When Spider-Man: No Way Home ended, it left Peter Parker with arguably the loneliest ending in superhero cinema. The people he loved had forgotten him, his identity was erased from the world, and for the first time, he truly became the friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man we had always known from the comics.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day doesn’t waste that emotional foundation. Instead, it embraces it.
Four years later, Peter Parker is no longer the teenager trying to balance homework with superhero duties. He’s an adult, living alone in New York, dedicating every waking hour to protecting a city that adores Spider-Man while having absolutely no idea who the man beneath the mask is. It’s a darker, more mature direction, and thankfully, director Destin Daniel Cretton understands that this chapter shouldn’t try to outdo No Way Home. It simply needs to tell a good Spider-Man story.
And for the most part, it succeeds.
A Peter Parker Defined By Loneliness
One thing I appreciated almost immediately was how committed the film is to Peter’s isolation.
MJ and Ned have moved on with their lives, building futures Peter can only observe through social media. Aunt May is gone. Nobody remembers the sacrifices he made. Watching Peter continue doing the right thing despite receiving nothing in return reminded me why Spider-Man has always been Marvel’s most relatable hero.
There isn’t another live-action Spider-Man film where Peter has felt this emotionally vulnerable for such an extended period.
His internal struggle isn’t about saving the multiverse or becoming an Avenger. It’s simply about asking whether being Spider-Man is enough when the rest of your life has disappeared.
That emotional weight carries much of the film.
Destin Daniel Cretton Understands Spider-Man
If there is one department where Brand New Day unquestionably surpasses the Home trilogy, it’s the action.
Destin Daniel Cretton brings a completely different energy to Spider-Man’s movement. Every swing feels faster, more acrobatic and noticeably more “Spider-Man” than before. The fights have momentum, creativity and rhythm instead of relying purely on CGI spectacle.
Spider-Man doesn’t simply punch enemies.
He flips, dodges, improvises, sticks to walls, uses the environment and genuinely fights like the comic-book character many of us grew up reading.
It feels like a massive step up from the previous trilogy, and honestly, Cretton deserves enormous credit for making Spider-Man move like Spider-Man again.
The Heart Matters Just As Much
What surprised me most wasn’t the action.
It was how much time the film allows emotional moments to breathe.
Marvel films often rush dramatic scenes to get back to explosions or jokes, but Brand New Day isn’t afraid to slow down. There is one particular emotional sequence that genuinely hit home for me, and I’m glad the filmmakers chose to sit with Peter’s pain instead of immediately cutting away.
We’ve seen plenty of Spider-Man films built around spectacle.
This one remembers that Peter Parker’s greatest strength has never been his powers. It’s his humanity.
That balance between action and emotion is where the film finds its identity.
The Supporting Cast Delivers
Tom Holland once again proves why he’s still an excellent Peter Parker.
There’s a quiet maturity in his performance that naturally reflects the years since No Way Home. He’s less awkward teenager and more exhausted young adult trying to carry responsibilities that would crush almost anyone else.
Jon Bernthal’s Punisher was another pleasant surprise.
I initially wondered how Marvel would fit Frank Castle into a relatively mainstream Spider-Man film, but they found a balance I didn’t expect. He’s definitely toned down compared with some previous appearances, making him more family-friendly without losing the manic intensity that defines the character.
It works far better than I expected.
Then there’s Hulk.
Hulk is there.
Hulk smashes.
Sometimes that’s all you really need.
There are also a couple of enjoyable MCU cameos that should satisfy long-time fans without completely distracting from Peter’s own story.
Not Everything Lands
That said, Brand New Day isn’t without flaws.
The biggest issue is its runtime.
At two hours and 25 minutes, there are definitely stretches where the pacing begins to sag. Certain conversations and story beats linger longer than necessary, and I occasionally found myself wishing the film had been trimmed by around 15 or 20 minutes.
It’s never boring.
It’s simply longer than it needs to be.
I also wasn’t entirely convinced by some of the CGI.
Ironically, while the swinging choreography is probably the best we’ve seen from Holland’s Spider-Man, the visual effects occasionally struggle to keep up with its speed. During some of the faster action scenes, the CGI looks noticeably rougher than expected.
Comparing it with The Amazing Spider-Man films, particularly the first two Andrew Garfield outings, I honestly think those films still have the edge visually when it comes to the realism of Spider-Man’s movement.
A Soft Reboot In Everything But Name
One aspect that left me conflicted is just how disconnected this film feels from previous Spider-Man entries.
Yes, the ending of No Way Home naturally reset Peter’s life.
But Brand New Day almost feels like a soft reboot altogether.
Several important characters from earlier Spider-Man films barely receive acknowledgement, if any at all. Even some relationships that once defined Holland’s trilogy seem strangely absent from the conversation.
I understand the intention of giving Peter a clean slate.
Still, I couldn’t help feeling that parts of his past had been quietly left behind a little too easily.
Whether audiences see that as refreshing or disappointing will probably depend on what they wanted from this next chapter.
The Critics Mostly Agree
Looking at the wider critical response, my thoughts aren’t too far from the overall consensus.
The film currently holds an impressive 89% on Rotten Tomatoes, while earning a solid 70/100 on Metacritic, reflecting generally favourable reviews from critics.
Many praised Destin Daniel Cretton for bringing Spider-Man back to street level instead of relying on multiverse spectacle. Publications including Empire, The Independent, GamesRadar and Digital Spy all highlighted Tom Holland’s more mature performance and the film’s emotional sincerity.
Others were slightly more reserved.
The Guardian, Time Out and IndieWire argued that despite its stronger emotional core, the film still falls into familiar MCU habits and occasionally becomes overstuffed with ideas.
Honestly, I can understand both viewpoints.
Final Verdict
I walked into Spider-Man: Brand New Day wondering whether Marvel could justify another Spider-Man trilogy after No Way Home felt like such a natural conclusion.
I walked out believing they absolutely can.
No, it isn’t perfect.
The runtime could be tighter. Some CGI doesn’t quite match the quality of its ambitious action, and the soft reboot approach may leave some fans wishing for stronger connections to the earlier films.
But what ultimately won me over was something much simpler.
For the first time in a while, this felt like a Spider-Man film that genuinely remembered who Spider-Man is.
Not an Avenger.
Not a multiverse traveller.
Not the centrepiece of Marvel’s next crossover event.
Just a lonely young man trying to do the right thing because nobody else can.
And sometimes, that’s exactly the Spider-Man story we need.
Rating: 8/10
P/S: One post-credit scene at the very end.
