Starring Tom Holland, Michael Keaton, Robert Downey Jr., Jon Favreau, Marisa Tomei

Directed by Jon Watts

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, out now

Desperate to become more than just your friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man, Peter Parker tries to bring down a high flying supervillain…

Set aside the fact that the movie’s about 15 to 20 minutes too long (the first act drags a little once the initial fun retelling of Peter’s involvement in Captain America: Civil War is over), Spider-Man Homecoming proves that there are still plenty of fresh ways of approaching superhero movies. Yes, Tony Stark’s presence does mean that there’s a high tech portion of the film but it’s when Peter is out on his own that the movie (and Spider-Man) is at its best.

Tom Holland brings the same “can’t quite believe I’m doing this” quality that he had in Civil War, which manages never to become as irritating as it has the easy potential to be, while Michael Keaton is very much proof of the old adage that everyone is a hero of their own story. We understand both how and why he creates the Vulture suit and his character arc isn’t as clear cut as some villains we’ve had in the MCU.

Robert Downey Jr.’s Stark is in the odd position of being the mentor here, although he tries to pass that off to Favreau’s Happy Hogan as much as possible; to those concerned that this would become an Iron Man film featuring Spider-Man, that’s not the case, although he plays a more significant part than, say, the Falcon does in Ant-Man. Marisa Tomei’s Aunt May isn’t as strong a presence here as the character is in previous movies (or indeed the high school period of the comic books), but she does get a killer final line!

The high school elements of the movie will please/annoy you depending on how you feel about that particular genre. The humour level in those is a bit basic, but there are plenty of comic moments throughout the movie – and at least one place where your jaw may well drop (you’ll know it when you see it – the press corps at the preview burst into applause).

Jon Watts gets good performances from his predominantly young cast, aided by a perky score from Michael Giacchino that seems to almost-but-not-quite reference the 1960s animated series theme (which does get a playover right at the top of the film.) And yes, there are some credits sequences – the mid-credits one is a very nice character piece and the one at the very end will definitely raise a smile.

Sony have gone to town with the extras for the Blu-ray release. There’s the usual gag reel and deleted scenes (including some extra Cap PSAs), but it’s Aftermath that fans of the MCU will want to seek out, as Kevin Feige explains some of the “unseen” elements between The Battle of New York and the start of Homecoming. A commentary would have been nice but sadly not as yet.

Verdict: A strong ensemble piece that brings Spidey swinging into the MCU with style. 8/10

Paul Simpson