Madame Web's Spider Powers Explained (Kind Of, We Think)
This article contains major spoilers for "Madame Web."
Good news, fellow arachnophobes! Yes, it's an unfortunate inevitability that any film related to "Spider-Man" is going to feature at least a little bit of spidery spookiness at some point in the story. The same remains true of "Madame Web," the newly-released standalone film in Sony's Spider-Man Universe. But here's the biggest point in our favor: All those pesky, eight-legged arachnids are rendered in wholly unconvincing CGI, thus making this a far, far cry from Shelob in "The Return of the King" or that jump-scare early on in the first "Dune" movie. Yet even if they only exist in ones and zeroes, the nasty little critters are still chiefly responsible for, well, all the superpowered action taking place in the movie.
The opening scene immediately sets the stage for us, explaining how rare spiders in the Amazon jungle are apparently the key to unlocking a whole host of health benefits and scientific advancements. Too bad a bite from these buggers also happens to come with a certain side effect: the ability to see the future, more or less. It's made abundantly clear that the villainous Ezekiel Sims (Tahar Rahim) possesses this power (along with the capacity to walk on ceilings and walls), but things are much less clear when it comes to Dakota Johnson's Cassandra Webb. Again and again, the exasperated superhero-in-the-making has to explain to her temporary wards Julia Cornwall (Sydney Sweeney), Mattie Franklin (Celeste O'Connor), and Aña Corazón (Isabela Merced) that it's not quite as simple as knowing what's going to happen at all times. And that's not even going into the baffling new skill she unlocks by the end of the film.
What follows is our best attempt to explain just what the heck is happening here.
Spidey Sense ... with a twist
In the comics, Cassandra Webb possesses a power unique among spider-powered heroes. Thanks to the Web of Life and Destiny (yes, that's actually what it's called), a high-dimensional network or construct that allows for multiversal travel, Madame Web boasts physic abilities that puts her in the same league as the X-Men's Professor Xavier, as opposed to an even playing field with any of Spider-Man's animal-based friends or foes. The film, directed by S.J. Clarkson, puts its own spin on the character by tying her powers to her mother Constance's (Kerry Bishé) research in the Amazon jungle, where she searched for a rare spider that (we eventually learn) could cure her unborn daughter's degenerative neurological disease. But, somehow, this results in a power that can only be described as clairvoyance.
Although not depicted with the most effective filmmaking ever committed to screen (to put it mildly), we get the idea that Cassie can receive bursts of information laying out possible future events. Once Cassie has her near-death experience early on, we see a version of the Web of Destiny imbue her with the ability to perceive dangers and threats that haven't actually happened yet — confirmed through, of all things, an experiment with an open window and a New York City pigeon. It's sort of like being stuck in a time loop "Edge of Tomorrow"-style, providing an advantage over how to best approach a situation without it ending in disaster. In a better movie, such a neat twist on the usual Spidey Sense would make this stand out from the pack. Here, it only ever scratches the surface of its visual-storytelling potential.
But that's nothing compared to the reveal of the full extent of her powers later on.
Doctor Strange called, he wants his powers back
"Madame Web" saves its wildest reveal for last. After laying the groundwork through the mysterious society of Spider People residing deep in the Amazon — where these superpowered beings have access to hidden pools with miraculous healing abilities — we come to a pretty random scene that adds yet another layer to Cassie's potential. When she returns to Peru to find answers, her encounter with one of the leaders of the Spider People (played by José María Yazpik) results in a moment taken straight out of 2016's "Doctor Strange." He essentially astral-projects her soul right out from her body and hints at the idea that she can be in multiple places at the same time — if only she hones her abilities. Unlike that far superior Marvel movie, we never actually see Cassie truly come to terms with her powers and take the next step. But that doesn't stop her from suddenly calling upon that skill and using it to save the trio of girls from Ezekiel at the most crucial moment of the third act.
It doesn't make a ton of sense and it's not even vaguely based on anything spider-related, but there it is. By the end, Madame Web is rendered both blind and paralyzed. Inexplicably, this allows her to reach self-actualization and unlock the full breadth of her powers. Unfortunately, it mostly just results in a robotic impression of Professor X, complete with a wheelchair and retro-futuristic sunglasses that mostly just look like Elon Musk's hypothetical, try-hard redesign of 3D glasses.
It's a disappointing and mostly head-scratching endpoint for Cassie, even if this puts her more in line with her comic-book counterpart. But, hey, that's superhero movies for you. "Madame Web" is currently webbing it up in theaters.