SPIDER-MAN : FAR FROM HOME - Tuesday 9th July 2019.

I saw 'SPIDER-MAN : FAR FROM HOME' earlier this week, which is classified with an 'M' rating. Here this twenty third film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is a direct sequel to 2017's 'Spider-Man : Homecoming' and follows on shortly after the events of 'Avengers : Endgame'. Directed once again by Jon Watts this film had a budget of US$160M, compared to 'Homecoming' which had a budget of US$175M and grossed worldwide US$880M, and was released in the US last week too, one day after its Australian release earlier last week on Monday 1st July. Off the back of that US$160M production budget the film has so far grossed US$622M within its first ten days since release making it the sixth highest grossing film of 2019 to date, and has been positively Reviewed.

The film opens up with a black sedan vehicle weaving through the wreckage of the former community of Ixtenco, in Mexico, where the locals are reported to have seen a violent sand storm whip up, with a face. Out of the car step Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) just as the sand storm whips up again threatening to flatten what is left of the already destroyed town. Appearing in a flash of green light Quentin Beck (Jake Gyllenhaal) arrives to destroy the seemingly otherworldly entity, which we learn subsequently is the Earth Elemental.

Meanwhile, back in New York City, the Midtown School of Science and Technology restarts its new academic year to welcome back the students who were among those brought back to life in 'the Blip' (aka 'the Snap!') some eight months ago. The school organises a two-week summer science field trip to Europe, where Peter Parker (Tom Holland), still distraught over the death of his friend and mentor Tony Stark, plans to confess his emerging feelings towards classmate MJ (Zendaya) and stay well clear of any acts of heroism. A plan which he talks over with his good friend Ned Leeds (Jacob Batalon) on the eve of their departure. At a fundraiser for the homeless coordinated by his Aunt May (Marisa Tomei) Parker is forewarned by Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau) that Nick Fury will contact him, but Parker chooses to ignore the call when he calls through much to Happy's chagrin. Parker leaves after being overwhelmed by the gathered media by questions about Stark, the Avengers, and whether Spider-Man is now going to step up and lead the Avengers.

Parker and his friends board the flight to Venice. Shortly after arriving, Venice is attacked by the Water Elemental, which proceeds to wreak havoc on the city causing Parker's fellow classmates to flee for their lives. Beck arrives and destroys the creature, while Parker attempts to help. Afterwards Fury meets with Parker and gives him Stark's glasses, which were intended for his successor. The glasses are equipped with the artificial intelligence 'E.D.I.T.H.' (Even Dead I'm Top of the Heap), which can access all of the Stark Industries databases and commands a large orbital weapons cache.

At a subsequent meeting in an underground operations centre, Beck and Parker come face to face for the first time. Beck claims that these 'Elementals' - four extradimensional humanoids who became immortals with power over natural forces and who ruled a kingdom on Earth before the rise of the original Atlantis, which are Earth, Water, Fire and the Wind all killed his family and that he hails from a different reality known as Earth-833, one among many in the Multiverse. Upon hearing this, Parker begins to hypothesise about the existence of this Multiverse, but is quickly dismissed by Fury.

Fury states that Parker's talents are needed in Prague and for him to turn his back on his schoolmates and live up to the responsibilities that have been thrust upon him, and to continue with Tony Stark's legacy. However, Parker flatly rejects Fury's call to action, opting instead to rejoin his classmates. Fury covertly redirects the school's trip itinerary to Prague, where the Fire Elemental is anticipated to strike. Roger Harrington (Martin Starr) one of the school teachers accompanying the kids, organises tickets for the whole class to attend the famed Prague Opera much to everyone's disliking, instead of attending a massive carnival that same night. The Fire Elemental appears at the carnival where MJ and Ned, with his new love interest and fellow classmate Betty Brant (Angourie Rice) have snuck away from a night at the opera, to attend. Beck, who by now has coined the name 'Mysterio' by the world's ever present media, with Parker's help, destroys it, but not before the Fire Elemental was able to trash a few city blocks and the carnival show ground.

As a result of their success in overcoming the Elementals, Fury and Hill invite Parker and Beck to Berlin to discuss the formation of a new Superhero team. Over a drink in a bar somewhere in Prague later that evening, Parker considers Beck more worthy than he of being Stark's successor, a responsibility that he feels less than qualified to take on, and as such commands the E.D.I.T.H. glasses over to Beck as being a more suitable Superhero than he will ever be - after all, Parker is just your friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man and that's where he sees his calling right now.

After leaving the bar and having bequeathed the E.D.I.T.H. glasses to Beck, it is revealed that 'Mysterio' is in fact a former holographic-illusions specialist employed at Stark Industries who was fired by Tony Stark for his unstable manner. Beck now heads up a covert team of some two dozen disgruntled male and female ex-Stark employees all with specialist skills of some sort, and using advanced projector drones to simulate the Elemental attacks so that he can masquerade as a new bona fide Superhero.

After returning to his hotel, Parker plucks up the courage to ask MJ out for a late evening stroll before their rescheduled departure the next day. While Parker is digging deep to verbalise his true feelings for MJ, she interrupts him having deduced (sometime ago) that Parker is Spider-Man. Parker tries to deny this until she reveals a piece of debris she retrieved during the carnival battle which the pair quickly discover is a projector that presents a simulation of the Air Elemental, leading the two to deduce that Beck is a fraud. At this point and knowing that Beck cannot be trusted with the E.D.I.T.H. glasses, Parker comes clean over his alter-ego admitting to MJ that he is in fact Spider-Man. 

When preparing for another illusion master stroke, Beck discovers via street CCTV that MJ has evidence of his nefarious plans by way of the projector. Parker travels to Berlin and meets with Fury, only to realise that the version before him is an illusion created by Beck. Parker has to battle a multitude of lifelike illusions before Nick Fury apparently subdues Beck. Fury forces Parker to reveal anyone who has knowledge of the deception before being revealed as another illusion by which time Parker has already mentioned Ned's and MJ's names.

While battling Beck through various illusions Spider-Man is ultimately hit by a speeding train, and although Parker survives, badly battered and bruised, he falls unconscious in a train car. He comes round locked up in a jail cell in the Netherlands. He breaks out easily enough and contacts Hogan who picks up Parker in a tulip field in a Stark Industries jet. Hogan flies Parker to London and during the journey Parker reveals how he was taken in by Beck and how he feels he betrayed the trust that Tony Stark had in him. Hogan tells Parker not to be so harsh on himself and that Stark was a heavily flawed human being too. On board the private jet, Hogan reveals a suit-manufacturing machine, which Parker uses to synthesise a new customised Spider-Man suit.

In London, Beck uses E.D.I.T.H. to manipulate his grandest and most destructive illusion yet, referring to it as an Avengers Event - a fusion of all four Elementals, using it as a mask to kill MJ and any others to whom she might have revealed his secret. Using a series of heavily fortified drones which he launches in unison from a satellite orbiting in space, he unleashes his illusion on Tower Bridge where MJ, Ned, Betty and the others students are riding on a bus. They narrowly escape but are pursued by a number of killer drones into the Tower of London where they hide out in the heavily guarded room housing the Crown Jewels. Meanwhile, Beck is in full control of the combined destructive force of several hundred killer drones creating his grand illusion all at his command.

Parker is able to break through the illusion, and in a face-off with Beck involving further illusions defeats Beck, who dies from misfired drone gunshot wounds. Parker puts on the reacquired E.D.I.T.H. glasses, and orders for the remaining drones to be immobilised, so saving MJ, Ned, Betty and Hogan from near certain death. With the death of Beck, one of his associates who controls the drones and projector effects from a computer located away at a safe distance, is seen downloading the files to a USB memory stick, closing his laptop and hurriedly exiting stage left.  

Parker returns to New York City and his relationship with MJ blossoms. In a mid-credits scene, reporter J. Jonah Jameson (J.K. Simmons) of The Daily Bugle appears on a giant outdoor television screen in a breaking news bulletin blaming Spider-Man for the Elementals' attacks and broadcasting doctored footage of the incident filmed and recorded by Beck, in which he incriminates Spider-Man for his death and reveals his true secret identity as Peter Parker. 

I enjoyed 'Spider-Man : Far From Home' and this is indeed a fitting end to Phase Three of the MCU with Peter Parker (and the world) still lamenting the loss of his close friend Tony Stark; his torn loyalties between his duties as a Superhero and new recruit to the Avengers ensemble and his fellow classmates; the realisation that with great power comes great responsibility; and ultimately his preparedness to step up to the plate. The film has a country hopping teenage road trip feel about it interlaced with all the touchstones of a Superhero movie including the emotion, the comedy and the larger than life action, all cemented together by a strong cast that sees Tom Holland now well and truly settled into the role and Jake Gyllenhaal relishing playing the good guy on the surface but turned bad, real bad, underneath, with still some surprises in store even after his death, just like Tony Stark. A worthy sequel to 'Homecoming', the first instalment in a post 'Endgame' world and a satisfactory conclusion to Phase Three. Rest assured that Spider-Man will return in a third instalment and some point in Phase Four of the new MCU. Catch it on the big screen while you can.

'Spider-Man : Far From Home' merits four claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard out of a possible five.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-