First Spider-Man: Brand New Day Reactions Have Everyone Saying The Same Thing

The final "Spider-Man: Brand New Day" trailer has dropped, and the movie is almost here. Tom Holland's web-slinger has such a great track record that every Marvel Cinematic Universe fan is no doubt waiting to find out whether the movie will continue on the winning path of "Spider-Man: No Way Home." Fortunately, it appears that this is very much the case, at least based on first reactions by critics and journalists who've had a chance to see the movie.

Jeremy Mathai of Looper's sister site /Film went as far as to say that the film surpasses "No Way Home" in some very interesting ways, and compared "Brand New Day" to the excellent "Spider-Man" PlayStation 5 games. "Folks, Marvel has made a Real Movie™ for the third time since 2018," he wrote on X. "Basically the PS5 games brought to life, and EXTREMELY Matrix: Reloaded-coded (complimentary). The best of the MCU Spidey films by a mile, and Tom Holland's best effort as Peter Parker."

Fellow /Film writer and critic Bill Bria complimented the movie's dedication to simply doing things well. "That #SpidermanBrandNewDay isn't Earth-shatteringly revelatory is what makes it so special," Bria wrote on X. "It's a solid, engaging, heartfelt & sincere continuation of these characters & Peter's Job-like efforts to protect them. Holland owns the role now. Sadie Sink makes a winning new addition."

Others have been quite delighted with the way the movie has turned out, too. On X, Adam Hlaváĉ of Heroes Reforged, entertainment writer Mike Ryan, and Anthony Gagliardi of The Movie Podcast praised the film, highlighting things like production values, maturity, intellect and heart — not to mention director Destin Daniel Cretton's vision and Holland's performance.

One throughline that people have pointed out is the way "Spider-Man: Brand New Day" manages to juggle a whole bunch of story in a blockbuster movie format, while still being coherent, balanced, and touching. Germain Lussier of Gizmodo and io9 summed up the sentiment well. "Don't mind me. I'm just sitting here crying after watching #SpidermanBrandNewDay," Lussier wrote on X. "It's a massive movie that balances like 5 different through lines in equal measure, each better than the last. It can feel a little overwhelming but it all comes together so beautifully it works."

Of course, there are also downsides. While praise of "Brand New Day" seems to be overwhelming, some have also pointed out that the movie still has the classic MCU flaw of being too connected to the bigger picture. "#SpiderManBrandNewDay suffers from the same problem as many post-Endgame movies: it feels like a stepping stone rather than a cohesive standalone film," Kaitlyn Booth of Bleeding Cool wrote on X. Toronto Star movie critic Peter Howell also pointed out that the movie feels bloated at 145 minutes. 

Still, the MCU is going to MCU, and "Spider-Man: Brand New Day" presumably has to set up Marvel movies happening after it. Long runtimes tends to be par for the course for summer blockbusters, too, so it seems that the film's biggest issues are ones that are inherently connected to its format and franchise. On the whole, the first reactions seem to bode very well for the movie, and if audiences agree with these sentiments, Marvel Studios might have a major winner in its hands. 

Check out Looper's own positive review of "Spider-Man: Brand New Day," and remember to watch the only recap you need before the movie swings to a cinema near you on July 31.