Spider-Man: Brand New Day – My Review

Today I finally saw Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

The Trailers

Before the feature, there were around 30 minutes of adverts and trailers – of which there was about eight or nine trailers.

The standout trailer for me was "I Play Rocky", which tells the story of Sylvester Stallone trying to sell his Rocky screenplay back in 1976. Anthony Ippolito plays Stallone, and goodness me, he really does look like a young Sly. That film has now gone straight onto my must-see list. In fact, it's probably the only film currently on that list!

I also saw the trailer for Jumanji: Open Day, which looked much more appealing than the previous Jumanji films. It opens on Christmas Day in the US, just one week after Avengers: Doomsday and Dune 3. To me, Jumanji: Open Day feels like the perfect Christmas holiday film and could easily become the family favourite over that period, thus killing off Doomsday and Dune 3 after only 7 days on release.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day

Laser Projection & Dolby Atmos

Before the film started, we had the customary Dolby Atmos logo. It sounded fantastic, and I immediately knew the cinema's EQ was spot on.

We were then greeted by a short welcome from Tom Holland wishing everyone an enjoyable screening, followed by the usual BBFC certificate explanation that we see every week. I don't mind the BBFC message, although I think Tom Holland's introduction would have worked better immediately before the film itself.

The Movie

The film wasted no time and launched straight into Spider-Man action, bringing everyone up to speed with the ending of the previous movie.

Unlike Supergirl, which showed no Supergirly stuff until near the end of the movie? Spider-Man: Brand New Day delivers exactly what audiences came to see—a full-blooded Spider-Man adventure from the very beginning.

The Technical Presentation

I saw the film in Laser Projection with Dolby Atmos, and from a technical point of view it was a real pleasure.

For a change, the Atmos soundtrack had a little more body than usual. I can't honestly say I noticed much activity from the ceiling speakers, but who ever has—or even the surround channels—but there was one memorable moment during an explosion when the sound wave (from the explosion) came straight towards the audience and, for a brief second, hit me right in the chest. That was very exciting!

The picture quality was absolutely stunning. It was razor-sharp, beautifully bright without looking washed out, and simply gorgeous to watch. I actually had to pinch myself to make sure I wasn't watching from the great cinema in the sky, and yes I was still in my local cinema,

Compared with some recent releases, the Digital Cinema Package (DCP) on this film looked exceptional. Technically, it gave me a great deal of joy.

Story and Action

Story-wise, it's a Spider-Man film through and through—and that's exactly what you get.

There is one particular Ninja fight sequence (which I won't spoil) that was brilliantly choreographed, perfectly edited and incredibly exciting to watch.

The CGI throughout the film was polished and convincing, making the whole production feel first class.

From a technical and filmmaking perspective, this movie is a class act.

The Ending... Almost!

I really enjoyed the ending... but this is where things went a little downhill.

Brian...!

Unfortunately, Brian brought the house lights up at least 60 seconds too early, while there was still on-screen action taking place beneath the credits.

Having already been sitting there for over three and a half hours—including the trailers—I had to make a quick dash to the facilities next door!

It was a very busy screening for a 9:20am start, with what looked like a lot of walk-up ticket sales. Most of the audience stayed right through the credits, so I'm assuming there was another scene at the very end that I unfortunately missed.

My Scores

I Play Rocky (Trailer): 9/10

A terrific trailer and now a must-see film for me.

Jumanji: Open Day (Trailer): 8/10

Looks like great Christmas entertainment.

Dolby Atmos Logo: 10/10

Perfect EQ and an excellent start.

DCP Image Quality: 10/10

One of the best-looking presentations I've seen.

Overall Technical Presentation: 10/10

A genuine class act.

Editing: 10/10

Direction: 10/10

Ceiling & Surround Speaker Activity: 0/10

No noticeable use during the screening.

Screen Channel Mixing: 0/10

Nothing particularly stood out.

That Chest-Hitting Bass Moment: 100/10!

Now that was fun.

Brian Bringing the Lights Up Early: 0/10 😄