Movie review: 'Spider-Man: Homecoming' slings some much-needed spirit back into the Marvel Universe

Sony/Columbia 2017.

Comic-book films are in need of a serious jolt, as they've become increasingly more predictable and uninspired. The Marvel movies especially have been operating on a tried-and-true formula for nearly a decade, and although they've yet to experience a dud at the box office, they seem to be nearing the bottom of the tank creatively. There's a hero, a villain, some snarky lines, some dizzying action sequences, and several references to other Marvel franchises that remind you of the cohesive Universe that these films are operating within. Everything and nothing is usually stake. Rinse and repeat. That's why there's great pleasure in announcing that "Spider-Man: Homecoming" - the third big-screen version of the character and sixth overall Spidey film to hit theaters over the past 15 years -  has an air of freshness. Yes, it still relies heavily on the Marvel Formula, but it's a different take than we're used to seeing...it's a Millennials view of what it means to be heroic in the modern world.

Grade: B+

​Spider-Man this time around is played by Tom Holland, who instantly owns the role, and dare I say, quickly becomes the quintessential version of the character.  "Spider-Man: Homecoming" is a dream film for comic book fans, as Holland's version is the closest rendition of the character to the original boy-hero created by the legendary Stan Lee. He's got the look, the suit, the spirit of Marvel's most popular super-hero. While all of the other adult Avengers seem to take for granted that they're "super," this Peter Parker is absolutely stoked to know that his super-powers make him truly special. This is best shown  in a quick sequence towards the beginning of the film, when we see recent events of the Marvel Universe - from films like last Summer's "Captain America: Civil War" - from Peter's adolescent perspective. Peter's best friend, Ned (Jacob Batalon), peppers him with questions about his abilities, as we would expect a fellow teenager to do.

In this version, Spider-Man is somewhat of an understudy to Tony Stark (aka Iron Man, aka Robert Downey Jr.)...a hero-in-training whose training wheels are not quite ready to come off.  Stark, in fact, is the one responsible for the Spider-Man suit, and he puts one of his associates, Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau), in charge of looking out for Spidey. Hogan is usually too busy to be bothered, so Parker grows frustrated that he is not yet seen as a real Avenger, or even a real super-hero.  Spidey's origins (the whole "radioactive spider" bit) is just assumed, so although it feels like a prequel to Spider-Man's "main" story, it smartly relies on the audience to already know certain elements of the tale.

The villain this time around is played by none other than Michael Keaton, whose career was resurrected recently when he was nominated for an Oscar for "Birdman." Ironically, he plays a baddie called The Vulture this time, a jaded construction worker who builds an underground empire when he acquires some alien technology, directly lifted from the rubble following the battle in the original "The Avengers" film. He has a mechanical bird suit that he uses, and he's aided by a sidekick baddie, The Shocker (Bokeem Woodbine).

But even as they nailed the essence of Peter Parker, "Homecoming" may raise eyebrows with how it tinkers with other elements of the Spider-Man canon. Parker's love interest, Mary Jane, is nowhere to be seen (or is she?) and they've transformed old Aunt May into a sexy cougar played by Marisa Tomei. Parker does have the hots for a fellow student, Michelle (Zendaya), but this thread is the weakest portion of the movie...it just feels artificial and under-developed. And what's the deal with Spider-Man's suit having a Siri-like voice, and all of these crazy bells and whistles? One theme of "Homecoming" has Peter trying to realize his own powers as a person, and not to identify with the suit he's wearing as being responsible for these powers. That seems lifted from "Iron Man," and quite frankly, has no place in Spidey's corner of the Marvel Universe.

The good news is, these elements of the film end up only feeling like quibbles when compared to what the film gets right. A hero is only as good as his or her villain, and Michael Keaton is a juicy, welcome addition to the party. He's much more interesting out of his bird-suit than in it, but luckily for us he spends the majority of the film in the flesh. There's some good father/son stuff between Stark and Parker that I really dug, and did I mention Ned? Parker's best bud acts as the comic relief and he's a scene-stealer. As is Chris Evans as Captain America, who shows up in a series of hilarious informational videos at Parker's high school. It turns out, there are a lot of interesting things happening outside of the ever-growing galactic war that is on the horizon, and this feels like a refreshing change of pace. Spider-Man isn't aware of Infinite Stones or the impending doom of Thanos.

"Spider-Man: Homecoming" webs together what we have come to love (or loathe) from the existing Marvel movies and a nice coming-of-age story. Director Jon Watts makes us feel that excitement and wonderment that Marvel was built on. There's good action, tons of laughs and several characters to root for and invest in. Tom Holland will make you forget Toby Maguire (who was good) and Andrew Garfield (who was great). And if you can exercise some patience, you'll want to stay to the very end of the credits...but you already knew that.

Is this the best Spider-film ever made? I still think "Spider-Man 2" may still be the best comic-book movie of all-time. But "Spider-Man: Homecoming" has rejuvenated my interest in the Marvel Universe, and - to go a step further - may have even rekindled my love of the genre. This isn't a money grab (although it will grab lots of money), or a new Spidey film for the sake of it. It actually feels like those at the top had something to say with the character that hadn't been said quite like this before. "With great power comes great responsibility" has always been the code of Spider-Man, but finally it seems a filmmaker has realized that this can apply elsewhere as well.

Grade: B+ 

Rated PG-13. 
Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi. Run Time: 2 hours 13 minutes. 

Starring: Tom Holland, Michael Keaton, Robert Downey Jr., Marisa Tomei, Jon Favreau, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Donald Glover, Tony Revolori, Bokeem Woodbine.
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Directed by Jon Watts ("Cop Car," "Clown").