"Can't you just be a friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man?" - Tony Stark.
I don't know if you've noticed at all, but Spider-Man's been in a lot of films in the twentieth century. We've seen Sam Raimi's trilogy from 2002-2007 to Marc Webb's reboot and sequel in 2012 and 2014, respectively. Here we are in 2017, and everyone's favourite wall-crawler is still a popular cinema attraction, with his latest solo outing being Spider-Man: Homecoming, following the successful re-introduction of the character in last year's Captain America: Civil War. So, now that Spider-Man is an integral part of the ever expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe, can he serve up another fun adventure with everything that makes the character great (see 2004's Spider-Man 2), or does this new entry get lost in its own web of plot and big comic book characters (see The Amazing Spider-Man 2)?
Skipping the origin story we are all familiar with, we join Peter Parker (Tom Holland) after the events of Civil War, with him already comfortable with how to use his powers, but still struggling to balance his life with school and superhero business. Seeking further opportunities to impress Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), Peter's wish is fulfilled when an arms dealing gang emerge selling hi-tech weaponry, lead by the bitter Adrian Toomes (Michael Keaton). Tagging along for the ride are Peter's best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon) and crush Liz (Laura Harrier), as Peter's pursuit of Toomes (aka Vulture) puts the lives of the people he cares about at risk. With Tony Stark forced to intervene, Peter must learn to cope without his gadget-laden costume and prove he really does have what it takes to be an Avenger in order to stop Toomes and live-up to his responsibilities as Spider-Man.
Having already seen Holland in the role in Civil War, Homecoming gives him the chance to fully become Spider-Man, and it certainly pays off. Holland has plenty of charisma when swinging around and fighting crime as the famous wall-crawler, but he is also allowed to shine as Peter Parker thanks to the film's style of being a high-school comedy with superhero action. Much of the focus falls on his friendship with Ned and his crush on popular girl Liz, which offers up plenty of humorous scenarios. Holland carries all of this extremely well, remaining likeable and engaging and a more than worthy Spider-Man. He brings out the fun side of the character without it ever becoming too cheesy, which is exactly how the character should be done in my opinion. Ned is a very typical sideman/nerdy best friend character, but at least gets some funny one-liners and helps keep the film's light tone intact. He never becomes irritating and he turns out to be a valuable partner in helping Spider-Man save the day. Liz, however, is just OK. She isn't really given a whole lot to do other than look pretty and have Peter stare at her. Harrier and Holland do at least have decent chemistry when together, but there isn't enough time invested in this to make me care too much about the character.
But like with any Spider-Man film, the aspect I was most looking forward to was the villain. I've been waiting to see Vulture in a live-action film for a long time now, and when it was announced that Michael Keaton (still the best Batman in my opinion) was cast, I thought he was the perfect choice. Keaton is the best thing in the film for me because you can tell he's having fun being threatening and flying around in his winged costume. I was smiling every time he got angry at his men for their failed attempts to stop Spider-Man, it reminded me how enjoyable villains in these films can be when you have a great actor with plenty of enthusiasm for the role. There is however, a flaw with Homecoming's set-up for the character. Toomes isn't given much of a personal connection with Spider-Man, nor are his motivations explored in any detail. Only towards the end does he properly meet Peter face-to-face, which means that any prior confrontations between the two felt rather empty to me. Had the film dedicated more time to seeing why Toomes turns to a life of crime and have him interact with Peter more, there could have been some good drama. Instead, Holland and Keaton aren't allowed to dig into the conflict of their respective characters until the film's third act, and by then it's too late to be totally invested.
Where the film fell down for me somewhat was some of the supporting characters, namely two of the other students. Michelle (Zendaya) and Flash (Tony Revolori) exist to provide humour, in a film that already has plenty, and they show up way too many times. The running joke of Michelle being the awkward outcast got old fast, and Flash just came off as lame, hardly someone to match Peter physically or intellectually (despite the film's efforts to display the latter). It's implied that Michelle will have a greater role in future Spider-Man films, and her character really needs to be given some depth and intrigue if that's to be the case. Of course, Peter's loyal Aunt, May Parker (Marisa Tomei) is present, and she at least gets her chance to show how supportive she is without becoming overly preachy. She doesn't give Peter all the answers to his problems, instead showing enough support in order for him to work things out for himself. I really admire this choice because as an audience we want to see the hero rise to the challenge and not have things worked out for him.
But as fun as the film is, it all feels very safe. There is a lack of edge, which I think comes from the handling of the hero/villain relationship. Other Spider-Man films have demonstrated the dangers of having this much power at such a young age more convincingly, and have given us some incredible action sequences as well. Take Spider-Man 2 (2004), for example. We see Peter struggling to cope with his responsibilities that he actually quits being Spider-Man. After a long absence, he makes a spectacular comeback and battles his nemesis in a thrilling sequence on a train. In Spider-Man: Homecoming, the final battle has a good enough scenario, but it isn't used to its full potential. Spidey battles the Vulture on an aeroplane, but the whole thing looks unrealistically "loose". Referring back to Spider-Man 2, the action feels like it has weight and physicality, almost as if you can feel every punch and kick, whereas the fighting in Homecoming looks more digital and less real. I personally prefer the fight scenes in films to actually look like they could happen, even in a crazy scenario such as Spider-Man 2's train battle, and so Homecoming unfortunately falls flat against its predecessors in this department.
Whilst it has a great lead and is an overall fun time, Spider-Man: Homecoming doesn't feel all-that fresh. I know a lot of superhero films follow the same formula, but Spider-Man has always stood out to me as a hero who can have a great mix of fun and edge. There is certainly the former in this case, but I still felt the film lacked a good dynamic between the hero and villain, as well as having a supporting cast that I totally cared about. If you've enjoyed the other MCU, you'll be fine with this. For me, Spider-Man was my childhood superhero, and he's still yet to have a better outing than Sam Raimi's second take thirteen years ago.
Skipping the origin story we are all familiar with, we join Peter Parker (Tom Holland) after the events of Civil War, with him already comfortable with how to use his powers, but still struggling to balance his life with school and superhero business. Seeking further opportunities to impress Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), Peter's wish is fulfilled when an arms dealing gang emerge selling hi-tech weaponry, lead by the bitter Adrian Toomes (Michael Keaton). Tagging along for the ride are Peter's best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon) and crush Liz (Laura Harrier), as Peter's pursuit of Toomes (aka Vulture) puts the lives of the people he cares about at risk. With Tony Stark forced to intervene, Peter must learn to cope without his gadget-laden costume and prove he really does have what it takes to be an Avenger in order to stop Toomes and live-up to his responsibilities as Spider-Man.
Having already seen Holland in the role in Civil War, Homecoming gives him the chance to fully become Spider-Man, and it certainly pays off. Holland has plenty of charisma when swinging around and fighting crime as the famous wall-crawler, but he is also allowed to shine as Peter Parker thanks to the film's style of being a high-school comedy with superhero action. Much of the focus falls on his friendship with Ned and his crush on popular girl Liz, which offers up plenty of humorous scenarios. Holland carries all of this extremely well, remaining likeable and engaging and a more than worthy Spider-Man. He brings out the fun side of the character without it ever becoming too cheesy, which is exactly how the character should be done in my opinion. Ned is a very typical sideman/nerdy best friend character, but at least gets some funny one-liners and helps keep the film's light tone intact. He never becomes irritating and he turns out to be a valuable partner in helping Spider-Man save the day. Liz, however, is just OK. She isn't really given a whole lot to do other than look pretty and have Peter stare at her. Harrier and Holland do at least have decent chemistry when together, but there isn't enough time invested in this to make me care too much about the character.
But like with any Spider-Man film, the aspect I was most looking forward to was the villain. I've been waiting to see Vulture in a live-action film for a long time now, and when it was announced that Michael Keaton (still the best Batman in my opinion) was cast, I thought he was the perfect choice. Keaton is the best thing in the film for me because you can tell he's having fun being threatening and flying around in his winged costume. I was smiling every time he got angry at his men for their failed attempts to stop Spider-Man, it reminded me how enjoyable villains in these films can be when you have a great actor with plenty of enthusiasm for the role. There is however, a flaw with Homecoming's set-up for the character. Toomes isn't given much of a personal connection with Spider-Man, nor are his motivations explored in any detail. Only towards the end does he properly meet Peter face-to-face, which means that any prior confrontations between the two felt rather empty to me. Had the film dedicated more time to seeing why Toomes turns to a life of crime and have him interact with Peter more, there could have been some good drama. Instead, Holland and Keaton aren't allowed to dig into the conflict of their respective characters until the film's third act, and by then it's too late to be totally invested.
Where the film fell down for me somewhat was some of the supporting characters, namely two of the other students. Michelle (Zendaya) and Flash (Tony Revolori) exist to provide humour, in a film that already has plenty, and they show up way too many times. The running joke of Michelle being the awkward outcast got old fast, and Flash just came off as lame, hardly someone to match Peter physically or intellectually (despite the film's efforts to display the latter). It's implied that Michelle will have a greater role in future Spider-Man films, and her character really needs to be given some depth and intrigue if that's to be the case. Of course, Peter's loyal Aunt, May Parker (Marisa Tomei) is present, and she at least gets her chance to show how supportive she is without becoming overly preachy. She doesn't give Peter all the answers to his problems, instead showing enough support in order for him to work things out for himself. I really admire this choice because as an audience we want to see the hero rise to the challenge and not have things worked out for him.
But as fun as the film is, it all feels very safe. There is a lack of edge, which I think comes from the handling of the hero/villain relationship. Other Spider-Man films have demonstrated the dangers of having this much power at such a young age more convincingly, and have given us some incredible action sequences as well. Take Spider-Man 2 (2004), for example. We see Peter struggling to cope with his responsibilities that he actually quits being Spider-Man. After a long absence, he makes a spectacular comeback and battles his nemesis in a thrilling sequence on a train. In Spider-Man: Homecoming, the final battle has a good enough scenario, but it isn't used to its full potential. Spidey battles the Vulture on an aeroplane, but the whole thing looks unrealistically "loose". Referring back to Spider-Man 2, the action feels like it has weight and physicality, almost as if you can feel every punch and kick, whereas the fighting in Homecoming looks more digital and less real. I personally prefer the fight scenes in films to actually look like they could happen, even in a crazy scenario such as Spider-Man 2's train battle, and so Homecoming unfortunately falls flat against its predecessors in this department.Whilst it has a great lead and is an overall fun time, Spider-Man: Homecoming doesn't feel all-that fresh. I know a lot of superhero films follow the same formula, but Spider-Man has always stood out to me as a hero who can have a great mix of fun and edge. There is certainly the former in this case, but I still felt the film lacked a good dynamic between the hero and villain, as well as having a supporting cast that I totally cared about. If you've enjoyed the other MCU, you'll be fine with this. For me, Spider-Man was my childhood superhero, and he's still yet to have a better outing than Sam Raimi's second take thirteen years ago.
