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H
END
Above:
JakeGyllenhaal
indulgeshis
manicvillain
registeras
QuentinBeck,
akaMysterio.
Below:Peter
Parkerisnotthe
newIronMan.
Bottom:Parker
withTonyStark,
hismentor-cum-
father figure.Parkercanfillhisshoes.That
remainstobeseen.JamesDyer:ThatPeteris
therecipientofStark’s
technologicalestatemightjar
forsome(givingattackdrones
toa teenager?Really?)yetit’s
entirelyinkeepingwithStark’s
cavalierimpulsiveness— hedid,
afterall,giftPetera suitwith
InstantKillmodeinstalledas
standard.Thebestowalof
E.D.I.T.H.(EvenDeadI’mThe
Hero)notonlyrepresentsa
passingofthetorchbutallows
Stark’spresencetobefelt
afterhis(andDowneyJr’s)
departure.Equally,making
Starktheultimatecauseof
thefilm’sconflict(bothinhis
misusedtechandhisrolein
Mysterio’screation)ensures
thatFarFromHomeserves
asafittingepitaphforthe
MCU’soriginalhero.JonWatts:I feellikePeter
is[thenextTonyStark],but
Iwantedtotella verypaced
outoriginstoryoverthese
movies,showinghimbecoming
Spider-Manandhowhe’snot
goingtobeTonyStarkJr.He’s
going to be something new.ChrisHewitt:Fromthe
momentI visitedthesetand
wastoldthatMysterio,one
ofSpider-Man’s mosticonic
villains,wasbeingremoulded
asa hero,I wassceptical.Here
is a characterwhoseentire
modusoperandiis basedupon
illusion,deceptionand,frankly,
lyinghisarseoff.Werewereally
meanttobelievethisversion
ofthecharacterhaddropped
intoourworldfroma different
universe,havingundergonea
radicalpersonalitymakeover?
Ofcoursenot.Fromtheoff,
IsuspectedthatQuentinBeck’s
talkofmultiversesmightbeBS,
andthathemighthavemore
thana littlesomethingtodo
withtheelementalcreatures
terrorisingPeterandhisfriends.
ButtheSpider-solutionhereis
prettydarnedamazing,with
WattsstealthilypositioningFa r
FromHomeasa heistmovie,
withBeckplayingthelongcon,
andPeterashisunwittingmark.
Also,tyingBeck’smotivations
andoriginsdirectlyintoTony
Stark,andtheB.A.R.F.virtual
realitysystemwefirstsawin
CaptainAmerica:CivilWar, is
abeautifultouch.Thesortof
thingthatonlya franchise 23
filmsdeepcanpulloff.JonWatts:I didn’twantBeck
tobepurelya disgruntled
ex-employee.Tonywasn’t
a saint.I wantedeverything
tospringfromthisideaofloss
and a tragedy. Tony saved theworld,butTony’sgone.Inthe
wakeofthatPeter’srunning
awayfromhowhefeelsabout
it,butaswithanybigtragedy
youcanseethatpeoplecan
beopportunistic.Theyseea
nationaltragedyandtheysee
anopportunityandtheyseize
onthat.I thoughtthatwould
bea darktaketoexplorefor
Mysterio,whenyouseebad
thingshappeningintheworld
andyouseepeoplefiguring
outhowtoprofitoffofthat
ortogainpowerasa result.JamesDyer:Whenthebig
revealcomes,it’sa perfectly
executednodtothisageof
alternativetruthsandDeep
Faketechnology.Asa comment
onthedysfunctionalmedia
landscapewelivein,Mysterio
is aspowerfulanallegory
asThanos’(misplaced)
environmentalagendawas.BenTravis:Thebestthing
abouttheMysterioreveal?
ItallowsGyllenhaaltofully
indulgehismanicvillainregister.
Asengaginganactorasheis,
Mysteriois farlessinteresting
asa herothanasa self-
aggrandising,arrogant
megalomaniac.Gyllenhaal’s
performancecallstomindthe
wildintensityofhisturninBong
Joon-ho’sOkja, witha touch
oftheunstable,shark-eyed
LouBloomfromNightcrawler.
Thatweirdenergyis a real
treat in a superhero movie.WARNING!
SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS!
JonWatts:“PeterParker’s
mentoris gone.Obviously,
itwasgoingtocasta huge
shadowoverthemovie.It
madesensetomethatafter
everythingPeterhadbeen
through,hewouldberunning
awayfromhisemotions.He
hasn’tprocessedallthisinsane
shitwhichhashappenedto
him,whichnaturallyfedinto
theideaofgoingonvacation.”
ChrisHewitt:TonyStarkis
clearlygoingtohauntthe
MCUforsometime,butit
makessensethatthefirstfilm
post-Avengers:Endgamewould
focusonPeterParker.He’s
onlybeenintheMCUfor
threeyears,buthasbeenso
inextricablylinkedtoTony— his
mentor-cum-fatherfigure—
thathewouldbeamong
thehardesthitbyhisdeath.
FarFromHomeplayswiththe
notionthatStark’sabsencehas
createda vacuum,intowhich
rushesthevillainousMysterio.
Butthere’salsoroomfor
a successortoTonyStarkin
thisworld.Tonybequeathing
E.D.I.T.H.,hisultra-expensive
defencesystem/glasses,to
Peter suggests he believes that
❯2 DEALINGWITH
TONY’S LEGACY
3 THETRUTH ABOUT
MYSTERIO