"Spider-Man: Homecoming" marks the third reboot of the beloved web-crawler. It is fast-paced, funny and entertaining from start to finish, only a slight position behind the 2004 Tobey Maguire sequel.
Tom Holland takes over. He debuted as the character in last year’s "Captain America: Civil War" and was one of the most memorable standouts in that film. His casting choice was no fluke. His alter ego, Peter Parker, is trying to balance joining the Avengers with his personal life, including high school classes
Robert Downey Jr. reprises his role as Tony Stark/Iron Man who acts as a kind of mentor to Parker. They provide many hilarious exchanges, as well as some great dialogue, both funny and serious. And those moments are equaled by the chemistry between Holland and Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan, Stark’s limo driver. See the movie. You’ll understand.
Michael Keaton, a terrific actor, is not completely miscast as the villain here. But I didn’t buy his Vulture, a former salvager who turns to dealing arms to support his family. It also complicates matters that Parker is in love with his daughter (Laura Harrier).
Like most Marvel movies, "Spider-Man: Homecoming" is heavy on characters and plot threads, but again manages to find a way out of the maze. Focusing on Holland, his casting was inspired as he brings the brains, humor and awkwardness that we’ve come to expect. Maguire was good in his day and Andrew Garfield was an acceptable substitute, but Holland makes the character his own and the performance works.
The same is true about the rest of the film. There are terrific performances all around from a solid cast and it provides incredible special effects sequences, including one involving the Washington Monument.
This movie isn’t any better than the 2004 Maguire sequel, but it has me eagerly looking forward to what Holland is able to do with the character as long as he’s in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He is the Spider-Man movie fans have been waiting for, and his movie is my favorite so far this summer.
Grade: A-
Rated PG-13 for sci-fi action violence, some language, and brief suggestive comments.
Hall is a syndicated columnist in South Georgia.