Introduction
After producing the Sam Raimi trilogy and rebooting the franchise with Marc web for the 'Amazing Spiderman' franchise, Sony finalized a deal with Marvel Studios to share the Spiderman film rights. Not only did this deal mark a second reboot of the Spiderman franchise, it also integrated Spidey's character entirely into the MCU. Tom Holland was signed in to play the lead who first appeared as the web slinger superhero in 'Captain America: Civil War' in 2016, and while fans were skeptical (for a variety of reasons) about Tom playing and continuing with Spiderman in the near future- cut to 2025 and Tom Holland has shut everyone up! Although fans still have a significant place for Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield as Spideys in their hearts, Tom has still managed to make an identity of his own, as Spiderman. The MCU Spiderman started it's journey with Spiderman Homecoming, which completes 8 years of it's release today. Also starring Zendaya, Michael Keaton, Jacob Batalon, Laura Harrier, Marisa Tomei, Jon Favreau, and Robert Downey Jr, this film became the second highest grossing Spiderman film ever (only behind Sam Raimi's Spiderman 3)!
P.S- A formality- this review will contain spoilers.
Basic Plot
While Tony Stark doesn't consider Peter Parker to be capable of becoming a full-time Avenger, Peter still tries to stop the 'Vulture' from selling weapons made with Chitauri technology, and also balance his school life.
Positives
Approach and Direction
Director Jon Watts made sure that this new reboot should look different from the previous two, and thus, this new approach. While too risky on paper, as it did not focus on an origin story, showed Spiderman only in his late teens, was significantly different from the comics, and to top it all, a Marvel-ish influence debuting in a Spidey film; things like these were addressed and executed very well. This is particularly terrific because no one would've thought, that a Spiderman story without Uncle Ben, a spider biting Peter Parker, and romance with MJ will resonate so well! This act of scraping the tried and tested Spiderman formula allowed director Jon Watts to successfully evade the franchise fatigue, while also contemplating his creative abilities and include unexplored aspects in this film. Peter's high school life has been given a substantial amount of importance here which is quite likeable and while there's no specific 'origin story', there are plenty of tropes and elements in Homecoming which show Peter Parker trying to adjust with his new powers, which seem quite refreshing. The humor is quite subtle and so is the the organic teenage chaos, both of which are shown pretty nicely.
Performances
Performances really do take this film ahead with Holland and Keaton leading the act. They play school friends Peter and Ned who have a really enjoyable chemistry. Their humorous interactions go on to the next level after Ned comes to know about Peter's identity, and that's really fun to watch. Speaking particularly about Holland- he shines as the friendly neighborhood Spider 'teen' (courtesy, the age he's playing), who's trying to become the Spider 'man'. The breezy nature of the film is amplified by Holland's naturally charming and cheerful persona, which rightfully benefits him the most in terms of justifying his character's age. The high-school affection between Peter and Liz is also portrayed well, which when combined with the teenage awkwardness, feels even better. Robert Downey Jr plays a good mentor to Peter and his character is surely a plus. While Batalon plays a solid side-kick to Peter who utilizes his comic timing to the fullest, it's Michael Keaton who shines as 'The Vulture'. He gets into the character and acts with full conviction to be seen as the evil and menacing arms seller with Chitauri technology. What's likeable here is the age gap between the characters of Peter and Toomes, a.k.a Vulture. It's almost a father-son age gap and while Peter is recklessly hell-bent on catching criminals to be capable enough to become a full time Avenger, his equation with Toomes is particularly serious, as he doesn't want to kill a person of his father's age. He warns Toomes several times to not be the who he is, and although he continues to fight with the Vulture in his homemade Spidey suit (the actual was taken back from him by Tony Stark, owing to his impulsive acts), he overpowers Toomes, save his life from the Vulture suit explosion, and leaves him for the police instead of killing him. This is a crisp direction meeting sheer performances!
Underwhelming Aspects
Bits and Pieces (Subjective)
While there aren't any serious negatives here, as is the case with most Spiderman films, there are a few aspects that I thought of mentioning. The fight sequences felt to be a little meek as compared to what we've already seen. See, I know that this is a story where grandeur is intentionally kept on the loop line to maintain the tone of the film, it's probably the elevator sequence which I felt to be Spidey-esque. Obviously the climax is excellent with some really good action, the overall intensity of the action is kind of toned down due to two main reasons; First- Spiderman is quite amateur here and so are his fighting skills, and this is why you may feel him to be a bit lost amidst a fight if something doesn't go his way. Second- The action is more of restriction based deeds done by Spiderman to stop his enemies from doing bad work, so you feel the dangerously escapist enjoyment to a certain extent only, and not beyond that. However, these acts that are mentioned here align perfectly with how the film was envisioned, and while it seemed a bit dull to me, others may enjoy the same for being true to the approach. What I do felt to be a mixed bag is the characterization of Zendaya. It's fine to exclude MJ from the main plot if you want to change the way people perceive Spiderman, but what's the point of pushing out MJ, if you have to settle with her anyways? She frankly had nothing much to do in the film except for giving some weird looks time to time, and the way her character is established here- you won't really want Peter to get along with her.
Conclusion
This film is all about a teenage Spiderman, trying to balance his 'Peter' and 'Spiderman' lives, while also fighting a villain who comes with dazzling CGI, rage, style, and a suit to die for! Being an entirely new perspective to the Spidey world, this film successfully allowed Marvel to dig further into the franchise without being called out as a 'repetitive inspiration' of the previous franchises. Kudos to the cast as well, especially Holland, for not only fitting into the 'two-time-worn' shoes of Spiderman, but also handling the character in his own unique way. Credits to the entire crew as well, for taking the risk of rebooting an iconic and high-staked franchise amid skepticism and making it bigger and better, so much so, that fans are currently waiting to witness the theatrical release of it's fourth instalment, less than a year from now. That being said, Tony Stark told Peter: 'If you're nothing without that suit, then you shouldn't have it'. Well, I guess, Peter took his words seriously, as this film stands as the sweet beginning of an iconic franchise!
Watch Out For
- Cast Performances
- Climax
- A very distinct Spidey story
WTF Rating
7.5/10