‘Spider-Man’ makes a swing overseas

Let this be said right up front: Do not stop watching “Spider-Man: Far From Home” before the end credits are over.

Hopefully, FX will leave them at full-screen size when it shows the 2019 film as part of a “Spider-Man” marathon Sunday, March 31. If you do walk away too soon, you’ll miss a major twist, and one that certainly was vital to the next movie in the series (2021’s “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” which will be shown immediately after this). This film is quite enjoyable, and with all the Spidey stories there have been, it still relies on the basic and familiar premise of our young hero battling the monster du jour.

In this case, it’s really multiple monsters, which take various forms as Peter Parker and his pals embark on a school trip through Europe in the aftermath of the events of “Avengers: Endgame” ... and the picture is wise in changing the setting, since “Spider-Man” typically has been an all-American venture. The group’s first stop is Venice, which barely survives (though some might argue that it doesn’t) an attack by the so-called Elementals — and then, Prague scarcely fares any better.

“Elementals” is a pretty clever name for the bad guys, since they take in the characteristics of such elements as water and fire, and in extremely big and destructive ways. Of course, that lets the special-effects team have a field day, generating some whoppers of visuals given the creative freedom that computer-created imagery enables.

Tom Holland hits more of the right notes in this turn as the web-slinger, whether the young hero is trying to woo Mary Jane (played by Zendaya) rather clumsily or scoping out a would-be mentor who comes to be known as Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal, another example of the fun casting of known “guest stars” - see Michael Douglas, Jeff Bridges, etc. — that the Marvel movies delve into).