I was not a fan of Andrew Garfield as Spiderman. Which made me skeptical about Tom Holland as the new and improved Spiderman. But he pulled it off. The new Spiderman worked for me. A teenage kid blogging his exploits and live streaming epic Avenger battles? Yeah, that sounds about right for Spiderman.
Spiderman: Homecoming gets back to it's roots, even if it is embedded in the broader Avengers storyline now. I like it. Peter Parker still gets to be a kid. He isn't telling everyone who he really is and he doesn't act like a "grown up" superhero. He's struggling to find his way. He has to worry about things like prom and school competitions. He uses an "internship" at Stark Enterprises as cover for his adventures. Adventures that become, well, complicated.
And I think that may be what really made this movie stick out to me. The struggle is real. And the villain is oddly likeable. A feat pulled off effectively by Michael Keaton as Vulture. I like Keaton much more as a villain than superhero. I really didn't care for him as Batman. But he threads the needle as a villain that we kind of care about. Just a little.
Peter Parker balances a normal school life with his drive to help people. But sometimes he screws up. Stopping a guy who merely locked his keys in the car. And creating neighborhood disturbances. His Aunt May (Marisa Tomei) is constantly worried about him. And Tomei manages to bring an element of sexy to a character who has traditionally been a more grandmotherly character. I'm not a purist. I like Tomei and loved her in this role. Even in a somewhat limited role that she has in the film.
I also liked that the film focused mostly on the world from the teenage perspective. From school life to house parties. The adult roles (other than the villain) were mostly limited. I have never been a big fan of Robert Downey, Jr., but he is perfectly typecast in the role of Tony Stark/Ironman. He is the kind of guy who grates on my nerves, which is basically who Tony Stark is. So it works for me. His role was almost a cameo until deep in the film. The film allowed Peter Parker to make mistakes, experience growth and create nice tension as the narrative arc peaked. Watching a kid make dumb mistakes for the right reasons. And pulling for him...which is what we are supposed to do.
The special effects in Homecoming were also well done. We had all the big CGI that we expect from Marvel. We had an expensive Spiderman costume courtesy of Stark Enterprises. We had great aerial chases and epic battles. And we had some old school. Which was also fun. We get to see Spiderman as the low tech superhero again. Fighting crime with just his own inventions and wit. The movie is big in all the ways we want it to be, while reaching back to it's roots. We even get a dose of the old theme song and a throwback line. Your "friendly neighborhood Spiderman." A great reference for a franchise that had gotten off track in recent years. An epic reboot.
Spiderman: Homecoming is worth seeing at the theater. The special effects and sound make it epic. The storyline makes it worth watching. Beyond the traditional superhero vs. villain, we get an actual plot. We get characters who have depth. We get common teenage struggles. We get characters who struggle with their roles. Bad guys who are just a little bit good. And good guys prone to screwing up just a bit (to include Stark). As a long time fan of Spiderman, it was nice to see this series get back on track with a new vision. It will be interesting to see how Spiderman plays into the Avenger films going forward. But the film left things with just the right feel. The traditional....stayed tuned...
I have to give this film a solid 8/10. The photos and trailer are public domain. They are property of Marvel Comics and Columbia Pictures. And now, for your viewing pleasure:
