Movie Review: Spider-Man Homecoming (2017) *Spoiler Free*

Movie Review: Spider-Man Homecoming (2017) Spoiler Free

Spider-Man Homecoming delivers on the promise of the new Spider-Man from Captain America, Civil War, with an enjoyable stand alone Spidey film that also clearly shows where the character fits in relation to the Avengers.

Tom Holland continues to shine as both Peter Parker and Spider-Man with a good mix of self conscious uncertainty as well as decisiveness and resolve, when needed.

In this film Peter is initially obsessed with becoming a fully fledged Avenger. In the meantime he's working hard at being a 'friendly neighborhood Spider-Man', looking for ways to impress Tony Stark with his superhero capabilities.

In the process he discovers alien technology based weapons are being sold to street level criminals, which sets him on the trail of the Vulture, played by Michael Keaton.

I will say I was expecting to be a little more satisfied with this film than I was because it is, by far the best stand alone Spider-Man film to date. However I think the film suffers a little from its marketing.

I certainly didn't seek out all the trailers and teasers prior to seeing the movie but, of those I did see, they allowed me to anticipate certain moments in the film ahead of time, thus taking the edge off a particular joke or situation.

That aside, almost everything in this movie comes together and just works. Peter and his class mates all look age appropriate and are not obviously older actors trying to convince us that they're 15 years old. There's no tired old Spider-Man plot line where Peter is trying to save his girl friend and, for once, the main villain is not anyone known to Peter or a result of something Peter set in motion.

In fact the Vulture and Michael Keaton's performance is a highlight of the movie. He has a genuine story arc that you can almost empathize with. If you took Spider-Man out of the equation you could make a great movie out of the Vulture's entire reason for coming into existence. (I could definitely watch a whole movie of Michael Keaton playing the Vulture. It's not many MCU villains you can say that about).

Unlike the marketing, Iron Man and Tony Stark don't overshadow the film's stars. He's in the film just enough to link Spidey into the wider MCU in a way that makes sense, and builds on the mentor relationship in exactly the way you'd expect Tony would, given his history in the MCU.

One thing I'm kind of in two minds about is Spidey's, Stark created, Spider-Man suit. On the one hand it's great watching Peter figure out all it can do, on the other it does give off a very Iron Man-ish vibe. Almost like Tony made a Spider-Man, spandex, Iron Man suit. It's quite a lot more 'techy' than previous Spider-Man suits, which is both great but distracts a little from Spider-Man's own Spider powers. Though, without spoiling anything, you do get plenty of Peter relying almost entirely on his Spider powers.

Props to the filmmakers and Tom for not having any scenes of Spider-Man fighting without his mask in front of crowds of people/reporters/press, some of whom, obviously have cameras. Considering Tom probably did much of his own stunt work (otherwise why did he do all that gymnastics training?) it would be very tempting to prove it was him doing the stunts in a scene by giving some lame reason for his mask to come off. Almost every previous Sony, Spider-Man film has his mask come off during a fight for no good reason.

Overall, Spider-Man Homecoming is an incredibly solid film for this incarnation's first solo movie. Tom Holland gets to explore and expand upon his very likable, somewhat naive but good humored Spider-Man whilst Michael Keaton gets to play one of the most interesting villains in the MCU to date (who isn't plotting world domination or setting off a great big blue cloud of trash in the sky).

There's plenty of supporting character relationships (which I haven't even touched upon) weaved in around the main story, with nothing feeling forced or shoe horned in. The only way this isn't your favorite Spider-Man movie by the end is if you're not a fan of Tom Holland's Spider-Man to begin with. I'm definitely a fan.

Comments

How to Transfer Any Line Art to Your Griptape - Easy Skateboard Griptape Art Tutorial

Dog Star Griptape Art by TET Griptape art is once again gaining popularity amongst modern skateboarders. For those of us who have tried to create our own griptape art, using paint pens, you'll know reproducing your design onto the grip, without making any mistakes is incredibly challenging. Mostly because you just have to go for it and draw the design freehand, with paint pens, directly onto the griptape. You can make the odd mistake here or there but if you get the proportions of the design completely wrong, it can be very difficult to fix. Often you just have to live with the mistake. To address the problem I've come up with an easy way anyone can transfer a line art design to their griptape, removing almost all the anxiety of getting the proportions wrong. In fact, you could do this with any line art design, even if you have no drawing skill at all. Watch the video below to see my technique in action and/or skip past the video where I highlight the basic steps to get your de

Guest Post: New Novel - Alias Jeannie Delaney - Book 2 - The Outlaw's Return

A lmost a year ago I featured Go West Girl , Book 1 of author, Kit Mackenzie's Alias Jeannie Delaney series. Now, the next book in the series, Alias Jeannie Delaney - Book 2 - The Outlaw's Return , is soon to be released in August, and is available for pre-order on Amazon. If you love a powerful female lead in a traditional western packed with action and adventure, this is the novel for you. The story centers on Cowgirl Jeannie Morgan who grew up in Coyote Creek, Wyoming, where she became persecuted for her lethal gun and a sexuality that swings both ways. Tomboy beautiful and tough as the nails in a miner's boots, she is on the run with a bunch of boys who would die for her. Her snake strike gun, soul-slicing gaze and dangerous magnetism leaves a trail of intense emotions, killings and would-be death threats in her wake. Heading south, she finds herself becoming a legend. She's in deep trouble, but her home town demands her return and they pin a badge on her. It'

Skateboard Trick Tips: Two Ways to Ollie North (Ollie One foot)

You have to be quick to see my Ollie Norths! Ollie One Foots, otherwise known as the Ollie North, is one of those skateboard tricks you learn and then tend not to do very much as more interesting trick challenges grab your attention. However it does look really cool if you learn how to kick your front foot well past the nose of your skateboard. Still shot from Braille Skateboarding's Ollie North tutorial. I was inspired to make my video below, showing two different techniques to achieve a successful Ollie One Foot, when I not only saw that Braille Skateboarding's Tutorial used a different method to the one I had learned but also, when I looked at various other video tutorials, I discovered yet another technique, with no one using the method I had originally learned. Braille's method is to simply Ollie and drag your front foot past the front of your board. The second method I came across in several video tutorials is to Ollie, drag your front foot and tap your

I'm Joining the Illuminati Brotherhood By Personal Invitation of Hiltom Rothschild... Wait, What?

How special am I to have finally come of age (53 years young) and am now eligible to participate in building the world alongside other members of the Illuminati Brotherhood... Yes I've received the call by way of an email, which I'm sure is real because I had to translate it from the Dutch language and it was personally written by Hiltom Rothschild, one of the non-existent members of the Rothschild family (or perhaps deep undercover because Google has never heard of them?). A Transcript of the email below: To: etourist From: Illuminati Brotherhood Subject: Illuminati Broederschap (Illuminati Brotherhood) I am Hiltom Rothschild, a member of the Rothschild family, one of the 13 families of the Illuminati brotherhood. I'm here to let you know that you've come of age and are eligible to participate in building the 🌎 world. It is a calling and a privilege to honor him with pride and gratitude as not everyone will ever be chosen by the LIGHT, many are called but few are ch

Robot Uprising Update: Robot Waiter, Fasta Pasta, South Terrace, Adelaide CBD, South Australia

On the second evening of my partner, Enigma, and I's weekend stay in Adelaide we decided to have dinner at Fasta Pasta . Strangely enough our hotel staff, at the Alba, had not mentioned Fasta Pasta as an option for an evening meal while their restaurant is closed for refurbishment, even though it is literally next door on the corner of South Terrace and Pultney Street. You may be aware that Fasta Pasta is an upmarket Italian restaurant franchise with its beginnings in Adelaide. Currently they have 19 restaurants Australia wide (with the majority in South Australia - we even have one in Gawler, our home town). I've never had bad food at a Fasta Pasta, and their food never looks like a franchise meal. You always feel you're at a restaurant that's a little bit more quality than your typical hotel/motel meal. Maybe it's because you don't see as much pasta based meals on an Aussie pub menu. Despite the name, it's not all pasta. I went with a basic plate of fish a

Four Years into a Post Pandemic World and Secondary COVID-19 Might be a Thing?

Social distancing 2020 style. A fter not being too far from COVID-19, potentially patient zero in Australia back in 2020. Four years later my partner finally tested positive for the virus. Then I inevitably caught it as well. You might think, so what, but I'm honestly surprised we've lasted this long. My partner works at an aged care facility that has fought off numerous outbreaks over the years, and continues to do so. Workers at her facility take RAT tests daily so you know pretty quick if you test positive. Workers then have to isolate at home for at least seven days until they're clear. COVID-19 symptoms can vary in intensity and you may not get the full range (at least to my knowledge and experience). My partner seemed to get it fairly bad with tiredness, aching joints, loss of taste and smell, along with cold and flu like symptoms (sore throat, congestion etc). While we did try to social distance, keeping our distance, hand washing, and not sleeping in the same room

The First US Presidential Debate 2024 - America You're Standing In It

M ost of the time I get my fill of American political news from clips of The Daily Show , which I know many people accuse of being more political left leaning than balanced with its humour. As such it was my first port of call when looking for commentary on the recent, first US Presidential debate for 2024. I say first because I don't know if they'll do another one. I'd strongly advise they don't. Getting your news from a comedy show isn't ideal, even one as arguably intelligent as The Daily Show, because they're focussed on what can be laughed at, more than serious analysis. As such their coverage very well could be making both candidates look more foolish than they may actually be. As such I decided to watch the full replay of the debate so I could get more of a sense of who both candidates are and how they come across in, what should be, their ideal platform - debating the opposition. Before Donald Trump became President I was a fan. I watched every season o

TET.Life (The Extraordinary Tourist Life)

Search This Blog