Nicolas Cage’s riveting performance packs the thrill & punch

Synopsis:

Set in the 1930s with a noir setup, an aging Ben Reilly, working as a PI, struggling with his past and bills, must don the mask once again as an exceptional case comes his way. A case that has a connection to one of his pasts, before he changed his identity to “Ben Reilly”.

Trailer:

Images:

My Review:

First things first, Nicolas Cage as Ben Reilly was phenomenal. Claps to the big guy. He nailed it. Albeit Nicolas Cage plays the same character in the Spider-Verse film series, this one’s grounded in a different universe. The series is available in its “Authentic Black & White” as well as “True-Hue Full Color,” perfectly capturing its smoky 1930s cinematic look. Either way, it delivers a perfect comic book blend with an amazing hook, albeit I watched it in True-Hue Full Color format. Nicolas’ flair commands the show.

Thought they would eventually reveal a lingering connection to the Spider-Verse at some point, but it turns out this was a complete standalone story. Here we have Nic play Ben, who is the “Spider” and was protecting the city for some time, until now. The plot was indeed strong, engaging, and fun. The performance of each cast member and their characters was wonderful. Lamorne Morris’ Joe “Robbie” Robertson is optimistic and genuine. The sweet love-hate office relationship with Karen Rodriguez as Janet Ruiz, and Li Jun Li as Cat Hardy, the seductive femme fatale nightclub singer, brings their acts well and lively. Dirk Leyden (Megawatt), played by Andrew Lewis Caldwell, is one chatty, irritating antagonist (not the usual chatty one, but more of a self-commentating one with a wannabe-poetic touch), and is trying to steal the thunder. Jack Huston’s Flint Marko (Sandman) and Brendan Gleeson’s Finbar “Finn” Byrne (Silvermane) also played well enough.

The origin of the show’s Spidey differs quite a tad from the comics; for starters, comics had Peter Parker, and here we’ve Ben Reilly. If Peter gains his powers by a mystical origin, while science and a German experimentation POW camp (and also a cameo by Man-Spider) play a part in Ben’s mutation in the series. Nic was Ben for most of the series, and there wasn’t too much of web-slinging Spidey action.

The showrunner, Uzeil, in a conversation with Slash Film, shared that they had originally planned Sticks, a powerful character, in Season 1. But…yeah, there’s a but; the show’s producers didn’t proceed with Sticks as he seemed to overpower other villains, coz he could kill anyone with a mere touch. But the idea is open for Season 2 as he stated, “There’s a character … shoot, I’m hoping I’m going to remember his name, called Sticks, I believe, I loved it for ‘Noir,’ and maybe I’ll use it in Season 2 if we do one.” 

Now, as aforementioned, Spider-Noir’s plot was great indeed, but at some instances it felt like they were rushing the story a tad faster than it should’ve been. Some instances require 1-2 episodes, but that much time wasn’t given. Like the initial reason for the return of The Spider, Cat Hardy decoding Ben, a doctor capturing him for her own good, and so on. But otherwise, Nic and others really pulled it off.

Final Verdict:

A twist to the original with a noir-ish setup.

Rating: 4.3 of 5 stars.

^{Pic Credits: MGM+, Amazon Prime, Marvel}