Deputy Editor Ilaria Riccio evaluates whether the latest release from the Sony Spider-Man Universe is as bad as people claim it is.
The superhero genre is in dire straits I’m afraid. To make matters worse, the downfall of the genre, especially with live-action films, is heavily documented. Between the decline of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and the struggles of other studios who have attempted to dip their toes in the genre, superhero films are no longer guaranteed box-office successes. Sony’s Madame Web, unfortunately, follows this trend.
Despite lead actress Dakota Johnson’s confusion, this is not a MCU film – rather, it belongs to the Sony Spider-Man Universe that, so far, had villains such as Venom and Morbius as its protagonists. Nevertheless, this nearly two-hour feature may as well tick most, if not all, of the boxes of what MCU films look like to non-fans: CGI fests with damp humour that is more cringe than funny, unappealing protagonists and two-dimensional side-kicks, and barely developed, villains. Not to mention, plots where events are more pretexts for things to happen, rather than a logical cause-and-effect chain leading up to the eventual resolution. Madame Web takes these elements to their extremes, leaving viewers increasingly confused and existential as the film progresses.
This nearly two-hour feature may as well tick most, if not all, of the boxes of what MCU films look like to non-fans.
Johnson’s Cassie Webb tries too hard to be a relatable protagonist, and dramatically fails in this endeavour. At least she benefits from a slightly more thorough characterisation than her three young acolytes. Julia Carpenter (Sydney Sweeney), Anya Corazon (Isabela Merced), and Mattie Franklin (Celeste O’Connor) had the potential to become a compelling trio of Spider-Women, yet the film relegated their backstory to a mere line of dialogue that was not referenced again. As such, Madame Web fails at setting up an origin story for the three characters.
Perhaps the character who suffers the most from an insufficient characterisation is the villain, Ezekiel Sims (Tahar Rhaim). Little is known about him bar his “bad guy” status; moreover, the motives behind his actions are never fully developed, making him an unconvincing antagonist. To add insult to injury, the editing does not flatter him either – the ADR of his dialogue in particular, overrides any sense of identity the audience could get from him.
Editing and specific camera work contribute to making Madame Web a rather confusing feature: the end product feels hastily pieced together, inducing dizziness in certain sequences as the camera follows the characters’ movements too closely. The CGI, too, seems sloppy and underdeveloped.
Editing and specific camera work contribute to making Madame Web a rather confusing feature: the end product feels hastily pieced together, inducing dizziness in certain sequences as the camera follows the characters’ movements too closely.
Although Madame Web was conceived as Cassie’s eponymous heroine origin story, it fails to deliver by presenting a plot that generates more questions than answers. Furthermore, the abundance of (often wrong) pop culture references and product placement seem forced and at times disjointed from the overall narrative. Nevertheless, setting an action scene to Britney Spears’ “Toxic” certainly makes sense considering the chaotic nature of the film.
Setting an action scene to Britney Spears’ “Toxic” certainly makes sense considering the chaotic nature of the film.
If you did not like Madame Web, you are not alone: it currently has a 1.5 stars average rating on popular film social media Letterboxd. If you were confused by it, you can find comfort in knowing that Dakota Johnson, too, appeared largely unimpressed with the film throughout its press tour.
These two hours were not completely useless, though: at least, the audience exited the screen knowing how to practise CPR.