My Personal Thoughts on "Spider-Man: Homecoming"
After a successful run of the “Spider-man” franchise throughout the noughties, we are presented with the third iteration of the web-slinging superhero, though this time through the eyes of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. His brief debut in Captain America: Civil War was well received by theatre audiences around the world and boded well for the planned reboot. So, were the genius team (who seem they can do no wrong) at MCU able to deliver a fresh, new twist to the already well established formula of our beloved Spider-man character yet again?
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A young Peter Parker (played by Tom Holland), currently in high school, is still reeling from his entanglement in the fight that went down in “Civil War”. This leads him to crime fight to his spare time until he unwittingly gets discovered by his best friend, Ned (played by Jacob Batalon). Meanwhile downtown, a local salvage company, headed by Adrian Toomes (played by Michael Keaton) is tasked to clean up the city, but whose operation gets abruptly overtaken by another initiative run by Tony Stark. Leaving on bad terms, Toomes using scrap metal collected over time, builds hi-tech weaponry and the “Vulture” suit. Inevitably, fate’s hand lead the two to meet head on, culminating in a showdown of epic proportions and spanning across almost the entire city.
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Now, the first thing I gathered shortly after settling into watching this movie? The heavy emphasis on character and social relationships. Some may even say at the expense of the actual core “superhero element”. In that, I mean to say that if one expects an all-out action fest that we are so used to seeing from previous versions of “Spider-man”, some may walk out sorely disappointed. I, however, welcome the change in direction. Watching this new version of “Spider-man” swoop in from high above, traverse nimbly through the city using his trademark web-shooters and performing all manner of death-defying acrobatics, is all well and good. But let’s be honest. There isn’t much in terms of his superhero antics we haven’t already been introduced to. We have walked very familiar grounds here, especially with the all to easy "copy-and-paste" nature of the last two instalments of “Spider-man” that I wasn’t too impressed with. So, focusing on his everyday life and being able to “relate” to him on a more humanistic level, was a stroke of pure brilliance.
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The action, while sparse during the duration of the movie, is suitably frantic and dazzling when it has to be. Albeit, nothing you’ve never seen before. Sometimes I do feel we as an audience have been desensitised to all the incredible choreography, CGI and film-work that goes into creating these fast-paced set pieces. Whilst it took me a some time of acclimating myself to accept Tom Holland as the newest incarnation of “Spider-man”, much of this was due to the genuinely stunning performance of Michael Keaton as Toomes. He pulls off an exceptional portrayal of the vengeful arch villain in this movie. His emotions, bitterness and most importantly, justification for his actions, are all spot on and make complete sense from our standpoint. There are defined reasons behind the choices he makes and every time he cues an entrance on-screen, his superior acting abilities can’t help but cast a shadow over everyone else. A masterclass by a veteran of our times.
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If there were any faults to pick, it would be fair to say there are a few. For instance, it should come as no surprise al all that because this “Spider-man” is set in the MCU, there will be familiar faces from the previous movies to keep the background narrative flowing. Namely, Peter Parker’s surrogate paternal guidance counsellor and mentor, Iron-man. His role is this movie was, at best, confusing. With the stakes set so very high, you have to ask yourself why in the world would the avengers not come to the aid of their affable counterpart. Instead, we are treated to a sort of weird succession of “training” programs seemingly set up by Tony Stark himself. And some which could have led to the demise of our famous web-slinger altogether. A little extreme, I thought. Add into the mix a couple of extra Spidey suit abilities that I feel kind of “jumped the shark” so to speak and you’d be forgiven for raising an eyebrow or two at the screen or left scratching your head in disbelief.
For the most part, Spider-Man: Homecoming succeeds in what it sets out to do. That being to produce a new, invigorating spin on an age-old formula that, to be perfectly honest, was in desperate need of an update. More of a “Spider-Boy” movie than anything to do with a man per se, this coming-of-age superhero story will leave a lasting impression on you long after the credits have rolled. A resounding success in general, which only gets me more pumped up to see what else the super-brains over at Marvel Studios can come up with next.
My Verdict: (8.5/10)
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As always, I agree completely. This section is pretty much what I thought after watching the movie:
Keeping in mind that I've been one of the few people in the world who actually liked the Amazing Spiderman franchise (I thought Andrew Garfield was a brilliant choice for the character), I have to say I appreciated this change of pace too. I like how Peter's never taken seriously and he has to sweat due to his age and his inexperience.
I also liked his relationship with his best friend (who of course, is a huge teenage nerd with the skills of an NSA analyst), who'd wish that his friend being a superhero could be the turning point of their social life in college, and gets disappointed when Peter keeps the whole thing to himself.
As always thanks for these reviews Ezzy, I'm learning a lot from your style, and you always make some very good points.
Hey there, @ziofeda! Looks like we have pretty much "twin" perspectives on this.
I really like this statement and couldn't agree more on it. The awe he felt at having a secret superhero as a friend was just as impactful as what Peter Parker was going through himself. But you had to "look for it" if you know what I mean. :)
I thought this was one of most fun Spider-man I've watch.
I love the subtle and not so subtle jokes and the IOT help he got from Tony's lab.
Yeah, I certainly didn't expect so many unique and different aspects when watching this movie. A job well done all round, I think. :)
Agree totally
Wow 8.5/10 - that's a pretty high bar. I will have to check it out bud :)
Hey there, buddy. Yeah, I was pretty impressed with the efforts of Marvel concerning this production. The new direction they are taking with this franchise seem to be working well at the moment. :)
I agree with you, it's a really good Spider-man movie. Fantastic action scenes followed by momentum and tension, teenage superhero and a fantastic performance by Michael Keaton. I can't find a single thing to not agree with you...
Thank you for saying so. I was overall quite impressed with the new direction they are taking this character in.
Personally, I feel like this is my favorite take on the character. I hated Garfield's turn, and I feel like Maguire's take was lacking the quips, though he did nail that awkwardness to a science. When I was growing up, Spider-Man had already seen his share of the action. I had to go back to the archives to see his history unfold. The high school to college age was my favorite down-on-his-luck Peter of all. It just wasn't the same when he's dealing with the same problem as an adult. I like how they set up the supporting cast here with the updated setting. Though I'm not that fond of the new Flash and MJ. I feel like they went in the wrong direction with those two.
Hey there, young brother!
Yeah, as always I whole-heartedly agree with you. I really detested Garfield as Spider-Man however felt Maguire was quite solid. This newest iteration is more faithful to the comic books which I did like. There are many branching paths the creative team behind this movie can go now...
And the new MJ? Needs a lot more work at this point... :)
The great thing about Holland is I really feel like he's into the role. Actors are often able to leave characters because it's just a role for them. Given the enthusiasm, which I surely hope is genuine, I'm sure Holland would do great.
If the new MJ was a new character instead, I would be all for it.
"His role is this movie was, at best, confusing."
I have to agree. Also, Happy's indifference towards Peter was a bit strange.
Even though both Tony and Happy featured I personally feel that the dynamics in their relationships with Peter was too ambiguous. I do like the paternal Stark but feel like it could've been conveyed a little more cleverly.
Good write-up nevertheless and I'd say it's worth the watch.
Thanks for the feedback, bud. Yeah, Tony Stark's role was something of an enigma to me. Without giving away too much here, he did have his "timing" locked down at the most dramatic of points within the movie. It was a strange mix that I fell didn't work as well as it could have. :)
Yea, what you say is very similar to how I think about the movie.
But aren't all of Spiderman series great? I love them all :d
Tom Holland is the best Spidey!
Many seem to share your sentiments, buddy. :)
...and Marisa Tomei is the best Aunt May!
I'm going to watch as soon as I get home
Great! Something to look forward to! :)
spider man siempre ha sido uno de mis personajes favoritos, y en las próximas películas de Marvel siento que sera el centro de atención :)