does a lot as a friendly neighborhood mega-franchise; one of the better 'reboots'

Rating: 8/10 (8 July 2017)

For the most part, if you were among those that saw Spider-Man/Peter Parker appear in Civil War and found him entertaining and, more to the point, *right* as that character and icon, then you will like him all the more in his first movie in this iteration. It's amazing to think that this is the sixth Spider-Man movies in 15 years, and yet this is the first in over a decade that understands this character, in large part making close to the comic books (I haven't read them religiously, but it seems to follow pretty close to the Ultimate run at the least, if not others). I don't know if every action scene is terribly original, but every one has massive stakes for Parker, and yet at the same time they're not the usual apocalyptic, end-of-the-world scenarios that sometimes can make a super-hero movie feel too big, even if the stakes are still strong. Everything is down to the personal here with Parker, and even more than the Raimi movies these get right the high school, awkward teenager part of Parker down pat.
Now, was this all even necessary? I don't know, and that may be cause for debate among people for a long time. I got to look at what's put in front of me to say whether it works or not as its own thing; the previous try by Sony to get Spider-Man back into theaters after getting rid of Raimi, Amazing Spider-Man, felt tired and had its moments amid a very spotty story. I'm not even sure if it's necessarily that Marvel Studios *solely* could have brought Parker et al back, or then some, to former glory, but I think with Civil War being the dipping of the toes into the pool and this being the big dive and 1000-meter lap, that they got it right as they could. It all comes down to what makes any of these gigantic corporate products work, regardless of if it's Marvel or DC or whoever: are the actors convincing enough to bring the characters to life, and does the writing do right by them with a story that makes sense and characters that give them something to do?
Holland found just the right note in Civil War as like a half of the time innocent-looking puppy of a teenager, the kind that we almost don't want to see get hurt, vulnerable and caring and showing the conflicts so perfectly that Parker has to deal with everyday in his balance as just a regular kid in extraordinary circumstances... but, other half of the time, he can certainly mouth-off and be convincing in that way that Spider-Man just was int the comics (that doesn't mean the comics are sacrosanct or anything, that they *had* to do that to get it right, it's merely to point that this Parker is a wise-ass but funny as hell at doing it, even down to a moment in a montage early on when he stops a guy stealing a bike). Meanwhile, the writers give Parker a best-friend/comic relief, a tired trope that feels totally revitalized here because a) the kid he's paired with is wonderfully dead-pan and yet excitable (kudos to Jacob Batalon as Ned Leeds getting it right), and b) he proves himself useful... maybe oddly, a lot, conveniently useful for a teenager, but I can suspend disbelief for a little while.
And then there's Keaton; is he used properly, given how damn talented he is? Yes, but only up to a point. There's some moments, like a very tense exchange with the hero in a car, that have a crisp intensity that Keaton can just turn on as if it's nothing. Other times, he's having to work more in what the plot requires, and under his Vulture get-up - obviously, without question, right, a meta-comment in an ironic way regarding BIRDMAN - we don't get to see as much of it. It's in the third act he gets to flex his chops the most, without saying exactly why it's a wonderful twist that we don't see coming but makes sense. Even when he is in the midst of certain story continuity things (an 8 year jump is a bit odd, but again, we try to let it go on q first watch), he is... Michael Keaton. He's a lot of fun to watch.
It's hard I think for me to fully analyze this right away as some profound work of art that may have more depth that needs a dive in. That may be all good now for the Raimi movies, but that's looking back over a decade. This is still too fresh, and the only thing I can say is that the writing of the story if 90% of it all tight and gives Parker and Spider-Man a solid, if a little predictable, arc as far as his hero's journey, and the dialog is consistently comedic. I found myself laughing far more than in any previous Spider-Man entry, and that's the key to its success: it knows it's silly in a way, or at least Parker recognizes it, and while the MCU is known for doing that (this year with GotG most of all), this feels even sillier. It knows it. We are let in on the fun. Despite any nitpicks and misgivings, and there are more I won't mention (one involving a character reveal that is right out of, of all things, Dark Knight Rises), it's among the better summer blockbusters in years because of that. 8.5/10