Spider-Man Brand New Day: what are critics saying?

Marvel's Spider-Man: Brand New Day is finally here, and critics have been sharing their thoughts on the last installment in the superhero film franchise.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day sees the return of Tom Holland, Zendaya, Mark Ruffalo and Jacob Batalon from the previous Marvel films, with the new additions of Jon Bernthal and Sadie Sink.

"Fighting crime full-time as Spider-Man in a world that doesn’t remember him—and the pressure of seeing his old friends move on without him—sparks a change in Peter Parker he may not have the power to control," the plot synopsis reads.

"But that transformation might also be the only thing that can stop a shocking new threat to the city and those he loves—a powerful villain no one can even see."

What are critics saying?

Sony Pictures Entertainment

Spider-Man: Brand New Day has received largely positive reviews from critics, with the film getting a 90 per cent critics score on film and TV review aggregate website, Rotten Tomatoes.

The dynamic between Tom Holland, Zendaya and Jacob Batalon was praised, along with Sadie Sink's performance, although her character has been kept under wraps.

The Independent's Clarisse Loughrey described it as the "best Spider-Man movie in more than 20 years," adding in her four-star review, "Brand New Day offers a maturation not only of its hero, but of the franchise’s entire vision, too."

"Proper Spider-Man films – the ones that embrace the character’s particular qualities and foibles – should be proper New York movies too. Brand New Day, basking in the sun as it rises over the Manhattan skyline, is both," The Telegraph's Robbie Collin wrote in his four-star review.

"Damage Control is still the name of the game, and this movie causes more problems than it cures. Spider-Man can’t do it all by himself. At this rate, someone will need to come along and save him. too," IndieWire's David Ehrlich noted, grading the film a C-.

Rolling Stone's David Fear said, "The movie keeps getting tangled in a complicated web of its own making, one that feels all too familiar after several decades of superhero cinema sucking up the cultural oxygen."

"It’s an entertaining spectacle, but really without the novelty of movie-iterations like the more experimental Spider-Verse animations. A more radical reboot is needed," wrote The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw in his three-star review.

The Hollywood Reporter's David Rooney noted, "The dynamic of these three together — and of Holland, Zendaya and Batalon in the roles — has been lovingly nurtured over four films and pays off here with genuinely affecting moments that will have some fans getting misty-eyed."

Empire Magazine's John Nugent said in his four-star review, "A more mature, emotional and distinctly ground-level Spider-Man, Brand New Day doesn’t escape some of the usual MCU pitfalls but finds its heart in an earnest performance from Tom Holland."

When is the film's release date?

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is out in cinemas from July 29.

Why not read...

• Spider-Man: Brand New Day first reactions from the premiere
• Zendaya's beauty routine for Spider-Man premiere included £6.50 cult classic

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