“Spider-Man: Brand New Day” gets back to webslinging basics

Starring Tom Holland, Zendaya, Sadie Sink, Jacob Batalon, Jon Bernthal, Tramell Tillman, Mark Ruffalo, Liza Colón-Zayas, Michael Mando, Marvin Jones III, Marisa Tomei. Written by Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers. Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton. Now playing in theatres everywhere. 145 minutes. PG

⭐️⭐️⭐️ (out of 4)

Peter Howell

Movie Critic

There’s a splendid moment midway through “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” where Tom Holland’s friendly neighborhood webslinger squares off against the ninja assassins known as The Hand and can’t help admiring their moves: “God, that’s cool!” he says.

This flash of wonder is exactly the kind of charge Marvel needs right now, superhero fatigue be damned.

Director Destin Daniel Cretton strips away the multiverse clutter for a more grounded Spider-Man story, pulling Peter back into the grungy, rooftops-and-subways New York City that first defined him on the comic book page.

Holland finally nails the sarcasm, angst and romantic hassles of Spidey/Peter Parker, presenting both side of the character as co-creators Stan Lee and Steve Ditko first envisioned him. There are sharper, more deeply felt rhythms here than in the franchise’s more overwrought recent outings, as the film sifts through the collective memory loss and emotional wreckage left by “Spider-Man: No Way Home” five years ago.

A genuinely unnerving telepathic villain lurks in that aftermath, giving Peter’s new chapter teeth and Spidey more hard body slams than you can count.

Solid support from Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Jon Bernthal, Mark Ruffalo and “Stranger Things” star Sadie Sink rounds out the ensemble, even if the 145-minute running time — plus a pointless post-credits scene — pushes the film further into bloat than it needs.