Madame Web

“Madame Web can’t shake the sense of a male gaze, egged on by its all-male writers.”

Title: Madame Web (2024)
Director: S.J. Clarkson 👩🏼🇬🇧
Writers: Kerem Sanga 👨🏼🇺🇸, Matt Sazama 👨🏼🇺🇸, and Burk Sharpless 👨🏼🇺🇸

Reviewed by Kylie 👩🏼🇺🇸🌈

—MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD—

Technical: 2/5

Without a new installment since 2019, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) appears to be pivoting away from the Avengers. Madame Web is stepping up to fill that superhero-sized hole in the studio’s chest of millions. Directed by S.J. Clarkson and headed by Dakota Johnson in the titular role of Madame Web (Cassie Webb), the $80 million film tells the story of the 1980 comic by the same name.

Zipping through 2003 Queens in her blaring ambulance, EMT Cassie grabs your attention from the get-go. After a near-death experience on the job, Cassie’s world becomes riddled with clairvoyant visions. In one of these spells, she envisions the demise of three young girls at the hands of immortality-obsessed villain, Ezekiel (Tahar Rahim). As she is called to protect this group of teenagers, she discovers the secrets from her and her mother’s past.

The film is flashy in that distinctly Marvel way, with state-of-the-art visuals, a pounding score accompaniment, and a star-studded cast. But it becomes obvious why such excessive stops must be pulled; the film falls apart otherwise. Moments of dialogue randomly stop syncing with their onscreen characters. A major aspect of the plot, a whole new race of spider people, is lazily explained by minute 15. Editing feels clunky and juvenile, far below the standard of filmmaking that usually comes out of this veteran studio.

Even with these downfalls, the film does find times to shine. Marvel’s innate ability to entertain a mass audience comes to Madame Web’s rescue, as Johnson delivers an emotionally compelling performance. It’s coupled with glowing, hypnotically stunning graphics as Cassie falls into her webbed visions of the future. All together, the film achieves a forgettable status. Instead of giving itself over to the “bad movie” trope, which can bring its own merits, Madame Web commits to sincerity while traversing its battlefield of cinematic missteps. The story tries to cement itself in the MCU, but just as this film has been announced to be a true stand-alone, it simply can’t compete in the big leagues.

Gender: 3/5
Does it pass the Bechdel Test? YES

With a majority female cast including director Clarkson, the film had a fighting chance at representing diverse experiences of womanhood. Madame Web, a woman in her thirties, assumes the maternal role in protecting the three young women as their lives are continually put in danger. But beyond the initial introduction of this dynamic, the relationships between these female characters never delve below the surface.

Typical of a Marvel film, the basic plot overpowers character development and nuance, making onscreen conversations feel contrived and watered-down. Additionally, the film can’t shake the sense of a male gaze, egged on by its all-male writers. In one scene, where the three teenage girls find refuge in a diner and are left alone, they apparently can’t think of anything to do except dance on top of a table of teenage boys to the tune of Britney Spears’ “Toxic.” This hypersexualization of young women adds no substance to the story and alienates more than it empowers.

Marvel has recently attempted to shine light on female stories of strength and sisterhood, seen in The Marvels (2023) and Captain Marvel (2019). But compared to these predecessors, Madame Web only scrapes the surface of providing an authentic story led by women. The inclusion of diverse female characters is a positive step for Marvel, but simply appearing on screen isn’t enough.

Race: 2/5

Racial diversity (and the lack thereof) in the MCU has been a topic of discussion for years. The first Avengers film premiering in 2011 had all five titular roles filled by white actors, with only sidekicks played by people of color. But in the semi-recent releases of inclusive blockbusters, like Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022) and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021), to name a couple, Marvel thankfully appears to understand audiences’ desire for more diverse stories.

From the outside, Madame Web seems to be another step in the right direction for representation. Two of these principal characters, Anya (played by Isabela Merced of Peruvian descent) and Mattie (Celeste O’Connor of Kenyan descent) are women of color. The villain of the story, Ezekiel, is played by French actor Rahim of Algerian descent. But, even with these actors, Madame Web falls short of a full commitment to diversity. Just as the rest of the film suffers from the subpar script, Anya, Mattie, and Ezekiel’s stories are hollow. And with a white director and white writers, the diversity behind the camera is similarly deficient.

Mediaversity Grade: D 2.33/5

At the end of the day, Madame Web is a forgettable Marvel film, manufactured to entertain you in a way that feels commercialized and superficial. Without a strong base to stand on, the film falls in on itself, but lacks the self-awareness to benefit off of these failures by digging into the camp -- a strategy used by so-bad-it’s-good titles like Tim Burton's Batman & Robin (1997). Had the film leaned into its “badness” and had fun with the material, there would at least be something to take away from Madame Web besides mere disappointment.

Like Madame Web? Try these other female-led Marvel titles.

Grade: DLiMay 14, 2024Female/Nonbinary Creator