1821. Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)

Starring: Tom Holland, Robert Downey Jr., Michael Keaton

Director: Jon Watts

Running Time: 133 mins

Spider-Man: Homecoming is an American film about young Peter Parker, who, under the tutelage of Tony Stark, moves between his high school life and working as the friendly neighbourhood ‘Spider-Man’, all until an unexpected threat arises that only he can stop.#

This film is so much fun. Undoubtedly the funniest Marvel movie by a long way, and featuring a refreshing take on the Marvel formula with a much younger lead hero than most, played brilliantly by Tom Holland, Spider-Man: Homecoming is an absolute riot from start to finish, with fantastically funny comedy and an exciting story running from start to finish.

Having been chugging along for nine years now, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has a tried-and-tested formula that always makes for entertaining action movies. However, with at least two Marvel movies a year, it’s a formula that’s become incredibly noticeable, but the fact that Homecoming stands out a little bit more is the key to why it’s such an enjoyable watch.

Yes, it still tows the Marvel line pretty closely, featuring a fun-loving attitude full of comedy, tie-ins to the rest of the MCU, a Stan Lee cameo, and a relatively uninteresting villain, but the biggest difference between this film and the rest of the MCU is that our main hero is a teenager, looking to prove himself while dealing with his normal life.

So, we get a refreshing take on the superhero genre as we follow a 15 year-old character around as he skips school in perfect Ferris Bueller style to go and save the city, all the while trying to show his mentor Tony Stark that he has what it takes to be a proper Avenger, making for a far more engaging story than a typical good guy vs. bad guy Marvel showdown.

When it comes to the villain here, there’s not all that much to rave about. Although there’s a fantastic plot twist that relates to the relationship between Spider-Man and the villain, he’s not an adversary that’s particularly threatening or compelling, as is often the case with Marvel. Michael Keaton does a good job at making him seem as ruthless as possible, as well as putting in a good few references to his tenures as Batman and Birdman, but on the whole, the battle between Spider-Man and the bad guy isn’t the real reason to watch this film.

Instead, watching the effortlessly charismatic Tom Holland play a very young Spider-Man, vastly different to the Spider-Man movies of the recent past as well as the MCU, is the main attraction of the movie, and with his fantastic comedic abilities, he makes this film just as much a brilliant comedy as an enjoyable Marvel movie.

Throughout, there’s so much good humour, more so than Marvel’s normal level of fun-loving comedy. Given that the story isn’t integral to the MCU’s overall development, only tying into the Avengers story in a few smaller sequences, there’s a lot more opportunity to sit back and relax with your friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man, allowing for a totally different atmosphere in the movie that’s full of some genuinely brilliant laughs.

On the whole, I really enjoyed Spider-Man: Homecoming. It’s a similar movie to what you’d expect from Marvel, but with a different style of main character, it proves a far more engaging and entertaining watch than a typical hero vs. villain showdown, and with a hilarious sense of humour from start to finish furthered by some excellently funny performances, you’ll undoubtedly have a great time with this movie, and that’s why I’m giving it an 8.1.