it for years. It's good to see that others can now see how right they were.

9/10

You can buy the movie here.
Americans can buy it here.