Much is new and a lot isn’t in the latest Spider-Man adventure – one of the best things about a film that balances freshness with familiarity, spectacle with grounded situations, scale with intimate moments.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day sees Tom Holland return as the webbed wonder in a second planned trilogy after the ‘Home’ series. At the end of Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), Spider-Man was revealed to the world as Peter Parker. In order to protect Peter’s identity, the memories of everyone who knew him were scrubbed – include those of his girlfriend MJ (Zendaya) and best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon).

Four years after the reset, Peter continues to protect New York City while trying to re-insert himself into the lives of MJ and Ned. A telepath (Sadie Sink) who can worm her way into people’s minds arrives at an inconvenient time for Peter, whose powers are shifting in strange ways.

Heavy lies the head that wears the mask – a theme that has given depth and soul to many routine superhero rescue missions is at play in Brand New Day too. Writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers, who also handled the previous trilogy, expertly dole out humour, poignancy and light philosophy.

Director Destin Daniel Cretton draws on his past experience of handling the indie Short Term 12 as well as the Marvel production Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Cretton juggles fan service with a mature treatment of Peter’s evolution from an adolescent into an adult, with all the attendant anxieties and responsibilities.

Cretton’s command over the exhilarating set pieces is as solid as his treatment of Peter’s identity crisis, loneliness and heartache for having to start from scratch with MJ and Ned. The cascade of top-flight visual effects, superb compositions by cinematographer Brett Pawlak and kinetic action set pieces doesn’t come at the cost of Peter’s brooding.

The film clocks 145 minutes that simply whiz by, just like Spider-Man. Among the memorable set pieces are Spider-Man’s encounters with Hulk and the Ninja Clan. The telepath’s possession is vividly choreographed by Nathan Kim.

The proven chemistry between real-life couple Tom Holland and Zendaya is once again on display. Easily the best Spider-Man ever since the character first made his screen appearance, Holland is wholly convincing as the near-infallible hero who is vulnerable too and yearns for ordinariness. Holland’s voice work behind the mask is as effective as his emoting without protective head gear.

There are thrilling turns from Florence Pugh and Mark Ruffalo. As the gruff Frank/The Punisher, Joe Bernthal is an entertaining foil to Peter’s Spider-Man. Sadie Sink is a valuable addition to the franchise, her character complementing Spider-Man’s arc as well as pointing the future films into an exciting direction.

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