Despite some pacing issues, a few too many plot points to juggle, and a somewhat forgettable story, the latest Spider-Man film is still an entertaining watch thanks to strong performances and great character work. The story has a lot going on and yet somehow it feels kind of empty. While the major story threads are interesting on their own, the pacing causes them to repeatedly lose momentum. Not to mention the payoff is fairly weak for all of them. The film’s greatest strength is its characters. All the leads are compelling in their own ways and are brought to life by some great actors. Returning characters Spider-Man and MJ get the bulk of the screen time, while the newcomers also get their chance to shine. Unfortunately, Sadie Sinks character gets shockingly limited screen time, and the reveal doesn’t quite earn all the secrecy that was put into the marketing. Thankfully, The Punisher still feels like the same character from the television shows and is only slightly watered-down for this PG-13 film. There are some pretty cool action sequences, but most of them feel more like obstacles holding Spidey back as opposed to the actual main conflict. The film also does a great job of nailing showing Spider-Man in his prime and how cool that is, especially the first act of the film. There is a post-credit scene but it’s not worth sticking around for.
*** out of *****