Are You Peter Parker, or Are You Spider-Man? A Review of ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’

SPOILER WARNING: This review contains massive plot details and major spoilers for Spider-Man: Brand New Day. If you haven’t seen the movie yet, web-sling your way to the nearest theatre, avoid the internet, and come back later. You have been warned!

It has been nearly five years since the world collectively forgot the boy beneath the mask. When Spider-Man: No Way Home ended, Peter Parker was left entirely alone - stripped of his friends, his family, and his identity. Going into Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the most pressing question wasn't about which costumed supervillain our friendly neighbourhood web-slinger would have to punch next, but rather, what was actually left of the hero underneath the spandex?

Brand New Day feels like a pivotal next step for Peter, because it’s less about him becoming Spider-Man again and more about him figuring out who Peter Parker is when he’s no longer defined by what he’s lost. For the first act of the movie, Peter has been blatantly avoiding his reality. He has thrown himself completely into the vigilante life, running on fumes, grief, and an unhealthy dose of adrenaline. He’s desperate to suppress his own humanity so he doesn't have to face the deafening silence of his empty apartment. I really liked the idea of him trying to suppress the “monster” inside him - both metaphorically in terms of his grief, and quite literally, as his arachnid DNA begins going through some terrifying, evolutionary mutations. The film pushes Peter to the absolute brink, forcing him to confront the terrifying reality of his enhanced instincts taking over. But through this crucible, he comes to a profound realization: he doesn’t have to choose between Peter and Spider-Man. He doesn't have to be purely a self-sacrificing martyr or a mindless, web-slinging monster. He can learn to live with both.

That emotional grounding is perfectly anchored by the way the film handles his grief and his past. The fact that we saw Aunt May in flashback scenes was a stroke of absolute brilliance by the filmmakers. It could have felt cheap or emotionally manipulative in the wrong hands, but instead, it serves as a reminder of the love that shaped him. May’s presence looms incredibly large over this movie, providing the ethical and emotional compass Peter desperately needs as his powers begin to mutate and spiral out of his control. Those brief glimpses into the past hurt in the best way possible, reinforcing that Peter’s greatest superpower has never just been his radioactive strength or his agility - it’s his immense capacity to care, which was instilled in him by May.

And speaking of characters who care intensely and dangerously, we have to talk about the mutant. Jean Gray was easily one of my favourite parts of this entire blockbuster. Sadie Sink was fantastic in the role, bringing a volatile mix of raw vulnerability and terrifying telekinetic power to the big screen. From the moment she begins psychically hijacking bodies and launching her one-woman war against the Department of Damage Control, she commands every single frame she is in.

She is a grieving, desperate sibling searching for her sister, Sara, who tragically died under DODC imprisonment. Sink plays Jean as a character with so much more going on underneath the surface that we have yet to explore. You can feel her simmering rage, her profound betrayal, and her deep-seated trauma in every look she gives. I’m incredibly excited to see where they take her next. Maybe the X-Men will make an appearance soon...? The foundation has undeniably been laid.

But the introduction of a major mutant isn’t the only massive roster addition here. I need to take a moment to scream this from the rooftops: THE PUNISHER IS OFFICIALLY IN THE MCU. I still can’t believe we’re actually here; it is so unbelievably well deserved. Having Jon Bernthal back as Frank Castle in a mainline Marvel Studios film is a dream come true, and his dynamic with Tom Holland is pure, unadulterated gold. Frank was hilarious in a gruff, heavily-armed, utterly exhausted sort of way, and it really felt like him and Peter were bickering brothers. Watching a trigger-happy vigilante who deals exclusively in permanent solutions interact with a hopeful kid who goes out of his way to save absolutely everyone creates fantastic on-screen friction. Their interactions at Frank's base and during the convoy fights provided some of the best dialogue in the movie, flawlessly blending dark humour with genuine, surprising heart.

And the heavy-hitting cameos certainly didn't stop there. Yelena Belova’s cameos at her makeshift "office" (which happens to be a Russian bathhouse) were amazing, and it was just genuinely great seeing Florence Pugh reprise the role again. Her scene with Peter was not only laugh-out-loud funny - especially with the whole awkward "strip down to your underwear to check for bugs" routine - but it grounded the wider MCU universe in a way that made perfect logical sense. Hearing her explain the Avengers' "big potatoes vs. small potatoes" philosophy perfectly answered a lingering fan question about why the cosmic cavalry doesn't show up for every street-level incident in New York. More importantly, hearing Yelena be formally and casually referred to as Black Widow actually made me emotional. It is a passing of the baton that feels completely earned after years of character development, and her brief time on screen left a massive impact on the story.

Another major subplot in this movie has horrifying implications for the future of the universe. Let’s talk about Bruce Banner. Mark Ruffalo’s return to his Empire State University roots was a welcome surprise, especially when a desperate Peter comes to him for help regarding his rapid, erratic DNA mutations. Banner’s technology - specifically the Hulk Inhibitor Device used to suppress his own gamma-irradiated alter ego - becomes the blueprint for Peter's desperate solution. With Bruce’s reluctant guidance, Peter manages to create a microchip to suppress his mutating DNA. But in doing so, I think Peter just made the first universal mutant suppressor, which could have catastrophic outcomes in later MCU projects.

Banner expressly warned Peter that a universal inhibitor capable of affecting and nullifying any genetic mutation would be wildly dangerous in the wrong hands. And now, the technology exists and works. In a world where mutants like Jean Grey are just beginning to step into the light and terrify the general public, the creation of a device that can forcefully strip them of their genetics is a ticking time bomb. Knowing the overarching narrative of the MCU, that technology is absolutely going to fall into the hands of someone like William Metzger or a revitalized, anti-mutant government agency down the line. Peter was just trying to stop himself from becoming a literal monster, but he might have inadvertently handed humanity the ultimate weapon against mutant-kind. The political and social ramifications for the upcoming X-Men storylines are staggering to think about.

Despite the sprawling cast of seasoned heroes, the massive world-building, and the heavy action set pieces, Brand New Day never loses sight of its emotional core, and that brings us back to Michelle Jones and Ned Leeds. The handling of MJ and Ned’s return to Peter’s orbit was brilliant and handled with the utmost respect for the previous films. I’m so glad they didn’t go down the predictable route of having MJ suddenly remember Peter through some cheap multiverse magic, a convenient spell reversal, or a psychic bump to the head. Having her discover the truth because she read the letter - the one Peter wrote to her years ago but couldn't bring himself to deliver - made the whole thing feel much more earned, and honestly much more meaningful.

When MJ finds that letter stashed at Castle’s base, Zendaya delivers an absolute masterclass in subtle, heartbreaking acting. She doesn't magically get her memories back in a flash of light; she has to reckon with the documented proof of a profound, universe-altering love she no longer feels, but knows she once experienced. Peter’s tearful confession that he withheld the letter to keep her safe, paired with his brutal realization that he has to accept she has moved on, is utterly devastating. It is a mature, beautiful resolution to their teenage romance. It honours the massive sacrifice he made at the end of No Way Home instead of cheaply undoing it for the sake of a happy ending.