Doing whatever a spider can

Rating: 8/10 (8 August 2017)

This Spiderman movie brings the titular web-head under Marvel Studios and into the Marvel Cinematic Universe - finally!
After a cameo with other avengers (see Captain America 3 - Civil War) young Peter Parker, still coming to grips with his ability, looks to develop and grow under the tutelage of Iron Man a.k.a. Tony Stark. Off the back of the wreckage that previous Marvel/Avenger films have left, Michael Keaton's Adrian Toomes works to clean up the country by dismantling alien technology. After he is forced out of business he goes it alone (with a band of merry henchmen) collecting tech and transforming it into an arsenal he can utilize to get rich. Spiderman accidentally stumbles upon his plans and is forced to put a stop to it, while trying to keep his identity, his friends and his countrymen safe from harm.
Tom Holland picks up the mantle of Peter Parker for this movie and for me nails his performance moreso than the on-screen Spidermen that have gone before him. He comes across as neurotic and paranoid which for me is an accurate portrayal of the web-head which has kept comic fans happy for years. Spiderman isn't an out and out superhero, he's more delicate and geeky than that, he's more of a friendly neighborhood Spiderman. Opposing Spiderman, Keaton's portrayal of Toomes is gritty, nasty and evil. It works brilliantly and Keaton has managed to go from superhero (Batman) to super villain like not many actors before him. There are elements and portrays of characters in this film which aren't strictly true to the comic book roots but they didn't stand out as off putting so hardcore comic fans should be comfortable still. As you'd expect with a Marvel studio's film there is a lot of fun in this film, mixed with action, adventure and humour. Visually the film is sharp and engaging and the soundtrack is very complimentary.
This is a solid addition to the MCU and is a fun and family friendly film to enjoy. It would have been easy to reboot the whole thing again but instead of doing the whole 'origins' story again the film assumes the audience is clever enough to know who Spiderman is and jumps more or less straight into a story, bravo on this, if I'd have seen another origin story I think I'd have been bored. Instead this is a 133 min's of pure fun. Sit back and enjoy!