Spider-Man: Homecoming Review

        If you would’ve told a younger version of me that Spider-Man would appear in the MCU. I honestly would not believe you in one slightest instant. Out of all the characters of Marvel Comics, Spidey is one of my favorite characters. I was gob smacked that this joint venture between studios was even possible. To me, it’s a rare instance of two studios having a cooperative venture of having a beloved character appear in a massive franchise. 

1. High School film

        I distinctly remember the series of events that transpired when Sony decided to team up with Disney to have their character appear in a Marvel film. While I’ll get to that in a little while, this is probably one of the best non-origin comic book films to appear in the MCU. Mind you, The Incredible Hulk was a sort of quasi-origin film, with this one however, it managed to keep the core tenets of being a Spider-Man film. 

        Now, with the number of Spider-Man films that have came out at that time, the high school aspect was only shown in the first films in the different adaptations. More so that it was only relegated to the first act, since with how it’s mostly focused on the senior year aspect since they have a graduation in the first and second films of the different adaptations. This is the first instance where the whole thing takes place during Parker’s sophomore year. Basically, paying tribute to the past high school dramas of the 80s.

        The film is mostly straightforward, so much so that it’s practically grounded with nothing big or world ending where it’s not too big for Peter. We see that it follows up after the events of Civil War, Peter is now learning on how to balance his regular life and being Spider-Man. He yearns to be a part of the Avengers but is talked down by being told to focus on street-level crime. Meanwhile, we see that Adrian Toomes, a former blue collar dons a Vulture suit to steal material from the Battle of New York. 

        What I like about the film is that it’s mostly grounded with what it wants to do. Showing Peter attempting to balance his dual life while also attempting to show that he’s mature enough to be a part of the Avengers. Tom Holland is as of now the best to portray Parker, obviously he’s younger but he shows that while he does have abilities. He doesn’t have the maturity to handle it. 

        The montage of seeing him do the low-level stuff like stopping a thief or giving a direction to a woman is so Spider-Man. In the sense that he’s like basically doing a public service while also trying to get some answer that he’s ready for the big leagues. What makes the film is that it shows the sides of Peter being a hero and being a regular student. I’ll first talk about him being a hero. Now, he’s not that good of a hero. To me, it’s refreshing that when he's attempting to stop a crime, it goes wrong where it affects everyone negatively. 

        The scene in question that represents that despite seeing him attempting to be heroic is in the first instance of seeing the criminals with alien weapons. While Peter is attempting to stop the bank robbers, he gets cocky when he faces an advanced weapon where it blows up a sandwich shop he visited earlier. It’s a refreshing thing where it puts perspective on Peter where he went toe to toe against Captain America, he’s irresponsible with how he uses his heroism. 

        It gets to a point where in some instances, Tony bails out Peter when his life is almost put in danger. This is the one thing where I remember when it came out was that his interpretation of Spider-Man was too close to being Iron Man. The complaint was that Peter was like an Iron Man jr., considering that his suit has multiple inputs. In my opinion, the use of Tony in the film was mostly to show him disciplining Peter when things go wrong. And be like a father figure to him. 

        Now with the actual high school stuff, it’s one of the highlights since this is the first time that we see Peter being a high school student. All of it isn’t half-baked in the slightest, so much so that we even have moments where Peter is cocky enough to think he’s better than school. What makes the school angle work is that he has a friend. Now, I can imagine some die-hards were upset that Harry Osbourne didn’t make an appearance, but I bought that this film is it’s own thing by having a different interpretation. 

        I like how Ned is the connective tissue for Peter for having a regular school life. So much so, that he worries about Peter and helps him understand just what exactly he’s getting himself into when dealing with the high-tech criminals. The school stuff is great and it’s such a Spider-Man thing where Peter wants to be able to join the other students, but he just can’t since there’s something bigger than that. All of it hammers the theme that is universal to the character and it’s responsibility.

        In some regards, this film is like a part one of a long extensive origin story. One where Peter must prove himself and Tony Stark that he is the hero that is in the same league as Iron Man. We see that just how Peter takes action in his own hands but comes up short by having the situation bite him. For one thing it’s fresh, since we see that he hasn’t yet mastered his own suit by rigging it to have total control. 

        I might as well talk about the villain Adrian Toomes. With the films that we’ve seen in Phase 3 so far, the villains have gotten a lot of better. Mind you, none of them come close to Loki. Anyways, what sets Adrian apart is that he feels slighted against Stark when he makes his job obsolete. Turning into a life of crime to provide for his family. Like I said before, this film isn’t a big film, but one where the stakes are low where it makes Toomes understandable as a villain. 

        I think the best scene involving both Toomes and Peter is when he’s driving Parker and his date to prom. I was not expecting the twist where Peter’s girlfriend’s dad is also the villain. Just the ride alone is uncomfortable and all it took to have Adrian figure out who Peter is was Parker’s date. It’s those scenes that has the sweat dripping since we don’t know how it’ll play out and what he’s going to do when he literally has Parker in the car. 

        Lastly, I got to talk about the suit that is used in the film. Since this is a follow up after Captain America’s film, we see suit in it’s full form. Some people complain that it’s too reminiscent of Iron Man, but it works in a sense where Spidey has more practical use of his webs. Also, we see that his eyes are expressive in the same way as that feature appeared in Deadpool. It’s ingenious to have him use the homemade suit when he’s attempting to stop Adrian. 

        The whole final confrontation is subverted when we see him use his first suit. It gives him the underdog edge since he must rely on a limited supply of web on how to stop Adrian from stealing more of Stark’s technology. There isn’t a final fight per se, but just seeing Peter save the day without the use of fancy tech gives it a refreshing look where we’re nervous about him since he doesn’t have anything advanced. 

2. How Spidey Came “Home”

        This is the longest review that I’ve written so far, I believe. To make the word count even longer is simply explaining how both Sony and Disney practically worked together to have this character appear. As I said earlier, I remember just how it played out. Sony encountered a hack 10 years ago, and they were trying anyway to spice up the Spider-Man IP since their recent entry didn’t make enough in the box-office to which the studio was satisfied. 

        All it took was a chance meeting with the people of Marvel Studios that it was massive news in pop-culture where a character that wasn’t immediately part of the Marvel Studios umbrella was going to be a part of the franchise. The gamble paid off big time since the character is very marketable and is people’s favorite among the Marvel Comics universe. In one way, it was a slow step for the studio to have the characters of the parent company appear in a Marvel-centric movie. 

3. Overall

        Spider-Man: Homecoming is one of the best debut films in the MCU. So much so that it’s up there with the other films that have defined the MCU as a whole. 

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 Review

        With Phase 3 already in high gear, it made sense to have a sequel to the surprise hit of Guardians of the Galaxy. More than anything, the team’s appeal was an interesting choice to kick off the summer slate of 2017. With this one James Gunn has total control of the project since he did the double duty of writing and directing. In my opinion, it’s one of the better sequels in the MCU, considering the only good one is The Winter Soldier. 

1. Team and Family

        When you try to chronologically watch the MCU, it’s surprising to note that the first two Guardians films take place immediately after each other. Still keeping in line that they operate under their own rules outside of what’s happening on Earth. To me, that’s why I think outside of the core Avengers members, the Guardians are the most interesting since they have that renegade edge to them. I think this is the series that has it’s own fans where it involves individuals who are outcasts.

        So, we follow the team as they’re now operating as a team for hire. After Rocket steals from the gold faced group the Sovereign, they’re on the run. A mysterious being helps them ward off the fleet, he drops a bomb shell that he’s Peter’s dad. For one thing, I think it’s wise to follow up on Peter’s background, it was alluded to in the last entry on how he managed to survive holding an infinity stone. We even have a small introduction of Peter’s mom and dad, knowing what we know makes the first film more tragic.

        Here, we see just who Peter’s dad is. Kurt Russel plays the seemingly innocent Ego. His chemistry alongside Chris Pratt works since it’s like seeing him talking to his long-lost father. Basically, having Peter ask him where he’s been and why he couldn’t visit him. The casting is sort of immaculate since you can kind of believe that Rusell is Pratt’s father. We see how Pratt’s Star-Lord is still a grown-up kid as he plays catch with his dad. 

        The film still retains a diegetic soundtrack that is used nicely in the film. It's a new playlist that we see since Peter opened his mother's gift in the last film. Once again, all of it is used to represent how Peter is feeling in the scene. While we don't see him put on his headphones, but seeing the moment when part of the team arriving in Ego's planet with George Harrison playing represents just how the other characters mirror the mixtape. 

        

        If there’s one thing to say about the film and how it looks is that it looks gorgeous. I remember watching a video on YouTube where Gunn promotes the camera that they shot the film in. It’s called a RED camera; to sum it up it captures footage and records in 8K. The colors pop out is what I’m attempting to get at. All of it is a huge contrast with how the first Guardians looks like. Not to say that the first one looks like garbage, but the colors don’t pop out since the guys that we follow are criminals. To me, it makes everything pop out and you don’t have to have a fancy TV to get the total experience. 

        Aside from the Star-Lord story line, we have the team split up. With Drax and Gamora following Quill and his dad, while Rocket fixes the ship with a now baby version of Groot. It’s a compromise when you want to have the focus be spent equally by separating the team, since we see just what’s happening on the other side. In the context of the story, it works since there’s a fallout between Peter and Rocket. 

        With what the film is going for and well I gave it away in the title of the first tab is that the film is about family. Not to say that’s why it’s powerful in the film, but it’s what its about at the core. They started as a team but now they consider themselves as a family. It’s even expressed when we see Yondu being separated by his Ravagers. With how it’s shown when it’s him is a bit rocky. No pun intended when we see Sylvester Stallone make an appearance as the head of the Ravagers, but it gives them a clunky way to force a fallout between him and his crew. Of course, it had to tie back to why Yondu didn’t give Peter to Ego. 

        So back to the family angle, I think that it works in the context of the team since they have growing pains as they argue and finally trying to coalesce with each other. All of it is shown when we get the moments of them interacting with Groot. The opening title sequence shows just how all of them are different with attempting to protect Groot all the while stopping the threat. You can see that Peter is trying to hold the team together while Rocket does things out of his own volition.

        One scene that perfectly captures just one side of the family angle is when Gamora’s sister Nebula chases her down to try and kill her. They fight but it gets a breather when Nebula confesses to Gamora that she just wanted a sister. While we didn’t have more moments of them in the last film. Nebula’s cries works by having her sister finally accept her. This ultimately sets up the revelation that Ego needed Peter for his own plans. All of it is tragic when Ego turns on Peter and practically destroys the only remaining thing Quill has of his mother. 

2. James Gunn’s “Last” Film

        Of course, the film made money and the team would wound up appearing in the subsequent Avengers films. There was a period where Disney fired James Gunn and it looked like the franchise would be like the others where another person would helm a sequel. What caused it was that Gunn was very active on Twitter mostly deriding the president at the time and some trolls decided to dig up past tweets that show that he was just as grotesque with who he was complaining about. 

        With a bombshell like that, it seemingly looked like Gunn’s days were numbered at Marvel Studios. So why am I bringing it up? Mostly for context of the times that his talent to basically go weird with his movies helped another studio and their toy chest of comic book characters. His directorial vision is the only one that is discernable in the cinematic universe. Inevitably, Disney brought him back to close his trilogy and he has a gig now of his own division in Warner Bros. 

3. Overall

        Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is a worthy sequel in the MCU. Of course not as good as the debut, but up there as the best sequels in the overall franchise. 

Doctor Strange Review

        When Marvel Studios’ president Kevin Feige showcased the upcoming slate to Phase 3, Doctor Strange interested me the most. I had a vague idea of who Doctor Strange was as a character, but this was my first exposure to the sorcerer supreme. In one way, this added a new dynamic for the MCU by being exclusively magic and utilizing sorcerers. Among the debut entries in the franchise, I feel that this one is on par with Iron Man and Guardians of the Galaxy. 

1. Way of the Weird

        As I mentioned before, this is the first time we get to see an MCU film fully introduce and embrace its portrayal of magic. We sort of had an introduction with Thor, but it doesn’t technically count since it had a compromise with imbuing magic with science. Aside from the updated Marvel Studios title card that is still in use, the way that the movie starts is very stark. Of course we don’t see the decapitation, it just shows that this is going to be a different MCU film.

        Just the action that we see between the Ancient One and her former student Kaecilius just offers us a taste of how exactly the magic will be displayed. While I get to the integration of it in the context of the action, it looks great with how it’s presented. We follow Stephen as he’s a professional neurosurgeon. He injured his hands in a car accident, making matters worse was that he’s prideful of his work. 

        He gets word from a patient who was healed when he visited a temple in Kathmandu. Soon, he gets involved with the work of other sorcerers by following the teachings of the Ancient One. I said earlier that this debut film is on par with Iron Man, for the simple reason that we see just how Stephen masters the mystic arts. To me, it’s a highlight seeing how he manages to overcome his handicap to making something. 

        It’s the detail of that that really sets forth what kind of person he is and to justify just how smart he is. I’ll talk about Stephen in the following tab, but I will elaborate more on how magic is used with action. All of it with how it’s portrayed is mostly through hand motions to create objects. A far cry from something like Harry Potter where to create a magic spell is to use a wand and say the incantation. 

        I got to give credit to director Scott Derrickson with showcasing a different side of the MCU by being quite different among the film’s brethren. He mostly specializes in horror films and in some respect the film tries to do that. I think with how he uses the camera to really make the magic moments pop is commended. Especially in the action and when everything is the mirror dimension. That whole scene had to have been worked in a years of the film’s development. 

        With the action that’s shown, it’s the most creative within the MCU. My favorite highlight is when Strange and a follower of Kaecilius are fighting in the Astral Plane. All of it is set in the hospital where Strange worked. All the while that’s happening, Stephen asked his coworker to help and revive him. It has tension since we see how even when they’re like ghosts, they still have causalities in the material world. 

        Lastly, I think the one of the reasons why the movie worked aside from the characters is that the magic isn’t half-baked in the least bit. There isn’t anything where there’s a leap in logic or anything that contradicts the rules within the movie. What I mean is that, to make the magic believable you need rules instead of going about the laziest way you can imagine. It’s established that it’s teachable and there’s more info within the books. So much so that the villain’s M.O. hinges on a page to perform an incantation. 

2. Stephen Strange

        One could say that Stephen is a lot like Tony Stark. For one thing, they are very prideful of their work before their accident. What makes Stephen different is the fact that he was a doctor. One where he was extremely picky with the patients that he sees to perform an operation. Nothing is held back when we see his car accident, especially seeing his hands get mangled in his Lamborghini. 

        The worst that we see him is when after they perform the operation that he is very vain about how his associates saved his hands. Just seeing him try everything to have his hands as before is one way tragic and ironic, considering that the piano piece that the film has practically drives the idea home that Stephen is basically invalid hand-wise. 

        As I said earlier, he learns how to use the mystic arts, all of it to him is in the context of using his hands to get back to normal. I love how his arc basically has him wrestle with the idea that he doesn’t want to protect the world but just get a quick fix and that’s it. He’s a reluctant hero that answers the call when the other sanctums on the globe are attacked by the Ancient One’s former student. 

        One scene that’s my favorite in the film, besides seeing the bonkers magic moments is when Strange talks to the Ancient One just before her death. All of it is when they’re in the Astral realm where time is slowed down. It’s a coming to Jesus moment where she tells Strange that everything he did was for the good and that it’s not about him. Basically, leveling with him that they can’t escape time but embrace what they have in front of them. 

        More than anything, I think the angle that the film went for, and I really like this theme is the idea of morality. Before we see Strange’s transformation, he’s very particular about who he operates as a surgeon. Choosing who to save rather than just saving. More so, Stephen is thinking about himself over anything else. He shies away from being a protector until he is prompted to act. 

        It's even highlighted when we see him go against the actual threat Dormammu. The final fight is one of the most creative moments I’ve seen in the MCU and any comic book film. Stephen uses the Eye of Agamotto to manipulate time to have the malevolent be stuck in a time loop. Even when it tells Strange that he can’t do it forever, he chooses to save everyone than to think of himself. That scene is great and just shows how Stephen grew up and shed that “me” attitude that he had. 

3. Overall

        Doctor Strange is one of the best debut comic book films I’ve seen. In the MCU it’s a great debut and shows a wackier side of the universe. 

Captain America: Civil War Review

        It’s crazy to think that I’m half-way close to wrapping up the MCU’s Infinity Saga. Phases 1 and 2 included one of the best films in the comic book genre. As well as some clunkers that aren’t bad in a stretch but were just borderline okay to me. Phase 3 is often debated as being the best phase in the MCU in general. Of course, they introduced new heroes and a culmination of storylines that were presented last time. Tougher though is debating which sequel is better, The Winter Soldier or Civil War. 

1. Disassembled

        With the title like Civil War, one would think that this is the crossroads the Avengers will face as a team. Mind you, we have a new lineup due to the events in Age of Ultron. Also, people tend to think that this is sort of an Avengers film, since we have mostly all of them appearing. Minus Thor and Hulk, we’ll talk about them in a matter of weeks. Ultimately, this film is Cap’s film, and the stakes is personal.

        We get a reintroduction to Bucky Barnes as the Winter Soldier as we see him commit an assassination. Not giving a clear look as to who were the victims but witnessing that he’s controllable. Transition to the present where we see the team in Lagos as they hunt down a former Shield agent turned terrorist. While they stopped him, Wanda accidentally caused a bombing that triggered casualties.

        Meanwhile, Tony is greeted from a mother whose son was part of the Sokovian attack. Feeling that he has blood on his hands, everything leads to the creation of the Sokovian Accords. A binding paperwork that restricts the Avengers to being under the control of the countries that have a threat. Aside from the fight they we ultimately wanted to see, just seeing the heroes argue over the justification of the framework visually draws the line where everyone is at. 

        Since this is Steve’s film, he can’t consciously sign the document. I think what makes the film so great is that the whole ideological battle is already established and that it doesn’t have to be bat in the head multiple times. Like, the whole story doesn’t stop by having random news channel bits discussing the pros and cons of the Accords. The argument practically sets up Steve as a fugitive who must rescue and save Bucky. 

        The whole type of film that we’re dealing with is akin to well The Fugitive. Where Rogers and his confidantes help him as he’s on the run. Thus, making the initial fight and argument more impactful since they were a team and now are in the opposites sides of the law. It’s not overstuffed but is centralized with everything focusing on Bucky. Right down to Prince T’Challa hunting him down for his own gain. 

        I might as well talk about the new cast that we see. T’Challa is the most interesting out of the cast since he’s of royalty. As well as being the Black Panther. Chadwick Boseman portrays him well were he’s just business where he’s just gunning for Bucky and nothing else. His character arc as well is great since he’s so blinded by rage that he realizes that what he’s doing won’t bring back his father. 

        When one of the trailers came out, I bet that no one would anticipate or even think that Spider-Man would even appear in an MCU movie. Just the story of how it went down is even crazier, and it happened due to a hack that occurred in 2014. I won’t divulge until maybe talking about it in Spider-Man: Homecoming. What I will say is that the whole thing is like a custody arrangement where two studios are sharing a character. 

        With a film that has a lot of lines being drawn and a team being divided, one of the details that I noticed is that the whole film has a muted look to it. Now, this is probably the only artistic thing that appears in an MCU film. But it works that how the characters look muted even in their costume. In one way, the colors don’t pop because they aren’t heroic but are fighting amongst themselves. 

        Lastly, I think the secret sauce to having the whole idea work is that there's no right and wrong. It would be one thing where the heroes disavow what they signed or simply stating to the audience who was in the right or wrong. All of it is up to the audience to interpret who was right and vice versa. We even see the effects of going against the accords that helps Tony realize that his stance has consequences. 

2. Zemo

        Aside from Loki, Helmut Zemo is one of the most interesting villains to appear in an MCU film. What separates him from the other one and done villains, even Loki to an extent is that he’s human. He has no powers or a suit that gives him super strength. Specifically, he accomplishes what he wanted to do. Drive a wedge and blow up the team from the inside. 

        What makes him work is that he’s the puppet master that ultimately pulls the strings to have everyone chase after Bucky. More so that he has a drive that is justified to get back at the heroes. It’s established that he lived in Sokovia and was part of a kill squad. Making everything that he does so calculating and malevolent. I think of the scenes that he’s in, my favorite is when he’s talking to T’Challa. 

        As he talks to the prince about regretting killing his father, he justifies doing what he did. It’s the rare moment where aside from Loki, we get a scene that breathes and just show how messed up Zemo is. All with interspersed cuts of Steve and Tony fighting each other. I was surprised that T’Challa saved him from killing himself. To top it all is we see him mocking the agent that he did what he did and no one else had done. 

3. 2016: Heroes Fight

        2016 is the one year that we will remember. From multiple deaths involving legendary celebrities to having a controversial election. It seemed that among the comic book realm was one where heroes clashed. Now, one can’t talk about this movie without discussing it’s opposite. I’ve already talked about Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice some time ago. The gist was that it was the first time the duo finally met in celluloid and fought. 

        One of the many problems the film had was the overall approach to how they fought. The difference between how that one and Civil War was that the former lacked personal stakes. This one has it since we knew the characters and just seeing everything unfold is like seeing parents fight in front of you. Metaphors aside, Civil War worked because it depended on the character development that makes it believable. 

        For one thing, for as much as it’s bigger in scope than either of the individual sequels beyond the Avengers, it’s mostly on one character and his point of view. The focus is on Cap and seeing/hearing his reasons as to why he won’t be restricted. Contrasted with Stark’s who sees himself as the reason why the team must be put in check. It boils over when they argue and inevitably fight in the film. It’s about the characters and giving a shit. 

        Without beating a horse’s skeleton, Batman v Superman is about the ideas that’s disguised to be smart. Captain America: Civil War is a runaway film that knows what it is without being too smart for its own good. The fight’s in this one aren’t drawn out, it works in the context of Cap and Bucky escaping and Tony wanting to kill Bucky for what he did. The main takeaway is that it’s better to know what film you have than thinking it’s something more beyond heroes in tights. 

4. Overall

        Captain America: Civil War is one of the best in the MCU. And a successful kick off to the 3rd phase of MCU films.