Peter Parker begins a new life chapter in the latest Marvel entry, Spider-Man: Brand New Day. The spell that Peter Parker asked Dr. Strange to cast worked, and no one remembers Peter is Spider-Man. In fact, no one remembers Peter ever existed, not even his best friend Ned or the love of his life MJ.

A New Direction for Spider-Man

Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, Brand New Day brings a completely new feel to the Spider-Man franchise. Not only is the look of the film grittier than its counterparts, the plot makes this feel like you’re watching a live-action trade collection, and that makes it feel the most comic book out of all the comic book movies.

The plot weaves in so many situations, even using an elongated opening montage to set up this new world Peter inhabits, and many other characters the same way all the separate issues that comprise a trade collection might do. Yet, surprisingly, none of it feels bloated.

Cretton even has time to toss in a few fun Easter eggs for the fans. Granted, he does have 145 minutes of runtime to play with, but that becomes an advantage instead of a slog. All of the side characters get an appropriate amount of screen time to keep their appearances feeling integral to the plot instead of simply fan service.

There’s also a good deal of emotional weight to this Spider-Man. You really feel everything Peter’s going through, either in regard to MJ and Ned or the DNA changes. This is really the first time Holland gets to explore more of his characters than just being a superhero.

Original reporting: KCCI Des Moines — read the source article.