Quick Review: Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026)

Introduction

I don’t even need to tell anyone who Spider-Man is because everyone knows him. He’s probably the most popular superhero out there and he’s my favorite one. I grew up with the Raimi films and 94 series and those pieces of media would change my life forever. The Tom Holland movies have gotten a mixed reaction over the years with how he has been incorporated into the MCU. Personally, I’ve enjoyed the Holland movies. However, I can’t deny that there is a problem with them in that this version of Spider-Man relies so much on those other films and even the other Spider-Man movies where it’s hard for it to have its own identity. With how No Way Home ended, it seemed like we would get a Spider-Man film that more resembled what we are used to. 5 years later, we are here with that film. Going into this one, I was excited but was a bit worried that it might be juggling so much just from what they showed in the trailers. Spider-Man 3 and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 had this exact problem so I was hoping it wasn’t going to be another victim of this. After watching it, Spider-Man: Brand New Day is easily the best film of the Tom Holland series and despite taking on so much, there’s a balance that really works for the film and makes it a great time.

Review

The story follows Peter Parker 4 years after the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home as he is now taking most of his time being Spider-Man in the city. When the pressure starts to get to him, seeing familiar people in his life, and a new villain emerges. Peter must find a way to balance himself and be the hero the city needs before it takes over him in a drastic way.

The story of Spider-Man: Brand New Day is something I’ve wanted from this version of the hero. While I enjoy the other films of the series, those movies are so focused in being in the MCU that it doesn’t feel like it really gets to be a Spider-Man film on its own. Here there are other characters from the MCU in this story, but we actually get to see Peter fully shine in the moment and let it be his movie. This almost feels like a companion piece for Raimi’s Spider-Man 2 as it does focus on Peter trying to find balance between being the hero and being himself. I think it works well for this story especially after what the last film set up. There’s a lot going on in this film and it was a worry for me going into it, but luckily most of it works here. I think the only stuff that doesn’t feel fully fleshed out to me is the stuff with Damage Control as they feel like more of a villain of the week trope that superhero movies can usually have. But I was surprised with how it handled most of the material in hand. Another thing that I liked is the film’s tackling of grief. It also has similarities to Thunderbolts* as that film tackled grief as well. I think both films do a great job with them and the emotional beats of the film are handled incredibly well. Hell a couple of them almost got me. The story of this film was enjoyable and it was nice that we got this type of story in the series.

Again this is a movie handling so many characters where it could’ve easily gone wrong, but for the most part, they manage to handle a good chunk of it. Tom Holland is probably the best he has been as this character and there’s a balance between the comedy and emotional moments that he nails in this. Zendaya as well is incredible here she’s so good when it comes to the emotional beats of the film. Sadie Sink’s character could’ve easily not worked in this story, but with how she acts and is implemented into the story, I think they managed to make it work here. Jon Bernthal is incredibly fun and seeing the dynamic between him and Tom Holland might be my favorite parts of the film. Mark Ruffalo doesn’t do too much here, but when he gets his big moment, he steals the show. The only character I wish they gave more to is Trammel Tillman and the fact they kinda waste him in this movie feels like a crime. At least he still has the charisma so it isn’t all lost. But I was surprised to see that this movie managed to balance most of these characters the way they did. It worked most of the time for me.

Probably the biggest complaint that MCU Spider-Man films have gotten over the years is that they have no style to them. The swinging scenes compared to the Sam Raimi and the Marc Webb films just show that you don’t feel any real scale to most of it and they just feel bland. Luckily with Brand New Day, this changes and the movie does have style to it which I love. The swinging feels grand and New York feels like its own character in this movie. The fight scenes are very fun to watch and there’s notable parts that you can point at and look in awe at. Destin Daniel Cretton who directed this film and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings I think was an incredible choice for this. One other thing that I love that he does is he highlights his crew on Instagram and what they did on the film. I think it shows the type of guy he is and made me respect him that he does that. I would love for him to come back for another Spider-Man film. After seeing how the other MCU Spider-Man movies looked, it was a nice fresh breath of air to see how this film looked.

Watching this film had me with the biggest smile on my face. It’s definitely not a perfect film, but it reminds me why Spider-Man is a hero most people like myself and others love so much. He shows us that even when life throws so much at at him, he still gets back up and be the best version of himself. This film is the true representation of that and I think most people are going to be walking out happy with this representation of the character.

Conclusion

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is the best film from the Tom Holland series and you can feel so much love from the film that makes it all come together so well. Spider-Man is my favorite hero, so it’s a great treat when we get something that represents the character in a way that people will share a deep connection with. It’s a film from the MCU that I’m excited to rewatch and I don’t know the last time I’ve been able to say that. What a time for Spider-Man fan.

Rating: 8/10