Madame Web
Marcel's "Madame Web": a rough review
Hannah Langley '25
Opinion and News Editor
Marvel’s newest action movie was not the biggest hit with their usual fan base. Madame Web is an action movie about a clairvoyant woman connected to three younger women she has to save from an unknown threat. I have my own opinions on this movie, so without further ado, spoiler warning!
The first scene is with the main character Cassie Web, an antisocial paramedic from Queens. I really like how we saw all of the main characters in their true and oblivious forms in the beginning sequence. It made me, as a viewer, feel like I was more connected to the movie, which is a little freaky considering that is the whole plot of the movie: that everything is connected (hence the web). The directors played that well, which I applaud.
Cassie Web lacked some depth as the main character, and although there were a lot of great emotional scenes with her mother, I didn't feel like I knew Cassie as well as I should have by the end. I really liked the plot line with her mother, but it all felt pretty rushed. I mean, I don't know if I was the only one who didn't see the resentment she held for her mother until she actually said it.
The villain in this movie was also not my favorite. Tahar Rahim’s acting did not have the right amount of suspense, so I cringed more than a few times. If there was a more sinister or mysterious atmosphere built around him, I would have had a more enjoyable time watching him.
I thoroughly disliked the CGI when Cassie sees her clairvoyant powers when she is underwater at any point in the movie. It was not the most subtle, pick up the sarcasm, and they never really explained her powers or how she learned to master them, which was my least favorite part of the movie. Everyone loves the classic marvel-hero-masters-their-power scene.
A billboard for the "Madame Web" movie.
The way they portrayed the three teenage girls started accurately but got worse and more inaccurate as the movie went on. The girls were great characters with some depth, but I can't say I was impressed by any means. Their wardrobes, however, were super cute, which was one of the only great things I have to say about this movie.
The ending was also not my favorite, in fact, I will be honest and say I strongly disliked it. The ending felt rushed and not well thought out, especially the montage of all the girls in the future. A lot of this movie was just me saying “what?” to myself under my breath with three other people in the movie theater.
I am all for a complicated plot, but there is a difference between intentional twists and bad writing. I think “Madame Web” is a mix of both as there was not enough development on anything, especially Cassie’s powers, which I really hated. I do not know if that was intentional or not because it could have been trying to make the audience see inside Cassie’s mind, but they shouldn't have done that either way.
The whole movie was pretty underwhelming, and I didn't really like it until all the action happened in the end and when all the girls truly realized their friendship. Too many missed opportunities to make well developed and essential character building scenes made this movie pretty bad in my opinion
I would not discourage people from watching, but I would not expect much from this half-done marvel movie.