*Spoiler Warning!*

Sony and Marvel have teamed up once again to create another amazing installment of Spider-Man, with “No Way Home” bringing together fans of all ages. The film rounds out the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) trilogy with breathtaking visuals and a gripping plot.

After a year that felt like Marvel had a new project every time you looked, it released “Spider-Man: No Way Home” on Dec. 17. IMDb gave the film an 8.8/10 rating, and as of early January 2022, it has a worldwide box office gross of $1.3 billion.

The new installment follows the story of Peter trying to learn how to be both Spider-Man and Peter Parker at the same time. He does get some help from his best friend Ned and girlfriend MJ, as well as Aunt May and Happy Hogan.

After escaping legal troubles, Peter and friends try to move on to the next phase of their lives — college. Issues arise in the recruitment process, so Peter seeks out Doctor Strange to conjure up a spell that would cause everyone to forget Peter is Spider-Man.

An error in the spell causes the multiverse to open, bringing in a slew of familiar faces like Doc Ock and Green Goblin. Instead of just sending the villains back to die, Peter and Aunt May attempt to “fix” them before sending them back.

All-star acting from actors like Willem Dafoe — who I felt established Green Goblin as a top-tier absolute menace of a villain — brought it together beautifully. If only they could get Doc Ock some new lines.

Norman Osborn is unable to hold back Green Goblin and ends up killing Aunt May. Afterwards, Peter’s friends bring in other Spider-Men — Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield — that are able to help Peter overcome the hatred and fulfill Aunt May’s dying wish to help everyone. 

You could really tell that both Garfield and Maguire were thrilled to be back on set and they looked like they never skipped a beat. I enjoyed how much time each of them spent on screen and the nostalgia really delivered some heartwarming moments.

Peter realizes that in order to solve everything and to keep those he loves out of harm’s way, he must ask Strange to cast one more spell — that everyone forgets Peter Parker. 

Two of my favorite scenes from the film occurred during the final fight: the three Spider-Men swinging in unison and Garfield’s Spider-Man redeeming himself by saving MJ. No matter how many times I see those scenes I still get goosebumps because of how beautifully written and choreographed they were.

After the spell, Peter finds MJ and Ned are better off without him and decides to stay away. The film ends with Peter going off to fight crime, truly embracing that he is now just Spider-Man.

The post-credit scene features the lackluster inclusion of Eddie Brock, whose sole purpose was to leave behind a piece of Venom for the MCU. There is speculation that Eddie Brock may end up being in the same universe as Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man.

I enjoyed the callbacks to other Spider-Men as well, like Electro saying “There’s gotta be a Black Spider-Man out there somewhere” or Tom Holland’s Peter using a move that resembled one seen in the PlayStation 4 game “Marvel’s Spider-Man.”

One of my favorite things about this movie is how they created a lot of the special effects. Obviously we are in the age of CGI for movies, but “No Way Home” featured quite a lot of practical effects — the bridge scene for example.

I’m very excited to see the next chapter of the Spider-Verse, with the animated film coming out later this year. And remember, with great power comes great responsibility.

Rating: 4.8/5 stars