I'll be honest with you, as much as I love Spiderman, I was done with him in cinematic form. After 'Spiderman 3' caused Sam Raimi's trilogy to come crashing to a halt only for SONY to trot out a rebranded retelling of the exact same story just five years later, I was a little bit burned out on watching what felt like the same Spiderman movie for the 5th time. However, his amazing cameo appearance in 'Captain America:Civil War' completely won me round to the idea of his reappearance in cinema. Of course, even with the almost assured quality that comes with an MCU production, it's a difficult task to portray the most popular comic book character ever in a way that will please die hard fans yet also feel fresh and exciting. In my opinion though, Spiderman Homecoming has absolutely succeeded in that regard.
Following shortly after the events of 'Civil War', Peter Parker has had his life completely transformed through his experience with the Avengers. Under the watchful eye of his mentor Tony Stark, Parker desperately tries to prove his worth and become a fully fledged Avenger. He struggles though to balance the weight of being a hero with all the trials and tribulations that come along with being a teenager in high school. Peter's abilities and resolve are soon put to the test as he attempts to defeat the villainous Vulture who threatens everything that he holds dear.
I'll start with what I believe to be one of the strongest elements in this movie. Tom Holland. He absolutely crushes it. He is Spiderman. He seems almost as though he was built to play this role. Toby Maguire and Andrew Garfield both offered some positives in their portrayals, but there is no doubt in my mind that this is the best interpretation of Spiderman we've ever seen put to film. His balance of teenage awkwardness, sarcastic quips and a willingness to do the right thing are all spot on. He's funny, relatable and makes a very satisfying protagonist. His new suit is also great. A near perfect blend of elements from traditional Spiderman lore to please fans mixed with new and exciting upgrades from Tony Stark that are both comical and undeniably cool.
The other top performers are as to be expected. Robert Downey Jr is great as Iron Man as always. Many of the reviewers and podcasters I follow often voice their displeasure about Tony Stark being a terrible person, but to me his story arc throughout the MCU has been an immensely satisfying one. In this film, his personal debate over Spiderman is really great to watch. On the one hand he's eager for Peter to fulfil his potential as a hero but is also anxious that if anything were to happen to him it would be on his shoulders. His relationship with Parker as a mentor/father figure might be my favourite development of his character so far. Yet, despite what the trailers may suggest, he does not distract from Spiderman. His role is much more fleeting than you might anticipate and this is very much still a Spiderman movie. Michael Keaton's Vulture is a fantastic villain. He's a vast departure from his character in the comics, but to be honest I much prefer this interpretation. He's cold and intimidating and whilst he is a clear villain, he's also very relatable. Everything he does is for the sake of his family. You get the sense he doesn't enjoy doing such dastardly deeds, but he feels they are necessary to provide for those he cares for. One of the best villains the MCU has offered so far.
The rest of the cast are a mixed bag. Marisa Tomei is also very different to her comic equivalent, but she's great in her role of Aunt May. Jon Favreau and Gwyneth Paltrow have minor roles but go a long way in tying this film into the cinematic universe. Zendaya's 'Michele' is also good and actually has some of the funniest moments in this film. The B villains, 'The Tinkerer' and 'The Shocker' are both fine, but really aren't given enough to do to warrant any real praise. Peter's love interest Liz is a similar story - she's not bad but doesn't really offer a memorable performance either. Peter's best friend Ned is funny at times, but a lot of his jokes fall flat and you can tell he's clearly been instructed to deliver 'trailer lines' at certain points in the film. Flash is inoffensive, but is a departure from the comics that I personally didn't feel was handled very well.
Marvel Studios deserve some serious credit for the way they've made this film feel fresh and different to other Spiderman movies. For one, they've bypassed the origin story aspect, which I'm grateful for. We've seen his origin twice in the past decade, so for the studio to acknowledge that the audience already knows where he came from prior to 'Civil War' and dive right into immersing him into this current universe is really refreshing. Crucial elements of his backstory, for example the death of Uncle Ben, are hinted at but theres no need for us to see them again. Another element of this film that sets it apart from its competitors, is the portrayal of Peter Parker as a teenager, which I felt was lacking in previous films. Of course, it helps that Holland and his co-stars are actually teenagers playing high schoolers, but the whole atmosphere of this movie gets that point across really well. This film is in some ways a homage to classic John Hughes teen movies, even showing a clip from 'Feris Bueller' at one point. A surprisingly accurate representation of what life is like for kids at high school, contending with bullies, detention and crushes. In addition, the movie really hammers home to the audience that Peter is a kid. He doesn't have complete control of his powers yet and he doesn't have a full understanding of how the worlds works. Theres one scene in a particular where you forget that he's even a superhero as in that moment you only see a scared and broken child. This duality between being a teenager and being a hero bares the main emotional crux of the film and is shown off really cleverly, both thematically and visually.
The action is also pretty good in this film. Some great web swinging and wall climbing, rivalling 'The Amazing Spiderman 2' for the most realistic we've seen. However, all three of the major action set pieces can all be seen in the promotional material which does take some of the sting out of their impact, especially the ferry scene.
Overall, I'm finding it quite hard to compare 'Spiderman Homecoming' to other Spidey movies that have come before is because it is so different in so many ways. However, its certainly up there with my favourites. A heart felt narrative woven into the mould of an action movie, with a refreshing storyline with some excellent twists and the best interpretation of Spiderman we've ever seen on the big screen.
4/5 Stars
Sunday 9 July 2017
Sunday 2 July 2017
'Baby Driver' leaves 'Fast & Furious' in its rear view mirror
I like Edgar Wright, but if I were to criticise him I would say that he's never made a great film. Don't get me wrong, all of his directorial efforts are remembered fondly (Hot Fuzz stands out to me as a personal highlight) and he's certainly never made a bad movie, but in my opinion his films have never transcended into greatness. Until now. His latest 'Baby Driver' is an exquisite blend of what we've come to expect from Wright's movies and brand new elements that make this film one of the most original and refreshing movies I've seen this year.
The story follows Baby (Ansel Elgort), a young boy who uses music to drown out the tinnitus he suffers from as a result of an accident he was in as a child, relying on his personal soundtrack to make him the very best getaway driver. When he meets Debora (Lily James), the woman of his dreams, he sees the chance to escape this shady life he's been coerced into. However, the crime lord Doc (Kevin Spacey) refuses to let him go so easily. Baby's 'final' job will threaten his life, love and freedom.
Perhaps a key reason for the the success of this film is that the narrative is propped up by an all star cast. There's always a danger of overcrowding and an imbalance of screen time in large ensemble movies, as seen in 'Ocean's 11' and more recently in 'Suicide Squad'. This is not the case here though. The lead actors get enough time to establish themselves as protagonists and earn the audience's approval, and whilst the supporting cast's roles are also fully fleshed out, they never invade space. As you can expect from such an outstanding cast, the performances are all fantastic. Kevin Spacey, Jamie Foxx and Jon Hamm are all amazing. Yet Ansel Elgort deserves a special mention. Before this movie, all I'd ever seen him in was 'The Fault in our Stars', which had left me with a less than positive opinion of him, but this film has more than redeemed him in my eyes. He is charismatic and charming yet quirky enough to be relatable. He never once appears arrogant or cocky though - he's likeable throughout the movie as an underdog that the audience are rooting for. Lily James is also great, offering the perfect companion for Elgort and the two share some excellent chemistry on screen. Jon Bernthal and Eiza Gonzalez both have more fleeting roles but are also both great.
The action in this movie is exceptional. Personally, I had liked the last few 'Fast and Furious' movies, mostly because they are very aware of what they are - high budget, low concept blockbusters that require minimal thought allowing audiences to switch of their brains for 2 hours and just enjoy some great car chases. Yet the action in this movie runs circles around anything on offer in that franchise, which is incredible considering that Wright, to the best of my knowledge, has never done stunts on this scale before. Ever. That's insane considering how good some of the action set pieces in this film are. All the car chases are great, especially the opening scene and one chase on foot may even top them all.
However, there's an element in this movie that sets it apart from others in this genre. The music. This movie is in many ways a musical masquerading as an action film. Over 75 songs are used to some extent in the final cut, which means that there is rarely a moment in this film where there isn't music playing, which helps the film maintain a frantic pace as well as inexplicably playing fantastic songs again and again and again. And this isn't the case of a studio just throwing a bunch of money at a film and buying whatever pop songs are popular to feature in the trailers and entice more viewers. It feels as though every single song was carefully hand picked by Wright himself and is implemented into the storyline masterfully. I'm not exaggerating when I say this, but the use of music in this film is genius. Pure genius. The way that each song is layered perfectly over the images, every action beat in unison with that of the song. Guns blazing, gear sticks clunking - every single detail is sheer perfection. And the scene I mention earlier, a chase on foot through the streets set to 'Hocus Pocus' by Focus is exceptional.
In a modern Hollywood landscape that is dominated by studios turning out the same junk every two years as a blatant cash grab, (cough Transformers 5 cough Pirates of the Caribbean 5) it gives me great joy to see a film like this succeed. It's a hit both critically and commercially and it absolutely deserves to be. It has all the characteristics of a modern blockbuster - a cast practically overflowing with stars and amazing action set pieces and it has classic elements of Wright's repertoire, dark humour and visceral action. Yet, this film feels like so much more than your average thriller. It feels almost handmade, you can sense the time and effort that has gone into it, especially the soundtrack. This is, in many ways a passion project, which has been executed exceptionally. I urge you to rush and see this film - the outstanding cast, fantastic action and incredible usage of a phenomenal soundtrack make it one of the best movies to be released this year. A must see!
4/5 Stars
The story follows Baby (Ansel Elgort), a young boy who uses music to drown out the tinnitus he suffers from as a result of an accident he was in as a child, relying on his personal soundtrack to make him the very best getaway driver. When he meets Debora (Lily James), the woman of his dreams, he sees the chance to escape this shady life he's been coerced into. However, the crime lord Doc (Kevin Spacey) refuses to let him go so easily. Baby's 'final' job will threaten his life, love and freedom.
Perhaps a key reason for the the success of this film is that the narrative is propped up by an all star cast. There's always a danger of overcrowding and an imbalance of screen time in large ensemble movies, as seen in 'Ocean's 11' and more recently in 'Suicide Squad'. This is not the case here though. The lead actors get enough time to establish themselves as protagonists and earn the audience's approval, and whilst the supporting cast's roles are also fully fleshed out, they never invade space. As you can expect from such an outstanding cast, the performances are all fantastic. Kevin Spacey, Jamie Foxx and Jon Hamm are all amazing. Yet Ansel Elgort deserves a special mention. Before this movie, all I'd ever seen him in was 'The Fault in our Stars', which had left me with a less than positive opinion of him, but this film has more than redeemed him in my eyes. He is charismatic and charming yet quirky enough to be relatable. He never once appears arrogant or cocky though - he's likeable throughout the movie as an underdog that the audience are rooting for. Lily James is also great, offering the perfect companion for Elgort and the two share some excellent chemistry on screen. Jon Bernthal and Eiza Gonzalez both have more fleeting roles but are also both great.
The action in this movie is exceptional. Personally, I had liked the last few 'Fast and Furious' movies, mostly because they are very aware of what they are - high budget, low concept blockbusters that require minimal thought allowing audiences to switch of their brains for 2 hours and just enjoy some great car chases. Yet the action in this movie runs circles around anything on offer in that franchise, which is incredible considering that Wright, to the best of my knowledge, has never done stunts on this scale before. Ever. That's insane considering how good some of the action set pieces in this film are. All the car chases are great, especially the opening scene and one chase on foot may even top them all.
However, there's an element in this movie that sets it apart from others in this genre. The music. This movie is in many ways a musical masquerading as an action film. Over 75 songs are used to some extent in the final cut, which means that there is rarely a moment in this film where there isn't music playing, which helps the film maintain a frantic pace as well as inexplicably playing fantastic songs again and again and again. And this isn't the case of a studio just throwing a bunch of money at a film and buying whatever pop songs are popular to feature in the trailers and entice more viewers. It feels as though every single song was carefully hand picked by Wright himself and is implemented into the storyline masterfully. I'm not exaggerating when I say this, but the use of music in this film is genius. Pure genius. The way that each song is layered perfectly over the images, every action beat in unison with that of the song. Guns blazing, gear sticks clunking - every single detail is sheer perfection. And the scene I mention earlier, a chase on foot through the streets set to 'Hocus Pocus' by Focus is exceptional.
In a modern Hollywood landscape that is dominated by studios turning out the same junk every two years as a blatant cash grab, (cough Transformers 5 cough Pirates of the Caribbean 5) it gives me great joy to see a film like this succeed. It's a hit both critically and commercially and it absolutely deserves to be. It has all the characteristics of a modern blockbuster - a cast practically overflowing with stars and amazing action set pieces and it has classic elements of Wright's repertoire, dark humour and visceral action. Yet, this film feels like so much more than your average thriller. It feels almost handmade, you can sense the time and effort that has gone into it, especially the soundtrack. This is, in many ways a passion project, which has been executed exceptionally. I urge you to rush and see this film - the outstanding cast, fantastic action and incredible usage of a phenomenal soundtrack make it one of the best movies to be released this year. A must see!
4/5 Stars
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