Updated
Updated · Mediaversity Reviews · Aug 7
Mediaversity Gives Spider-Man: Brand New Day a C+ as Review Faults Gender and Race Portrayals
Updated
Updated · Mediaversity Reviews · Aug 7

Mediaversity Gives Spider-Man: Brand New Day a C+ as Review Faults Gender and Race Portrayals

1 articles · Updated · Mediaversity Reviews · Aug 7

Summary

  • Mediaversity rated “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” a C+ — 3.17/5 overall — praising Destin Daniel Cretton’s empathetic direction and Michael Giacchino’s score while arguing the film works better in quiet character scenes than in blockbuster action.
  • The review says Peter Parker’s post-“No Way Home” isolation and changing powers create the film’s strongest metaphor, but that thread gets muddled by franchise demands, including an ending that sets up a new Tom Holland trilogy and a future Avengers movie.
  • Gender scored 2.25/5: Zendaya’s MJ is described as largely waiting to be rescued, female supporting characters mostly advise or assist Peter, and even his new AI helper continues the MCU’s pattern of feminized service technology.
  • Race scored 3.25/5: Cretton becomes the first director of color in the live-action Spider-Man franchise, and the film is credited with making New York feel more multicultural, but the review says characters of color remain underwritten and some antagonists fall into stereotype.

Insights

Will the emotional intimacy of Spider-Man's newest chapter be completely overshadowed by Marvel's relentless drive to build its next Avengers blockbuster?
Are Peter Parker's terrifying new physical blackouts a dangerous psionic threat or a heartbreaking metaphor for unacknowledged psychological trauma?
How does a secret mutant experiment in the new Spider-Man film set the stage for the MCU's ultimate X-Men crossover?