The Marvelous Marvel Rewatch (Now Playing: Avengers: Infinity War)

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Spider-Man: Homecoming

Big fat juicy *spoilers* below, so don't read if you haven't seen the movie yet.


Pluses:

I like this overall approach to Spider-Man.  This movie is extremely fun and funny.  They found a new take on Spider-Man (high school) that still feels true to the character.  Also Spider-Man now feels like a part of the MCU which is extremely cool.  As much as I loved the first two Sam Raimi films, the biggest thing that felt missing was that Spider-Man never interacted with another Marvel hero.  If I had a dollar for every time Spider-Man encountered another hero in a comic book, then I'd be as rich as Stan Lee.  Well now Spidey is doing it with Iron Man his mentor, and Cap on a video and references to Avengers and Civil War and so on.  It's great!

Lot's of great characters.  Tom Holland does a great job as Spider-Man.  I especially love the opening sequence where we see Civil War from his perspective.  He has great chemistry with Ned and Tony Stark and Happy and so on.  Great chemistry all around.

Michael Keaton is a very badass Vulture.  In fact out of Spider-Man's huge rogues' gallery from the comics, Vulture is normally the lamest one.  Michael Keaton totally turns this around.  He may be Marvel's best villain yet.  He's not a generic super villain either.  He's human and very believable and still very scary.  He's a perfect villain.

(Spoiler warning again)
I love the reveal that Vulture is Liz's dad.  The first time I saw this movie, I didn't see this coming at all.  At the same time it totally fits a Spider-Man story, since Spidey often finds that people close to him are really super villains.  Also, Tom Holland did a great job here, since I could feel the huge tension during this scene and the car ride scene.


Minuses:

It is hard not to compare this film to the Sam Raimi/Tobey McGuire films, which are amazing films (the first two anyway).  Tobey McGuire does such a fantastic job as Peter Parker, and those films have such an emotional weight, that it makes Spider-Man: Homecoming seem a little trivial by comparison.  This comparison is probably not fair, but it's unavoidable at the same time.


In conclusion, Spider-Man: Homecoming is an extremely entertaining film that makes Spidey finally feel 100% part of the MCU.  Tom Holland is an excellent Spider-Man and Michael Keaton is perhaps the best MCU villain yet.  At the same time it doesn't quite have the emotional weight of the Sam Raimi films.

8/10