After watching the bonus features of the home video release of Madame Web, I’m surprised that showrunner S. J. Clarkson actually knew what she was doing. She looked into what made this supporting character from the Marvel Comics Spider-Man comic books special. She got some bits right which gets quickly explained in “Oracle of the Page” but to change it around lots resulted in making it the mess that it is. Between getting a copy to review versus paying to see it made the difference in when I’d eventually watch this film.
By radically changing specific details up and having this story take place early in the MCU continuity might cause problems. There’s a moment concerning Ben Parker, the father to Peter, but will enough people catch the reference? The bigger question concerns how much of this tale is also part of that grander design versus being Sony Spidey-verse specific? The only good part of the film is in how the second incarnation of Spider Woman looks perfect. Sydney Sweeney (instead of Carpenter from the books) is perhaps the best part of the film when she finally dons the black and white costume.
So why is there a lot of hate for this film? I strongly believe the concern lay in trying to establish a lore that’s not altogether there. The Spider Woman of legend created the world, and taught the Hopi the ways of civilization; according to other traditions, they make medicine (which is story accurate), magic and act like seers. They are helpers to humanity. (1)
As for whether some higher up didn’t want to rehash the idea which made the movie Driving Miss Daisy great, that was my hope whe news of this movie being made was dropped. That film did phenomenally well because of the underlying message and convincing performances from Morgan Freeman as Hoke Colbum and Jessica Tandy as Daisy. That fire Tandy exuded was needed to make “Cassie” Webb (Dakota Johnson) stand out.
It’s less about casting an older character into the role as originally presented in the books, but rather more about who can convey that sense of being a Moirai as one figure than three. I suspect that’s why she found these trio of girls since they have the potential to represent Clothos, Lachesis and Atropos. Yes, I would’ve liked someone of Greek descent to play the title role and to so would help cement the idea that the spider is a mythical figure to be revered. And to include some themes from Alfred Uhry’s tale would’ve helped make this tale stand out. To see her fight for the rights of her students would’ve crafted a more meaningful dynamic.
This film started off well with an Indiana Jones style prologue. When Ezekiel Sims (Tahar Rahim) and Constance Webb (Kerry Bishé) were in Peru in search of a “fountain of youth,” and the male became a turncoat, I was hooked. Technically, what they’re searching for is an arachnoid with a venom that has restorative properties, and when this guy gets greedy, that’s when problems arise. He leaves his partner behind to die, but thankfully, fortune favours the bold. A local tribe rescues the pregnant woman and uses the spider’s gift so she has the strength to give birth to Cassie. There’s a promise made by one of the mysterious spider warriors, and that’s when a leap of faith is required as the tale jumps ahead by many years.
There’s not enough exposition to explain how the kid left the jungle and went to live in New York. I like to know why she decided to become a paramedic and this stranger from Peru doesn’t have a role that’s well put together. After an accident while on the job, she has the ability to see into the future. It’s assumed that the toxin somehow got passed from parent to womb.
Aside from not thinking out how the powers came to be transmitted, this movie would’ve been fine had it not included decades’ worth of lore in its Easter egg collection. I can see this motion picture working without the Spider-Man brand put behind it. But with it, that’s a dangerous world to explore when the studio has the opportunity to retcon the entire lore since it takes place in the past.
For myself, I’m looking at the mythology and the hero’s journey. Had Madame Web been a drama about the three young teens coming of age and having their tale at the centre rather than being about her, I’d say there’s a complex story worth exploring. Each of them come from a different ethnic background. One is Kenyan (Celeste O’Connor as Mattie Franklin), to connect to Western African myths, another Hispanic (Isabela Merced as Anya Corazon) for ideas from Mesoamerica, and the other Caucasian (Sydney Sweeney as Julia Cornwall) for something European. Each world believes the spider represents an aspect of either trickery, creation, or destiny. In Andean culture, the spider might even be regarded as a fertility symbol and what’s offered barely scratches the surface.
And when the elder character is not even properly wise beyond her years to help others, that’s also an issue. When the bonus materials were most likely made while the movie was still out in theatres, it couldn’t delve into why movie critics and influencers are saying this movie is bad. I would’ve liked it had Columbia Pictures reacted fast enough to develop a featurette with this director’s being more detailed at defending why this film works. But alas nobody can truly predict when a film is a dud. Not even Madam Web can predict that’s just how the cookie crumbles.
3 Stars out of 5
Madame Web Movie Trailer
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