"Oh fantastic", I'm sure many people would have said sarcastically as soon as yet ANOTHER Spider-Man movie was announced, making for the sixth big screen movie starring the character and third reboot of the franchise in a mere fifteen years. So what's different this time? After the collapse of the "Amazing Spider-Man" series, Marvel Studios and Sony reached an agreement to allow the character to be used in the MCU, as I'm sure most people know after his brief appearance in "Captain America: Civil War" last year. Now the character has been given his own movie set within the MCU alongside the Avengers. With executive producer and Marvel godfather Kevin Feige partly overseeing production, the movie is finally here and it already stands in my mind as the best of the six Spider movies. Tom Holland stars as Peter Parker, a typical high school student who of course has a secret identity as New York's friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man. Immediately the story is far more gripping than other Spider-Man movies given it's enhanced focus on Peter as a high-school student. The character of Spider-Man is at his best when we see the constant struggles to reach a balance between his life as Peter Parker and his vigilantism by night. Not only do we see his in this movie as our favourite Wed Head, but he's also trying to impress a returning Tony Stark (once again played by Robert Downey Jr.), as well as balance his school activities, work, his home life, and a blossoming romance with classmate Liz (played by Laura Harrier). Oh, and there's also the small problem of an arms dealer known as the Vulture (Michael Keaton) due to his high-tech wings, who is flooding the streets with alien weaponry. All in a day's work. It's an engaging conflict we see the character forced into with himself, as we see him constantly have to make difficult decisions due to his commitment to his secret identity but desire for more beyond that. That said, it's not all glum in this story, and, as in previous instalments, director Jon Watts knows that this is a story which has to be told in a fun way. This is hands down one of Marvel's funniest movies, and every joke in the movie hits it's mark.
The characters in the movie are also extremely well-executed for the most part, at least in terms of the main cast. Tom Holland is in my opinion the best version of Spider-Man to ever grace the silver screen. Holland perfectly achieves a balance between Peter Parker and Spider-Man that both Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield failed to capture. While Maguire was a great Peter and Garfield a great masked hero, Holland is the best of both worlds. He comes across as the perfect socially awkward nerd that Peter needs to be to make his situation, particularly with Liz, all the more relatable and enjoyable to watch. That said, he's also a great deal of fun when he puts on the suit and turns into the confident, cocky teenager that comes hand in hand with the character. A hero is only as good as their villain, however, and Michael Keaton puts in brilliant work as Adrian Toomes AKA The Vulture. Early on, we are given good reason to find his actions believable and sympathetic, and Keaton perfectly sells the emotional moments the character is graced with. It's also great to see a Marvel villain not hell bent on world domination/destruction and is just out to make money; it's a refreshing change of pace that makes Vulture one of Marvel's most enjoyable villains. The rest of the acting in the movie is also excellent. Robert Downey Jr. is of course excellent once again as Tony Stark, this time in a mentor-type role, while Jon Favreau also returns as head of security Happy Hogan. New cast members to the MCU are also excellent. Laura Harrier is great and defies expectations as love interest Liz through her brilliant dynamic with Holland; Jacob Batalon is fun as sidekick Ned; Zendaya's Michelle has some memorable moments; and Marisa Tomei's Aunt May is entertaining as a younger version of the character unseen in the movies before now. However, while the acting is all solid, the supporting cast is slightly underserved in the writing department. Their characters are fairly clichéd, and some of the arcs they go through are rather predictable. For example, this character is clever and thinks they don't need friends. How do you think that story is going to end? It's a real shame because the main characters are written so brilliantly, only for the supporting crew to be given the short straw by the writers. Thankfully, it's still fun watching them thanks to the performances the actors give.
 |
| Spider-Man, now sponsored by Stark Industries |
Since this is a superhero movie, there are of course action sequences scattered throughout the city and are constantly entertaining. The film achieves a perfect balance between the down moments of the high school setting and Peter's everyday life (although these re perhaps given a slight prominence), and the action that comes hand-in-hand with his duties as Spider-Man. However, due to the lack of experience this Spider-Man has in fighting crime on a significant scale, the sequences are also given an added sense of tension, particularly later in the film when the Vulture begins to play on a lethal level. Every hit our hero takes is given the appropriate weight to it, and, as an audience, we feel every loss and beating he takes throughout the film. Not only this, but the action was surprisingly original throughout, and was not like anything ever seen in a superhero film before, a pleasant shock given the constant talk of "superhero fatigue" these days. Never before have we seen aerial battles on the scale that having a flying villain like the Vulture allows, and the frequently advertised plot device of Spider-Man's new suit (courtesy of one Tony Stark) also contributes to this. Not one to be satisfied with a simple suit to just fight crime in with basic web shooters, Iron Man has decked out Peter's suit with gadgets and gizmos never used in a Spider-Man film before and, as more and more are unveiled, the action becomes crazier and crazier. Thankfully, given that point, the visual effects of the movie are also on point. The CGI is all incredibly convincing and never breaks the immersion of the action in the movie itself. All of the effects associated with Spider-Man himself are phenomenal, as well as those glimpsed with other villains like the Shocker and alien technology gathered by the Vulture, but the primary effect I have to highlight is the that of the main villain himself. I had some serious concerns about the translation the Vulture would undergo from comic panel to a big screen production. It is one of the many comic book ideas which, when seen on the page, are so ridiculous that is becomes hard to imagine them working in a live action context. Seriously, just look up the classic Vulture costume on Google and you'll see what I mean. However, I have to then give a round of applause to the effects and costume department for their work here. Rather than adapt the classic look, the crew on the film have thankfully taken a different route to give the villain a more monstrous mechanical look which looks as good idle as it does in flight on in the middle of a combat situation. It's a truly excellent effect which works within the grounded corner of the MCU.
 |
| And there was me thinking the Vulture couldn't work on the big screen |
Very quickly, there are a few other aspects of the movie which I would like to give some admiration to. Firstly, Michael Giacchino's soundtrack for the movie is excellent. Although the main theme itself is borrowed largely from the Avengers movies, it still works as a basis for the movie itself. It is the other music that make this music stand out to me, and in particular Liz's Theme and the Vulture's Theme. The latter especially I love. The slow and eerily quiet piano riff which opens the music only to be followed by a deep, booming repeat of the same tune gives the piece a terrifying feel to it, almost like a predator (a vulture even) circling or hunting its prey. This is particularly admirable given that Marvel's soundtrack are infamous at least in my mind for being incredibly unmemorable. It's great to be able to highlight one more to add to the very small ranks of Marvel's great soundtracks. As a side note, it's a further testament to Giacchino's talent as a composer that he was composed two of the soundtracks which stand out in my mind (this one of course, and the other being from "Doctor Strange" last year). Secondly, the cinematography in the movie is excellent, as it needs to be with Spider-Man. Particularly near the beginning of the film, the camera work as it follows out hero's movements through the urban neighbourhoods of Queens, New York are extremely well filmed and incredibly fun to watch. Finally, although this is a smaller point in this instance given the grounded setting of this movie in comparison to a lot of other Marvel movies recently, the production design in relation to the sets, make-up and costume design is excellent. This has been a consistent point across practically all of Marvel movies, but it's still nice to give it a mention.
 |
| Tom Holland and Laura Harrier have great chemistry throughout |
There is not much left to say about "Spider-Man: Homecoming". Almost all of the movie is executed perfectly. With never a dull moment to weigh it down, director Jon Watts has delivered an extremely fun movie, with excellent writing and a consistently hilarious script, filled to the brim with jokes which always land. The acting is also excellent on all fronts, and the action is extremely entertaining and often surprisingly original. The effects, cinematography and music are also all excellent. The only fault I might put to the movie is that some of the minor characters are slightly underdeveloped, but that is nowhere near a big enough problem that I should recommend against you seeing this movie. If there is one final thing I should mention, it's a reassurance to all of you who have watched the trailers for the movie, and in particular the second trailer which seemed to give away a lot of plot details and even outline the entire plot structure. I can promise each and every one of you that, even as a comic book fan, I was frequently pleasantly surprised when watching the movie. With plenty of twists and turns throughout, the movie is always engaging and exciting to watch. Thanks to the fantastic writing, cast, and action, "Spider-Man: Homecoming" stands in my mind as one of Marvel's best movies, and I truly can't wait to watch this one again. All I can say is thank goodness Marvel and Sony reached the deal they have. It's good to see our friendly neighbourhood web slinger back home where he belongs.
Rating: 9/10
Pros
- A balanced and fun story
- Tom Holland as the best Spider-Man
- A phenomenal supporting cast
- Constantly funny
- Entertaining action sequences
- Stunning visuals
- A brilliant score
Cons
- A few underdeveloped characters
Original Release Date: 5th of July, 2017
Starring Tom Holland, Michael Keaton, Laura Harrier, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Jon Favreau, Marisa Tomei, Donald Glover, and Robert Downey Jr.
No comments:
Post a Comment