Spider-Man: Far from Home

The creators of the Marvel Universe finally decided to visit our little country as well, as they discovered that Europe presents an interesting market. I’m glad that they chose Prague and Liberec as some of the filming locations. My relationship to Spiderman is such that I grew up with the first movie trilogy, mostly ignored the movies with Andrew Garfield, and he regained my attention with Tom Holland. As I enjoyed the previous instalment, I had one more reason to look forward to this one. And I wasn’t disappointed. There was a lot of fun, a sufficient number of nostalgic moments, and I greatly enjoyed the shots of the ravaged Old Time Square (or Liberec Square). It all has pleasant young adult vibes that are a good fit for the new Spiderman, filling a certain gap in the Marvel Universe these days. (23/07/2019)

Lies, tricks and acrobatics. The second Spide-Man movie is a successful follow-up to the first one, as well as to Avengers: Endgame, although the storytelling is a little heavy-handed. Compromises are made in the quest for originality. The juxtaposition of the school trip and destructive fights is inconsistent. There is a reason for this, but it spoils the viewer’s enjoyment a little. The romantic interest works at 100% and Holland and Zendaya lend the required chemistry and a certain cuteness to the story of the loser/nerd in the love story. The storyline with Mysterio has one massive weak point in that people who have read the comic book know it already, but the screenwriters don't take that into account. Even so, Gyllenhaal delivers an interestingly double-faceted performance, accentuated especially in the second half. The illusionary scene is  an unbelievable shower of ideas, the action in the climax is a fan’s dream come true and the setting in Prague/Liberec of course pleases us Czechs. Even so, the first movie impressed me a little more. The post-credits scenes are really worth it this time. (04/07/2019)

(POSSIBLE SPOILERS!) I'll freely admit that I'm not exactly a die-hard Spidey fan, but after the spectacular Avengers: Endgame that concluded the more than decade-long Marvel saga, I am happy for any "lesser" film in this cinematic universe, so I was very happy to see the latest spider adventure despite its main character. Of course, it was nice that a not insignificant part of the plot takes place in our metropolis and it was funny to hear Czech lines, announcements or singing. The film has a slower start, despite the skirmishes with the elementals, but everything picks up with the arrival of the real bad guy on the scene. I downright liked the illusionistic sequences and the fact that you basically didn't know who you are actually dealing with until the end credits – in this case, it really and absolutely pays to wait for BOTH post-credit scenes, which on the one hand open the door for the sequel, and on the other hand slightly mess with the viewer and their gullibility to what they've seen. Tom Holland was the most bearable in all his Marvel movies this time around, Zendaya is a looker at first sight, Jake Gyllenhaal's casting made me downright happy, and Samuel L. Jackson has never let me down as Nick Fury so far. Even if the film doesn't reach the quality of the team-ups, it still passes by briskly in the cinema, abounds with plenty of well-made action, offers more than one good moment of surprise, has a well-chosen soundtrack and as a bonus, it takes you on a tour around Europe. (06/07/2019)

I feel the same way about this as about the first installment, which means I could have about a million issues with it, but the fact remains that I enjoyed the full two hours of it. While it has its weaker moments, it is a decent follow-up to the Endgame. But the thing that completely won me over, besides satirizing the stereotypes of selected European nations, were the scenes shot in Prague, which was given the most space here since Mission: Impossible. The production obviously made every effort to make Prague look like actual Prague, so, in addition to the perfectly lit Prague tourist landmarks, what popped out at me in the closing credits which I found amusing was that this Spider-Man will most likely be the only Marvel movie in which you get to hear “Moravian Polka”. There were also some twists which I didn’t expect at all (especially both post-credits scenes are some of the best of Marvel) and Jake Gyllenhaal is excellent as always, his performance often going beyond the script. Finally, I must add that if I’ll ever be thrilled to see a particular Marvel movie again, then definitely this one. (11/07/2019)

I enjoyed the first Spider-Man, and I recently watched it a second time. Tom Holland is great, Michael Keaton creates an interesting villain and the whole thing moved along nicely. In Far From Home, though, things are a little shakier. Holland keeps trying and the action is good to watch, but the whole thing feels kind of pointless. Whether it's the rather off-kilter antagonist with strange motivations and Bond villain appearances, the excessive running time, or the fact that Parker's classmates get a too much space and they're not particularly interesting. Oh, and it's also too long. There's action, there's humour, there's some suspense or romance (Spidey's strongest in that, ironically), but there's nothing outright exceptional, breathtaking or extra interesting. Spidey's second solo effort often feels tedious and tired. It's as if this is the fifth film where they didn’t quite know what to do next, so they send the hero to Europe. It's still okay, it's just hard to find anything "wow". But Holland is likable, Zendaya as a plucky high school femme fatale is too, and the burning Liberec city hall made me happy as a local. On the other hand, I don't think I'll give it a second viewing. (13/07/2019)