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Thursday, July 13, 2017
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
ARTS
SONY PICTURES
Tom Holland stars as Spider-Man
“Spider-Man:
Homecoming”
marks
the
second
reboot
of
everyone’s favorite webslinger, this
one within the Marvel Cinematic
Universe in the aftermath of the
dumpster-fire-inside-a-trainwreck
that was 2014’s “The Amazing
Spider-Man 2.” The efforts of
Hollywood to get another strong
Spider-franchise off the ground
speaks not only to the obvious
money-making
capabilities
of
the character, but to his ability to
resonate with audiences after 50
years since his first appearance.
There’s a simple reason for that:
Peter Parker is not a billionaire,
a prince or an alien. He’s an
ordinary guy whose greatest trials
are often finding the balance
between heroism and day-to-day
struggles like jobs, friendships and
romance. He’s one of us. And for
the first time since Sam Raimi’s
“Spiderman 2” way back in 2004, it
seems we finally have a movie that
understands that.
So much of what “Homecoming”
does well comes down to two
things: the script and Tom Holland
(“The Lost City of Z”). Featuring
no fewer than six credited writers,
the former blends classic high
school comedy and all the high-
flying superheroics you’d probably
expect. The resultant tone would
have been pleasant enough to
sustain the movie, but the script’s
greatest strength comes from its
function as a stealth origin story
for its title character.
To clarify, by the time the story
begins, Peter has already been
doing whatever a spider can for
about eight months. Despite this,
“Homecoming”
feels
like
the
beginning of Spider-Man proper, as
Peter begins to reflect on his future
and what a life as an Avenger would
mean. We don’t see the radioactive
spider or Uncle Ben. Instead, we
watch Peter come to grips with his
dual identity and learn to listen to
his most heroic instincts, a theme
that audiences young and old will
be able to relate to.
Holland, on the other hand,
turns in a terrific performance as
what may be the best Spider-Man
yet. Spidey’s relatability is his
lifeblood, but nearly as important
is his youthful exuberance and
humor.
Holland
nails
both.
Whatever the moment calls for,
whether it’s a well-timed quip or
tearful confession to Aunt May
(Marisa Tomei, “The Big Short”),
there’s never a moment that doesn’t
feel real. As silly as it sounds,
if a high schooler were given
superpowers, this is probably what
it would look like.
The rest of the cast is accordingly
sound. Tomei doesn’t get as much
screen time as her counterparts, but
she still gets the funniest moment of
the entire film. Robert Downey Jr.
(“The Judge”) falls easily into the
mentor role, and the relationship
that develops between Tony Stark
and Peter is yet another high point.
Still, the highlight of the supporting
players is without a doubt Michael
Keaton
(“Birdman”)
as
Adrian
Toomes, who ranks as one of the
most gripping villains the MCU
has offered up. Unlike other MCU
villains, time is actually spent
developing Toomes’s motivation.
He feels like a fleshed-out character,
one whose fury is understandable
but who is nevertheless terrifying,
especially in the scenes he shares
with Spider-Man.
If “Homecoming” does have one
glaring weakness, it’s that the action
is pretty weak. The argument could
be made that this is due to Peter
still learning his powers, but even
putting that aside the direction from
Jon Watts (“Cop Car”) lacks the life
on display in other scenes. There’s
nothing too inventive or exciting
about any of it, and it lacks any sort
of visual flair. Ironically, the action
scenes wind up being the most
boring bits of the movie.
But the weak action aside,
“Homecoming”
brings
Spider-
Man back into the Marvel fold in
perhaps the best way fans could
have hoped for. It goes small where
other interpretations have gone
big, setting him up as a street-level
hero whose problems and failures
feel more realistic because they’re
our problems. When he triumphs,
it gives us hope that we can do the
same. That’s what makes Spider-
Man one of the greatest superheroes
of all time, and understanding that
is
“Homecoming”’s
greatest
success.
Latest ‘Spider-Man’ thrills
JEREMIAH VANDERHELM
Daily Arts Writer
HAIM pays off
It’s been awhile since we’ve
last heard from HAIM, the
LA-based
indie-pop
band
comprised
of
three
San
Fernando sisters. Their debut
garnered critical success and,
with a co-sign by the industry
queen herself (Taylor Swift™),
HAIM accumulated tremendous
momentum. But after a short
tour for their full-length debut,
the band grew quiet. Over the
course of 2016, HAIM featured
on a Calvin Harris track and
occasionally hosted their own
Beats 1 show, but no new music.
For a new band to gain so much
buzz and go silent for the next
three years, it was easy to forget
about them. With Something to
Tell You, HAIM reminds fans
that they have a lot to say — and
you should be listening.
Distilled,
Something
to
Tell You hits on every point
discussed from the beginning to
the end of a rocky relationship.
On
the
upbeat
“Ready For You,”
the sisters recall
a
casual
lover,
wishing they could
go back and try to
make things more
serious. “Little of
Your Love” pleads
a partner to meet
the girls halfway and offer
them a glimpse of reciprocated
feelings. With “Walking Away,”
the pop-iest standout, HAIM
mourns the end of a relationship
while facing the harsh reality
of needing to remove yourself
from a situation that just isn’t
working.
With Something to Tell You,
HAIM finds the happy medium
between progressing sonically
as
a
band
while
remaining
warmly familiar. Partly due to
co-writing by Ariel Rechtshaid,
who specializes in songs that
straddle the border of pop and
soul (Adele’s “When We Were
Young” and Carly Rae Jepsen’s
“All That”), HAIM delivers an
album that strongly resembles
the indie-pop roots of their debut,
but takes notable steps towards
experimentation. “Found It In
Silence” features profound synth
strings with a simple bass drum
accompaniment — a familiar
sound in HAIM’s discography.
ws.
At 11 tracks, the album is the
perfect length to keep listeners
engaged
without
exhausting
attention spans. It’s amazing
to hear how much lead singer
Danielle Haim’s voice has grown
since their debut. However, unlike
their last album, which featured
greater vocal variety from Este
and Alana (see “The Wire”),
Something to Tell
You feels more like
Danielle and the
Haim Sisters than
HAIM,
causing
some of the tracks
to lose depth due
to a lack of familiar
collaboration.
In
retrospect,
it’s understandable that HAIM
took three years to gather their
thoughts. Something to Tell You
is extremely rich both sonically
and lyrically and, just as Danielle
sings on “Found It In Silence,”
sometimes a long silence is a
good thing.
DANNY MADION
Daily Arts Writer
Something to
Tell You
HAIM
Polydor Records
POLYDOR RECORDS
HAIM sister shredding
“Spider-Man:
Homecoming”
Ann Arbor 20 +
IMAX, Goodrich
Quality 16
Sony Pictures
FILM REVIEW
MUSIC REVIEW