By Lavinia Shapumba
Ask around online and you’ll find divided opinions. Some argue that “there are too many characters and plotlines” and that Marvel is “ruining the Spider-Man franchise”. Others praise the film for making Peter Parker feel more human as he navigates life after his most life-altering sacrifices. Some felt the story never fully came together, while others simply can’t get enough of the action and web-swinging. Unsurprisingly, Spider-Man: Brand New Day has given Marvel fans plenty to argue about. But what do our fellow Maties think?
The poster of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the latest film in the Spider-Man franchise, is showing at the Road House Cinema in the Neelsie Student Centre. Photo: Lavinia Shapumba
The film’s execution proved divisive. Mireille Rossouw, a third-year BA (Drama and Theatre Studies) student, praised the cinematography, “The camera work and angles were done incredibly well,” but she feels the story never fully came together, describing it as a “filler chapter” that left her feeling like she “only saw act one.” Naeem Nhlabathi, a third-year BSc (Computer Science) student, agrees the plot is overcrowded, with Parker’s isolation, his changing powers, Jean Grey, a powerful mutant from X-Men, and his relationships with MJ and Ned all competing for attention. He says, “Some of them do not get as much room as they deserve.”
Beyond the story, Brand New Day has a comic-book visual style. The action makes strong use of Spider-Man’s movement, with dynamic camera angles, POV shots and slow motion giving his web-slinging a sense of scale. Tom Holland’s performance received multiple positive reviews. Rossouw calls it “brilliant and really well done,” while Sidney Poggenpoel, who graduated last year with a BA in Humanities, goes further: “He ate this up, oh my gosh. I don’t think he’s ever been this ‘Peter’ before.” Nhlabathi, despite preferring Tobey Maguire, still rates Holland the strongest all-rounder of the three live-action Spider-Men.
For some students, the film’s greatest strength is Parker himself, with the contrast between the hero and the person inside the mask giving the story its emotional core. “Everyone loves Spider-Man,” Nhlabathi says. “People cheer for him, admire him and want him around. But Peter Parker can walk into the same room, and nobody even knows who he is.” That isolation resonates with university life too, he adds: “You can be surrounded by people all the time and still feel completely alone.”
Rossouw, who is preparing to graduate while her friends continue their studies, agrees the theme resonated with her, “Everyone is moving in their own direction and that can leave you feeling alone at times.”
For Rossouw, that vulnerability is part of what sets Parker apart from other superheroes – he “feels much more ‘human’ than many of the other superheroes,” she says. Erica Zhang, a first-year BSc (Human Life Sciences) student, sees a similar quality in his resilience: “He doesn’t let his suffering stop him from sacrificing himself for others.” It’s this combination of vulnerability and determination that makes Parker relatable to the students interviewed.
That emotional weight carries into the storyline of MJ, Parker’s love interest, and Ned, Parker’s best friend, which produced some of the disagreement. Nhlabathi questions whether the supporting characters have enough of a life outside Parker: “What are MJ’s ambitions outside of Peter? What does Ned want from his life?”
Poggenpoel disagrees, appreciating the film’s emphasis on friendship instead: “Platonic friendships are just as important as romantic relationships.”
So, was another film necessary? Poggenpoel’s answer is simple: “There’s always a need for another Spider-Man.” Nhlabathi is less convinced: “Honestly, no” – but draws a distinction. “There is a difference between not needing another movie and not wanting another movie. I wanted to see what happened next,” he said.
The film has also prompted discussion about its treatment of surveillance. While tracking Scorpion, one of the film’s antagonists, Peter says he can access security cameras across New York and use facial recognition to find him. Detective Jean DeWolff briefly points out that this is illegal, but the film quickly moves on. It is a surprisingly significant idea to introduce so casually: Parker is given the ability to monitor an entire city in the name of protecting it, raising questions about where responsibility ends and privacy begins.
All discussions eventually boil down to something Stan Lee once said: “What I like about the costume is that anybody reading Spider-Man in any part of the world can imagine that they themselves are under the costume.” Maybe that’s what makes Spider-Man so enduring. We argue about the action, the villains, the pacing – but at the heart of it, we’re all looking for a little of ourselves in Peter Parker. Whether the film gets everything right or falls short, the real measure of Spider-Man isn’t in plot logistics – it’s in his enduring ability to inspire us to do better, be better and keep going.
