Let’s talk about things I’ve seen recently and what I think of them…
SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME: I walked into “Far From Home” expecting a solid, forgettable coda, a light dessert to finish off the meal that was “Endgame.” But nobody told director Jon Watts or writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers that, because they ate their Wheaties, came out swinging and made the best live-action Spider-Man movie there is. It’s also one of the best Marvel movies of this generation. Seriously.
I’m as shocked as you are! Where did this come from? There are two reasons it’s so good. First, there’s a solid emotional core (something “Homecoming” also pulled off). Spider-Man’s youth is such a blessing, it affords him the ability to make mistakes and grow in ways older characters can’t.
The second reason is Jake Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio. I can’t say much about him without spoiling things, but he’s fantastic, well-written and totally original. Even in great Marvel movies, the third act action blowout is normally a CGI snoozefest, but “Far From Home” dazzles with some of the most jaw-dropping spectacle I’ve ever seen. It’s just so INVENTIVE, so interesting. It’s always a thing to behold when the Hollywood machine is marshalled towards something really creative and worth doing. They can make miracles.
Side note: as a Batman fan, I’m getting real sick and tired of this renaissance of Spider-Man where everything he touches is gold.
STRANGER THINGS SEASON 3: It’s very good, but I think it’s the weakest of the three seasons. The problem, for me, is the tone, which has leaned way into comedy and absurdity, even in the climactic moments of the season. Despite its nostalgic pastiche, I always liked that “Stranger Things” buttoned up and got serious down its home stretch, it helped me invest and believe in the world. This is not a show I want to wink at me.
But wink it does in Season 3, and quite a bit. Everything’s been cheesed up, the show goes flat-out goofball at times, even when the stakes are supposed to be super-high. And some of the human villains feel like they’re from a different show, I could not square their existence at all. They reference “Red Dawn,” “Terminator” and “Back to the Future” a lot, presumably as hints to the tone they were looking for this time around. But they missed what works about those movies and ended up making something that’s dumber than it needs to be for no reason.
I think what happened here is a disconnect between the show’s creators and its audience. Maybe for the Duffer Brothers, their show has always been kind of a kitschy joke, so extending that tone feels natural. But for us, the audience, “Stranger Things” is deadly serious. Its world has always felt extremely grounded and believable, and I really don’t love feeling them chip away at that and undermine it.
Despite all that, it’s still a great season of television. The character work is top-notch, the acting is great, there’s some chilling body horror and spectacular action. As a die-hard fan, I’m more than satisfied that the high quality bar I expect from this show has been hit. But I’d strongly suggest they steer clear of this zany tonal experiment in future seasons.
THE BLACK KEYS: Their new album “Let’s Rock” is really quite excellent. If, like me, you’ve enjoyed them in the past but they’ve fallen off your radar, it’s time to put them back on.
Writing a long review of the album feels like it would contradict what The Black Keys are about. It’s called “Let’s Rock.” I don’t think they can be much more straightforward with you about what they’re after.