From a studio that isn’t Marvel comes the thrilling origin story of a character you’ve vaguely heard of! Yep, it’s the latest entry in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe, and if you thought Morbius was bad, Madame Web wants you to hold its beer…
How to watch Madame Web in New Zealand
Madame Web is screening in New Zealand cinemas right now.
Madame Web
What is Madame Web about?
Set in the early 2000s, Madame Web tells the tale of orphaned EMT Cassandra Web, who develops precognitive powers that are somehow connected to the death of her pregnant mother while studying spiders in the Amazon back in the day. Just in time, too, as she must mentor a trio of nascent superheroes while battling a mysterious villain who sort of looks like a photo negative of Spider-Man.
The whole thing feels like the sort of superhero movies studios fanged out on the reg before Batman Begins and the MCU changed the game, but also a filler franchise flick more concerned with setting up future instalments than doing its own thing.
The cast of Madame Web
Dakota Johnson is Cassandra; Sydney Sweeney, Celeste O’Connor, and Isabela Merced are her trio of proteges; Tahar Rakim is villain Ezekiel Sims; with Emma Roberts, Adam Scott, Zosia Mamet, and Kerry Bishé in support. Scott is playing a guy called Ben who’s really looking forward to being an uncle…whoever could he be?
Madame Web trailer
What the critics are saying about Madame Web
Nothing good, True Believer, nothing good. The general consensus is that Madame Web is listless, awkward, and cynical, in that it seems to be more about keeping the IP alive than telling a compelling story. Even those few positive reviews out there seem grudging. But, to be fair, there’s a certain camp value to the whole thing, the cast do what they can with the material, and…no, that’s about it.
