Madame Web – WISE Score & Parent Review | Screenwise

Madame Web

Name: Screenwise
Author: Screenwise

movie2024

28%

WISE Score

Avg. Tomatometer

Sony's Spider-verse stumbles spectacularly with this precognition-powered mess that even superhero-loving kids will struggle to sit through.

10%

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Madame Web

movie

PG-13, 2024

28%

WISE Score

Avg. Tomatometer

Sony's Spider-verse stumbles spectacularly with this precognition-powered mess that even superhero-loving kids will struggle to sit through.

10%

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Screenwise Verdict

Let's be brutally honest: Madame Web is one of 2024's biggest cinematic misfires. With a 10% critic score and 1.5/5 on Letterboxd, this isn't just "not great"—it's actively bad.

The premise (paramedic gains precognition, protects three young women from a villain) could work, but the execution is so poor that even the 53% audience score feels generous. The plot is confusing, the CGI looks unfinished, and the pacing is all over the place.

From a safety perspective, it's fine—standard superhero action without anything traumatic. But that's the only thing it has going for it. There's no enrichment value, minimal entertainment value, and certainly nothing imaginative about yet another poorly-executed superhero origin story.

If your kid is begging to watch it because they love Spider-Man, just... put on Into the Spider-Verse instead. Or Across the Spider-Verse. Or literally any other Spider-adjacent content. Your family's movie night deserves better than this.

Age Fit

Common Sense Media suggests 11+ for action violence, which tracks for superhero content. However, the real question isn't whether kids CAN watch it, but whether anyone SHOULD watch it. Even superhero-obsessed tweens will likely find this boring and confusing.

WISE Breakdown

Wholesome

Standard superhero action violence with some mentoring themes between Cassandra and the three young women. However, the film's poor execution, confusing plot, and lack of emotional coherence undermine any positive messaging about relationships or cooperation. The chaotic pacing and disjointed storytelling make it hard to extract meaningful emotional takeaways.

Imaginative

While the premise of precognition and Spider-verse mythology has potential, the film is widely criticized for unoriginal execution, poor CGI, and uninspired storytelling. The Letterboxd rating of 1.5/5 and 10% critic score reflect that this brings nothing fresh or creative to the superhero genre. It's derivative without being inventive.

Safe

Common Sense Media rates it for age 11+, suggesting moderate superhero action violence but nothing shocking or traumatic. As a PG-13 superhero film, it likely contains standard action sequences without gore, explicit content, or unexpected disturbing material. However, without confirmed MPAA rating in the data, confidence is slightly reduced.

Enriching

With a 10% Rotten Tomatoes critic score, 4.1/10 IMDb rating, and 1.5/5 Letterboxd score, this is universally panned as poorly made cinema. There's virtually no cognitive, ethical, or personal growth value here. It's not entertaining enough to justify the time investment, and offers no meaningful themes, character development, or skill-building. The 26 Metacritic score confirms this is critically considered a failure.

Parent Info

✓

Why It Might Be Great

Features female-led superhero story with mentorship themes between women
Action violence is relatively tame for the genre (age 11+)
Could spark interest in Spider-verse lore for die-hard Marvel completists
Short enough that the pain ends in under two hours

⚠

What to Watch For

This is genuinely bad cinema—10% critic score isn't a typo
Confusing plot and poor CGI may frustrate rather than entertain
Standard superhero action violence (fighting, peril) appropriate for tweens
Kids might ask to turn it off mid-movie, and that's completely reasonable

Conversation Starters

"What did you think was happening in that movie? Because honestly, I'm not sure either."
"If you could see the future like Cassandra, what would you want to know?"
"Why do you think some superhero movies work and others just... don't?"
"Should we watch a better Spider-verse movie to cleanse our palate?"

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