'Spider-Man: Far From Home' goes the extra mile in setting up the post-'Endgame' MCU

I can still remember how I felt when I found out that "Spider-Man: Far From Home" would be the title of the second Spider-Man film under the Marvel Studios banner. If memory serves me right, the exact words that came out of my mouth were: “What a dumb title.”

I’m not going to lie: To me, it sounded like Marvel was trying a little too hard to shoehorn the word “home” in there, following the generally well-received "Spider-Man: Homecoming." It felt like an unsubtle reminder that Marvel’s biggest moneymaker could finally join its pantheon of non-mutant superheroes full-time in collecting colorful space rocks or battling wave upon wave of nameless alien grunts on the silver screen; that at last, Spidey was free from the legal restrictions that, for the longest time, gave Sony absolute control over his cinematic future.

While the title still slightly annoys me, I’m willing to look past it now; not only because "Far From Home" turned out to be a splendidly entertaining experience, but also because it captures the essence of the film in a way I wasn’t expecting.

There are a number of ways the titular character finds himself in his titular predicament throughout the course of this film. Perhaps the most obvious among these is the school trip that he and his classmates embark on, taking them from one scenic European spot to another. In fact, New York only factors into the larger story a small handful of times in this film, perhaps fewer than ten minutes combined. One of these instances happens early on, and handily addresses any lingering questions about how the events of "Avengers: Infinity War" and "Avengers: Endgame" affected Peter’s world via an amusing exposition dump. And while one might find this a bit annoying (after all, good storytelling ideally involves more showing than telling), it’s necessary to get those out of the way, because there’s so much action and insanity in the rest of the film that to go back to those questions would probably kill the overall momentum.

One would think that after fighting alongside Earth’s mightiest heroes, Peter Parker should have gotten used to high-stakes, save-the-Earth-from-genocidal-evil missions by now. Instead, he finds himself far from his comfort zone (and out of his element) when allies old and new enlist his aid in fighting element-themed monstrosities that pop up in various places across the world. Tom Holland’s Peter Parker pulls off the unenviable task of striking a believable balance between “seasoned superhero” and “deer caught in the headlights”; he’s nowhere near as green as he was in "Homecoming," but he isn’t exactly breezing through “that Spidey life” with ease, either. Still stinging from the loss of his mentor Iron Man, Peter finds himself gravitating towards the immensely powerful Quentin Beck a.k.a. Mysterio, a man purportedly from an alternate Earth who aids this Earth’s remaining heroes in fighting the elementals. Jake Gyllenhaal flawlessly delivers what the script demands, and then some; here, we see him bringing the kind of intensity and versatility he displayed in "Nightcrawler" and in many other films.

Meanwhile, in his civilian identity, Peter also finds himself treading on unfamiliar ground, in as far as his interpersonal relationships are concerned. In that regard, his supporting cast becomes more than just a collection of glorified set pieces or elements necessary to move the plot along. Characters like Jacob Batalon’s Ned, Zendaya’s MJ, Marisa Tomei’s Aunt May, and even Jon Favreau’s Happy Hogan are given adequate time to shine, each with their own sets of struggles, needs, and circumstances that Peter must either address, navigate through, or come to terms with.

The fact that "Far From Home" is the first Marvel movie immediately after "Endgame" puts a lot of pressure on it right out of the starting gate. After all, "Endgame" was a literal game-changer; how could a considerably smaller solo movie be a worthy follow-up to it? Fortunately, the approach taken by director Jon Watts and the screenwriting duo of Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers appears to have worked, with a more-than-serviceable story, jokes that (mostly) land, and an understanding of normal teenage behavior that the first film seemed to lack.

Interestingly enough, "Far From Home" — a film in which there is hardly a dull moment — truly starts to shine during its second half. Without giving away any spoilers, it would perhaps suffice to say that this film features what may be the most well-thought-out (though admittedly not a hundred percent plausible) translation of a character’s powers from the comic books into cinematic form. One extended sequence in particular is an incredible visual treat, a mind-boggling masterpiece that’s almost on a par with Stephen Strange’s first encounter with magic in "Doctor Strange."

What really sets "Far From Home" apart from its cinematic predecessors, however, is in the way it challenges and pushes the titular hero to his limits, even until after the credits start rolling. To say that "Far From Home" rocks the foundations of Spider-Man’s world in a way that we’ve never seen before in live action is no exaggeration. "Far From Home" gives us a good look at the post-"Endgame" MCU landscape, as well as what lies ahead for the friendly neighborhood hero now that many of Earth’s defenders are gone.

"Far From Home" is by no means the best Spider-Man film ever. (That distinction still belongs to "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse," a film that, at least on paper, should not have worked as well as it did.) Still, it’s essential viewing for anyone invested in this particular iteration of the character and his universe. With what it manages to accomplish (given the tremendous responsibility it carries on its shoulders as the true conclusion of the MCU’s Infinity saga), it certainly deserves all the praise it’s getting.

By the end of this story, Peter Parker finds himself far, far away from home — and it’s exciting (and terrifying) to watch how he’ll find his way through a world that may have been irreversibly changed. If the overall quality of this film is any indication, it’ll certainly be a journey worth following.

"Spider-Man: Far From Home" will hit Philippine cinemas on July 3, 2019.

—JCB, GMA News