Spider-Man Homecoming. I think I can appreciate this a little bit more now that I’ve been removed from the first viewing and minus my initial reaction to how it takes liberties from the comics. Normally I try to separate the source material from the film adaptation in front of me however as I stated previously I read so much of the source material and since Spider-Man is my favorite Marvel superhero, I’m a little bit more protective of him than I would be of anyone else. However I’m going to try my best to critique this particular film under its own merits and not under my personal expectations.
I think this film is structured incredibly well and is held together with a strong narrative. The action is well spaced out and services the story at large. The cast is fine for the most part but there are a few stands out, particularly Holland and Keaton. When watching the film originally I could not help but notice the diversity in the casting of Peter’s classmates. All the actors are good but I don’t think any of them are particularly great and it just seemed intentional to surround Peter with a lot of different ethnicities. This could be due to location of the school in New York and I’m not saying it’s not believable but when films do this it comes across as intentional for a higher purpose and just sticks out from the screen.
A lot has been said so far about how great a villain Keaton is and I agree that Vulture is a good villain. Obviously the MCU has had its issues with lackluster villains and this is not one of them. The problem I have with the Vulture is that the film tries to have its cake and eat it too. A lot of the early scenes establish the motivation for Toomes in that he’s doing it for his family. The problem is when this narrative arc is taken as a whole there are some cracks that form in that foundation. For instance, we’re told he’s been running this crime ring for about eight years now. Obviously his family lives in considerable comfort and this is far removed from the early part of the film where he actually is in danger of losing his house and the desperation that starts him down his villainous path. Additionally, while his goal is to make money, there is nothing stopping him from doing something other than making weapons. Clearly he has no moral compunctions about selling weapons to people who are going to use them to commit crimes and possibly even kill.
Toomes also doesn’t seem to have a problem with murder by his own hands. Granted the death of the original Shocker was an accident but it’s met with such mild shock that and immediately shrugged off. The same could be said for his threat to Peter in the car. While that is a great scene full of tension and ably acted by both parties, it continues to rip away the veneer of sympathy we’re supposed to have for this villain as he casually threatens to kill not only Peter, but everyone he cares about. At this point all the Vulture knows is that Peter is Spider-Man and has a working relationship with Iron Man. Nothing stops Peter from just telling Iron Man who Toomes is. However these flaws don’t impact Keaton‘s performance, which is both subdued and sufficiently menacing. Toomes gains our sympathy (however briefly) and that’s largely because of Keaton’s portrayal.
And here’s probably my biggest grievance with this film and that is the Iron Man-ization of Spider-Man. When I first saw the film poster, I was really worried about how this film was going to turn out. Iron Man is giving such prominent display that this easily could’ve been Iron Man 4 featuring Spider-Man. It kind of reminds me of the early issues of the Amazing Spider-Man comic in that the Fantastic Four made several appearances in those early days in order to transfer some of their popularity on to him. I had a similar reaction to this film. It felt like they didn’t think Spider-Man, undergoing his third reboot of the past decade, could stand on his own without Iron Man attracting people into the theatre. The film does showed great restraint on how much they use Tony Stark and obviously I love RDJ but it still leaves a feeling that there just wasn’t enough trust in Spider-Man to operate on his own. Since Spiderman will be featured in the next two Avengers films before his next standalone film, I’m hoping that they’ll give Holland a chance to sort of break free and have the run of his own series for a bit.
The casting of Spider-Man has probably never been so important and Holland is a great choice. He has an effervescent Joy that bubbles to the surface and shines off the screen. They also cast someone young enough to actually look like a high school student. The only time he looks older is actually when he’s shirtless and massive props to the costume department for hiding such an impressive physique. I can believe Holland is 15 in those baggy clothes.
I’m going to give Spider-Man Homecoming a 7/10. It’s a solid outing for the MCU and its smaller story (while still tied to the Avengers arc overall) gives a chance for the character to breathe in his own element after his introduction in Civil War. We get to know Peter better and he has a strong arc from just trying to impress Tony to fighting for the little guy because it’s what he wants to do. I think given the comics this was already ingrained from the start as the core of the character but the MCU should be allowed to tells its own story. I just kind of shrug at “you’re not the suit”. Well no shit. Spider-Man shouldn’t have a high-tech suit telling him what to do. Although I do like the idea of Karen just because it allows a character who spends a lot of time in his own head in the comics to have someone to talk to. Solid action, good-natured humor that is restrained enough to not overwhelm the drama and some good acting amongst the leads make this a must-see. I look forward to the sequel moreso than any of the other sub-series that are still in progress.
Current rankings:
1) Captain America: The Winter Soldier
2) Iron Man
3) The Avengers
4) Captain America: Civil War
5) Spider-Man: Homecoming
6) Guardians of the Galaxy
7) The Incredible Hulk
8) Black Panther
9) Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
10) Avengers: Age of Ultron
11) Iron Man 3
12) Captain America: The First Avenger
13) Doctor Strange
14) Ant-Man
15) Thor: The Dark World
16) Thor
17) Iron Man 2
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