AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR - Monday 30th April 2018.

'AVENGERS : INFINITY WAR' which I caught earlier in the week has arrived, finally, into our cinemas after much hype, eager anticipation, and huge expectations. This is the 19th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the sequel to 2013 'The Avengers' which grossed US$1.52B off the back of a US$200M Budget outlay, and 2015's 'Avengers : Age Of Ultron' which grossed US$1.4B off a Budget of US$267M. Directed by Anthony and Joe Russo who also Directed 'Captain America : Winter Soldier', and 'Captain America : Civil War', as well as the post-credits sequence that rounded out 'Ant-Man' and featuring a huge A-List ensemble cast, the like of which has quite possibly never before been seen on the big screen to such an extent. The Russo Brothers are also Directing the as yet unnamed sequel to this film which is due for release in early May 2019 and which was shot back to back over a twelve month period from January 2017 through January 2018. The film cost somewhere northward of US$300M to make and is one of the most expensive films ever made, and Marvel's most costly to date. In its opening weekend the film took US$641M making it the highest grossing opening film of all time, with the tally standing at US$858M at the time of posting.

Here all The Avengers we have come to know, love and respect from the previous two instalments and their own stand alone films, plus a few ring-ins must unite two years following the events of 'Captain America : Civil War' and following on directly from the closing scene in 'Thor : Ragnarok'. Here we see the ship that Thor commandeered from The Grandmaster to take the survivors of a destroyed Asgard to the relative safe haven of Earth, all but destroyed by Thanos (Josh Brolin) and his 'children' Ebony Maw (Tom Vaughan-Lawlor), Cull Obsidian (Terry Notary), Proxima Midnight (Carrie Coon) and Corvus Glaive (Michael James Shaw). All around are dead Asgardians save for a captive Thor (Chris Hemsworth) held in a vice like head grip by Thanos, an injured Heimdall (Idris Elba), a right as rain Loki (Tom Hiddleston) and Hulk (Mark Ruffalo).

Thanos is already in possession of the first of six all powerful Infinity Stones, having secured the Power Stone already. He knows that someone on board the stricken ship has the Tesseract, which holds the Space Stone, and he is determined to get his hands on it. Thanos kills Heimdall but not before the revered sentry of Asgard summons the Bifrost sending Hulk back to Earth.

At this Loki tries to bargain with Thanos giving up the Tesseract in exchange for sparing Thor's life, but ultimately the Titan crushes Loki's throat with a single hand, squeezing all life from him, watched on by a helpless Thor. Thanos now armed with two Infinity Stones departs the stricken ship with his children, destroying it in the process.

Back down on Earth, Dr. Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) and Wong (Benedict Wong) are going about their daily business in Strange's New York residence the Sanctum Sanctorum when crashing through the window and through the grand staircase of the household lands Hulk who has now reverted to Bruce Banner, via the Bifrost. Banner announces to an unsuspecting Strange and Wong that Thanos is coming and he's hellbent on destroying half the known universe. Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jnr.) is contacted by Strange and their introductory encounter is a little strained, but distraction is provided by Maw and Obsidian who arrive via a giant rotating circular spaceship to take possession of Doctor Strange's Time Stone, which he ain't gonna give up for anyone!

A battle ensues in the streets of downtown New York which Peter Parker (Tom Holland) gets involved in too, swinging into action as our favourite web slinger, Spider-Man. With five Avengers against two Thanos thugs, the odds would be stacked in favour of the former, but not so. Maw takes Strange prisoner aboard his ship with the aim of removing the Time Stone, followed in hot pursuit by Iron Man and Spider-Man. Before doing so, Banner urges Tony Stark to contact Steve Rogers/Captain America (Chris Evans) using the cell phone given to him after the pair fell out following the events of 'Captain America : Civil War'. Stark was reluctantly about to do so before the attack, and now he is gone heading into deep space somewhere. Banner retrieves the phone after the battle, and calls Rogers.

Meanwhile up in Scotland, seemingly away from the fray living their private lives Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olson) and Vision (Paul Bettany) are ambushed by Midnight and Glaive seeking to retrieve the Mind Stone from Vision's forehead. Coming to the rescue just in the nick of time are Rogers, Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and Sam Wilson/Falcon (Anthony Mackie), who jet off to the new Avengers facility to meet with James Rhodes/War Machine (Don Cheadle). Vision offers to sacrifice himself by having Wanda Maximoff summons her powers to destroy the Mind Stone rather than letting it fall into the hands of Thanos. Rogers however, suggests an alternative strategy. That they fly to Wakanda as the only place equipped with the technology to remove the Mind Stone safely so allowing Vision to live, and Rogers has some connections there too.

In the meantime, somewhere in deep space The Guardians of the Galaxy have responded to a distress call from the stricken Asgardian ship, and rescue Thor. Following rather protracted introductions with a few laugh out loud one-liners, Thor surmises that Thanos is in pursuit of the Reality Stone, which is in the possession of The Collector (Benicio del Toro) located on Knowhere. Rocket (the Racoon, voiced by Bradley Copper)  and Groot (an extraterrestrial tree like humanoid voiced by Vin Diesel) accompany Thor to Nidavellir to locate a weapon that is capable of killing Thanos. There they find the industrial planet shut down, the lights are off and nobody's at home. Except for Eltri (Peter Dinklage) a weapons forger who crafted Thor's hammer Mjolnir. To forge a new weapon for Thor means restarting the giant turbines now frozen that heat the furnace that melts the metal to create The Stormbreaker, a magical battle axe with similar properties to Mjolnir. Job done, Thor, Rocket and Groot get outta there.

In the intervening period Peter Quill/Star Lord (Chris Pratt), Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Drax (Dave Bautista) and Mantis (Pom Klementieff) arrive on Knowhere, but after Thanos has arrived and has his giant foot resting menacingly on The Collectors chest, with the Reality Stone already embedded in his gauntlet with the others. Gamora confronts Thanos, for she is his adoptive daughter, and she reluctantly reveals the location of the Soul Stone to save her adoptive sister Nebula (Karen Gillan) from torture at the hands of Thanos. Thanos and Gamora travel to the planet Vormir where Red Skull (Ross Marquand replacing Hugo Weaving) is the keeper of the Stone, which can only be retrieved by sacrificing someone he loves. With a tear in his eye and a heavy heart, Thanos throws Gamora over a steep cliff where she falls to her death, so securing him the Soul Stone.

Nebula is able to effect her escape from the clutches of Thanos, and establish contact with the remaining Guardians asking them to rendezvous with her on the now destroyed home planet of Thanos, Titan. Meanwhile Stark and Strange are are able to over power Maw with the help of Spider-Man and eject him out of the ship floating to his death in infinite space. They crash land the now stricken ship on Titan where they meet Quill, Drax and Mantis. After the initial introductions are dispensed with, they hatch a plan to relieve Thanos of his Infinity Gauntlet.

Thanos duly arrives and during a momentary lapse of concentration, Mantis subdues him using her empathic powers. Nebula draws the conclusion that Thanos has killed Gamora which he admits to while under the spell of Mantis. Quill, however, becomes enraged at this revelation and lashes out at Thanos breaking the hold that Mantis had on him. Quickly, Thanos gains the upper hand and overpowers the entire group, including the three Avengers (Spider-Man was hastily inducted as an bona fide Avenger by Stark after the trio dispensed with Maw) and impaling Iron Man with a long blade. Strange gives up the Time Stone in exchange for him sparing the life of Stark. Thanos departs for Earth.

Back on Earth in Wakanda, Rogers in reunited with an exiled Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan). The Avengers seek that Shuri (Letitia Wright) extracts the Mind Stone from Vision using their cutting edge technology to save his life in the process. But time is ticking away and the army of Thanos is anticipated imminently. The army invades trying to break through the Wakandan force field. The Avengers, together with T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman) mount a defensive attack together with the might and strength of the Wakandan forces. Thor, Rocket and Groot arrive and join the fray. Midnight, Obsidian and Glaive leading the charge of the invading army are killed in battle and their army flees when they succumb to the wrath of Thor and his new Stormbreaker Axe.

Thanos arrives, and at Vision's insistence Maximoff destroys his Mind Stone shattering it into a thousand fragments, preventing Thanos from securing the final Infinity Stone to complete the full set of brightly coloured all powerful gems. With the Avengers scattered having failed in their attempts to overpower Thanos, the Titan shows empathy towards Maximoff before activating the Time Stone and reversing her most recent actions to the time just a few minutes before. Vision lives, with the Mind Stone in tact, which Thanos plucks from his forehead, killing Vision in the process once and for all. At that Thor appears and impales Thanos with his Stormbreaker Axe. Just when you thought you could breathe a sigh of relief Thanos activates the now complete Infinity Gauntlet and is teleported off this little blue planet.

Thanos plans for the universe are thrown into motion with a click of his fingers as life begins to disintegrate quickly. Those first to disappear like ash in the wind are the likes of Strange and Parker, and Drax, Quill and Mantis still on Titan, then T'Challa, Barnes, Groot, Maximoff and Wilson in Wakanda. Stark and Nebula remain intact on Titan, as do Banner, Rogers, Thor, Okoye (Danai Gurira), Rhodes, Rocket and Romanoff on the battlefield of Wakanda. Meanwhile, Thanos has arrived on his home planet, walks into his mountain top home from home and watches a sun setting on another day as he recovers from his injury.

In the post credit sequence, we see Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) driving through a busy street when a car in front spins randomly out of control and collides with theirs. Getting out to investigate Hill sees that the car is driverless, just as a helicopter flying overhead spins recklessly out of control smashing into an office tower. Looking on, Hill begins to disintegrate, and as Fury sends a distress signal so he too begins to disintegrate.

The 'Avengers : Infinity War' is a movie of epic proportions and it certainly helps if you have sat through the previous instalments of the MCU that feature those characters portrayed in this film. This is not intended to be a standalone instalment, but rather a continuation and a culmination of the previous ten years, eighteen films and several MCU tie-ins and cross-overs. Directors the Russo brothers under the watchful gaze of Marvel Studios Producer Kevin Feige, have crafted a film that delivers on many levels - the action set pieces, of which there are plenty, are delivered effectively and expertly on a grand scale, there are moments of emotion and there are laugh out loud one liners too. Never does the ego of one Superhero get in the way of another, and each character is given sufficient latitude and screen time to advance their story arc just a little further without it being repetitive. Josh Brolin as Thanos gives a convincing performance as a giant of a man whose universe crushing outwardly persona gives way on more than one occasion to inner emotion and a level of thinking that reveal more than a cardboard cut out of an intergalactic arch villain. As for the rest of the cast, they too can be hardly faulted - after all we know them all well and have seen them conquer Earth based enemies and otherworldly foe too, but this time, have they met their match - it sure looks like it! As the closing credits says 'Thanos will be back' - one year from now. This fact of course may disappoint some viewers expecting closure, as will the death of several of their favoured characters, the omission of some others (most notably Hawkeye, Ant-Man or Valkyrie), the fact that every otherworldly planet visited has a breathable atmosphere and appears to have a temperate climate, and the elongated running time may be too big an ask for some. My advice however, if you are a follower of the MCU, then watch this film on the biggest screen and be prepared to sit through two and a half hours of solid Marvel movie entertainment at its biggest, boldest and brashest - you won't be disappointed.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-

THOR : RAGNAROK - Tuesday 31st October 2017.

'THOR : RAGNAROK' which I saw earlier this week, is the third film in the 'Thor' franchise and the seventeenth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and has been much hyped, keenly awaited and highly anticipated since the first trailers were released and New Zealander Taika Waititi was announced for Directing duties. With a production budget of US$180M and filmed largely at Australia's Gold Coast film studios, the film has already received largely positive press, hailing it the best of the three so far, ahead of its US release in early November, and its Australian release last week. The first two films in the series, 2011's 'Thor' and 2013's 'Thor : The Dark World' were made for a combined US$303M and grossed between them close to US$1.1B, so expectations are running high for this instalment. The film has so far taken US$109M.

By way of a lesson into Norse mythology, Ragnarok is a series of future events, including a great battle, foretold to ultimately result in the death of a number of major figures (including the gods Odin, Thor and Loki), the occurrence of various natural disasters, and the subsequent submersion of the world in water. Following such a cataclysmic event, the world will resurface afresh, renewed and fertile, the surviving and returning gods will meet, and the world will be repopulated by two human survivors. This film then, is set four years after the events of 'Thor: The Dark World', and two years following on from 'Avengers: Age of Ultron'. As the film opens we find Thor wrapped in chains imprisoned on some far away planet by the fire demon Surtur (voiced by Clancy Brown and acted in MoCap by Taika Waititi) having unsuccessfully scoured the four corners of the universe for the Infinity Stones. In a comical opening scene we see Thor dangling by a chain deep within a cavernous cave taunting Surtur who tells him that his father Odin, has abandoned Asgard and that the realm will soon be destroyed in a foretold Ragnarok as soon as he is able to unite himself with The Eternal Flame that burns beneath the city of Asgard. Using his mighty hammer, Mjolnir, Thor is able to defeat Surtur and remove his crown, so preventing the apocalyptic Ragnarok . . . or so he thinks. Thor returns to Asgard.

On Asgard, Thor arrives to find Loki (Tom Hiddleston) posing as Odin (Anthony Hopkins) and therefore ruling over all of Asgard. Thor can see over Loki's ruse, and reveals his true identity to the people of Asgard. He also convinces Loki to help find his father. They travel to Earth and with the help of Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) they locate Odin hanging out in Norway. Odin explains to his sons that he is dying and has little time left. He further explains that with his passing, this will allow his first born daughter Hela, the Goddess of Death (Cate Blanchett) to be freed from prison where she was exiled to long long ago. Hela has at one time back in the dim and distant past been the leader of Asgard's almighty armies and with Odin they conquered the Nine Realms, and built Asgard to be the mighty civilisation it now is. But Hela got too big for her boots and became over ambitious, hence her imprisonment and being written out of the family history, to the extent that she was not even known of by Thor or Loki.

Odin dies and almost immediately Hela arrives. Hela commands that Thor and Loki kneel before her, but they refuse. Thor goes into battle mode determined to wipe his older sister from the face of the Earth, but she'll have none of it, for Hela is all powerful and in a show of strength stops Mjolnir at arms length and crushes it as though it were glass. Thor's hammer falls to the floor shattered into several chunks with Thor looking on in disbelief. At this Thor and Loki decide its time to get outta Dodge and summons the Bifrost Bridge to return them to Asgard. Hela pursues them and chases them through the wormhole overpowering them and causing the two brothers into space to supposedly perish and die, while she continues onto Asgard. She quickly asserts her power and single handedly wipes out the Asgardian army, resurrects the ancient dead with whom she once fought and who are buried deep within a secret vault below the castle, and appoints the new sentry of the Bifrost Bridge, Skurge (Karl Urban) as her new executioner. While Hela and Skurge are otherwise pre-occupied stamping their mark on Asgard, Heimdall (Idris Elba) who is in self imposed exile during Loki's reign, scales the mountainside and steals the sword that controls the Bridge, to prevent Hela from using the Bridge for her own empire building gain.

Meanwhile, Thor lands on the garbage planet Sakaar, and is immediately picked up by locals who are then overpowered by a lone mercenary and bounty hunter called Scrapper 142 (Tessa Thompson). She in turn overpowers Thor and drags him off to meet the planets immortal ruler, Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum) who runs a gladiator arena for the sport of the local population.

Grandmaster determines that Thor should fight in his Contest of Champions against his so far unbeaten champion prize fighter. After a brief introduction, a lesson in all things Sakaar, getting his golden locks shorn off by a Stan Lee cameo appearance and befriending a stone being named Korg (a laugh out loud Taika Waititi performance rendered in MoCap) as his only ally on the garbage planet, Thor is thrust into the arena to await his fate up against an all conquering foe that he does not yet know. Meanwhile, Loki has emerged too and has ingratiated himself to the Grandmaster and is living the free and easy life, unlike his now captive brother who tries to reason with him so that he can be set free too. But, Loki will have none of it!

As Thor readies himself under the spotlights of the arena, so he comes face to face with old buddy 'from work', Hulk (Mark Ruffalo). The pair clash in a brutal battle with Thor gaining the upper hand and almost defeating his old friend, before Grandmaster fixes the fight to guarantee Hulk's victory and to save face. Still held in captivity at the mercy of Grandmaster, Thor and Hulk, begin to reconcile their differences. Thor needs a plan and a Team to get back to Asgard, before Hela unleashes more death and destruction on Asgard and the Realms.

Thor tries to convince Hulk and Scrapper 142 to join forces and help him save Asgard and defeat Hela. They are not interested, even though he recognises Scrapper 142 as being one of the Valkyrie, a legendary force of female fighters who were all but wiped out trying to defend Asgard from Hela in days long since gone by. So Thor decides to go it alone using the Quinjet that bought Hulk to Sakaar two years previously. He breaks out of the Grandmaster's palace and gets to the Quinjet. Hulk follows behind where a recorded message on a monitor from Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) is the catalyst for Hulk turning back into Bruce Banner for the first time since the incidents at Sokovia two years previously.

Grandmaster orders that Scrapper 142 and Loki join forces to hunt down Thor and Banner, but the pair are hardly a match made in Heaven, and ultimately Scrapper 142 has a change of heart, takes Loki prisoner and agrees to join forces with the other two. Loki is however, reluctant to be left behind on the garbage planet now that he is a wanted man, and so he provides the group with the means to commandeer one of Grandmasters ships. They then set free the other gladiators led by Korg who stage a revolution.

Loki, being one not to be trusted, attempts to betray his brother but Thor can see through this, and immobilises him and leaves him behind. However, he is soon picked up by an unsuspecting Korg and the revolutionaries. Thor, Banner and Scrapper 142 escape through a giant wormhole known affectionately as the Devil's Anus, and arrive back on Asgard.

Upon arrival the three are confronted by Heimdall and the citizens of Asgard who are under siege by Hela, Skurge, their undead forces and a giant man eating hound that Hela has at her command. Banner transforms into Hulk again and with Scrapper 142 they fight Skurge and his forces, while Thor is off to see to unfinished business with Hela. Loki, Korg and the gladiators arrive aboard a giant ship having come through the Devil's Anus too. They join in the fight while the fleeing citizens of Asgard board the giant ship that will take them to someplace else, safe!

In his fight with Hela, Thor is overpowered and suffers stabbings, slashing and the loss of an eye. But theses mere scrapes do not deter him from the end game. In a moment of clarity, Thor has a vision of Odin, his father, that makes him see that only Ragnarok can defeat Hela. While Thor, Hulk and Scrapper 142 keep Hela distracted in battle, Loki sets off to retrieve the crown of Surtur and thrust it into the Eternal Flame, so resurrecting the fire demon bringing on Ragnarok to engulf all of Asgard and destroy Hela.

Thor and his crew board the giant ship with the now safe citizens of Asgard. Thor is crowned King, and when asked by Korg where to, he replies Earth, where perhaps he intends to rebuild Asgard. Watch out for the mid-credits scene and if you can wait it out until the final credits have rolled, there is a closing sequence featuring Grandmaster. The film also stars cameo performances from Matt Damon, Sam Neill and Liam Hemsworth (brother of Chris).

It is hardly surprising that Critics have heaped praise upon 'Thor : Ragnarok'. Whilst the film takes the 'Thor' movie franchise off in a new direction, and the MCU for that matter, the film retains many of the Thor touchstones including the action, the spectacle and the characterisation but freshens them up with a deadpan sense of humour, sarcasm, a wild ride and fun that is not out of place. For a hitherto little known New Zealand Director, Writer and Actor, Taika Waititi (whose previous credits include 'Boy', 'What We Do In The Shadows' and 'Hunt for the Wilderpeople'), what he has achieved here in his first big budget epic scale Hollywood picture is reinvigorate the Thor character and those around him, but reenergise the series and reestablish our faith in the MCU. Solid performances (if a little tongue in cheek at times), a good story, epic battles that are always preposterous but entertaining nonetheless, bold Direction and endless fun from start to finish - catch it on the big screen, and you won't be disappointed.

-Steve, at Odeon Online- 

SPIDER-MAN : HOMECOMING : Tuesday 11th July 2017.

'SPIDER-MAN : HOMECOMING' which I saw last week has been much hyped, was eagerly anticipated and is the second reboot of the 'Spider-Man' franchise, the sixteenth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the first Spider-Man film to cross-over into the world of 'The Avengers'. This reboot comes after three successful films that started the live action series of the current era with 'Spider-Man' in 2002, 'Spider-Man 2' in 2004 and 'Spider-Man 3' in 2007 all Directed by Sam Raimi and starring Tobey Maguire. Those first three films cost a combined US$598M to Produce and raked in a collective US$2,50B at the worldwide Box Office. The first reboot came in 2012 with 'The Amazing Spider-Man' and was followed up in 2014 by 'The Amazing Spider-Man 2' both Directed by Marc Webb and starring this time Andrew Garfield as the young web slinger. These films costs US$480M to bring to the big screen, and collected a total US$1,47B between the two instalments. And so now in 2017 we have this offering, but of course we caught a glimpse of Spidey things to come in last years hugely successful 'Captain America : Civil War', but here that same Actor, Tom Holland, gets his own standalone feature as the young college going crime fighter under the tutelage of one Tony Stark. This film cost US$175M to bring to the big screen, this time around is Directed by Jon Watts and the film has already grossed US$471M. The film has received positive critical acclaim, with a sequel already announced for release in July 2019 with Jon Watts slated to return as Director. In the meantime Tom Holland will reprise his role as Spider-Man in the upcoming 'Avengers : Infinity Wars' due for release in May 2018 and its follow-up in May 2019.

The film kicks off shortly after the Battle of New York back eight years ago and as seen at the end of the first 'Avengers' instalment. Adrian Toomes (Michael Keaton) is a salvage contractor engaged by the city to clean up all the debris and wreckage in the aftermath of that attack. Then one day out of the blue appears Anne Marie Hoag (Tyne Daly) who heads up Tony Stark's US Department Of Damage Control (D.O.D.C.), and takes over the clean up operation and dismisses Toomes and his workforce off the job. Angered and enraged by his ousting off such a lucrative contract for which he has hired men, purchased equipment and bet his livelihood on the work, he secretly tells his men to hold onto whatever Chitauri technology they have scavenged in order that he can create new advanced weaponry from it, and sell it to the highest bidder.

Fast forward eight years to the present day, and several months following the events of 'Captain America : Civil War' a young Peter Parker, aka 'Spider-Man' (Tom Holland) is thrilled and motivated by his experiences with The Avengers. He carries on with his studies at Midtown School of Science and Technology, but Tony Stark, aka 'Iron Man' (Robert Downey Jnr.) advises him that he is not yet ready to become a fully fledged Avenger and he should concentrate on getting a good education first. Parker is so enthused by his recent Avengers experiences that he quits the school's Academic Decathlon Team which is about to enter the national finals to be held in Washington. One night while out fighting local crime in his neighbourhood, he comes across a bunch of rag tag criminal types robbing an ATM using the advanced gadgetry and weapons supplied by Toomes. He successfully thwarts them single handedly but not without doing some serious damage to his local corner deli and the bank being robbed.

He returns home to the apartment that he shares with his Aunt May (Marisa Tomei), secretly entering through the window climbing along the ceiling and dropping down by his bedside, only to come face to face with his best buddy Ned (Jacob Batalon), and so revealing his true identity. Peter makes Ned swear never to reveal his true identity to anyone under any circumstances, to which Ned reluctantly agrees.

Continuing to fight local crime, with his new Spider-Man suit fashioned by Stark Industries with all the inbuilt Superhero gadgetry you could ever wish for, one night he comes across two of Toomes heavies selling weapons to a local criminal. Spider-Man intervenes and the heavies manage to evade him through the streets of the suburbs under cover of darkness and using their advanced weapons against the young web slinging crime fighter. Tony Stark is watching Spider-Man's activities from afar by way of the suit and its inbuilt tracking and monitoring devices, and ultimately warns Peter about getting in over his head and getting involved with dangerous criminal types.

Having retrieved some of the weapons left behind during the earlier chase with Toomes heavies, Ned and Peter remove the power core, but little do they know that this is being monitored by Toomes who is seeking to get it back. Later Ned and the Academic Decathlon Team leave on a school bus bound for the national finals in Washington. Ned has the power core in his possession. Peter takes it upon himself to rejoin the Team, and at an overnight hotel stop over he and Ned disable the tracking devise built into his Spider-Man suit that is being closely monitored by Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau), and also unlock all of the advanced special features built into the suit. Armed with his new all singing all dancing hi-tech suit Spider-Man intercepts a D.O.D.C truck loaded with advanced weapons, but is over powered by Toomes who has his own special hi-tech mechanical suit known as 'The Vulture' forged from Chitauri technology. As a result Spider-Man becomes trapped inside the truck and misses the finals.

With the Academic Decathlon over and the Team having won the national tournament, they go on a sightseeing tour of Washington, taking in the near 170meter tall obelisk that is the Washington Monument. Peter comes to realise that the power core located in Ned's back pack is an unstable Chitauri explosive device. Having escaped the confines of the truck, Spider-Man races to locate his group of school mates, who by now are rapidly ascending the lift inside the Washington Monument. Spider-Man scales the outside of the obelisk, by now chased down by armed Police in a helicopter, and gains entry through a window just as the power core explodes trapping his class mates in a disabled lift carriage, leaving it hanging precariously from a great height. Spider-Man manages to evade the Police and rescue his school mates too, including Liz (Laura Harrier) - Peter's would-be girlfriend.

After all that fracas and the safe delivery of his school mates, Parker returns to New York City and is intent on stopping Toomes. He learns of Toomes whereabouts by questioning a local small time criminal who had previously sought to buy weapons from Toomes. On the Staten Island Ferry Spider-Man confronts a new buyer of Toomes weaponry and dispenses with him and his henchmen just as The Vulture arrives on the scene to dispense with the pesky Spider-Man. It doesn't go so well for either party, as a malfunctioning weapon rips the Ferry in half lengthways, causing Spider-Man to come rapidly to the rescue using all his web slinging might to hold the stricken ship together. Just in time Iron Man arrives to help save the day and repair the damage so saving all souls on board. After this latest mis-adventure Iron Man rips Spider-Man a new one for being so potentially reckless with human lives, and promptly takes back his suit.

Parker eventually and reluctantly settles back into life at school, and for the up coming Homecoming Dance, asks Liz is she will be his date. She accepts, and on the night of the dance, Parker duly rocks up to Liz's house to collect his date. The door is answered by none other than Adrian Toomes . . . Liz's father! Their initial meeting is stilted to say the least, with Parker recognising Toomes/The Vulture immediately, but not the other way around. Toomes offers to drive the couple to the dance venue as he is going away on business for a few days and it's not much of a detour. During the car journey Toomes deduces who Peter Parker's alter ego is, and threatens dire consequences if he interferes with his plans. During the dance, Parker realises that Toomes is planning to hijack a D.O.D.C. plane load of secret weapons being transported from the wrecked Avengers Tower to their new headquarters.

Having to wear his home made ill fitting nondescript Spider-Man outfit, Parker excuses himself from the party and makes off for Toomes hideaway. There Toomes overpowers Spider-Man leaving him for dead buried neck deep in concrete rubble. Spider-Man musters all his strength to break free from the mountain of cement, concrete and twisted metal that lies on top of him, and makes off for the now airborne transport plane. The Vulture and Spider-Man go head to head and toe to toe high above New York City, with Spider-Man eventually bringing the plane down in a crash landing over the Coney Island Amusement Park. The two continue to fight it out on a beach close by amongst the burning plane wreckage. Spider-Man saves the life of Toomes from his own unstable equipment, leaving Toomes wrapped up in webbing awaiting for the Police to arrive, together with the planes valuable cargo.

After her father's arrest and the family's reputation tarnished forever, Liz moves away with her Mum. Parker is offered to join The Avengers as a fully fledged paid up card carrying member of the elite team of bona fide Superheroes, but after all due consideration he politely declines. Tony Stark is understanding and they part company on good terms. When Parker gets back to his apartment, there waiting on his bed in a brown paper bag is his Avengers created Spider-Man suit - with a return note from Tony Stark.

Also starring Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts and archival cameo's of Chris Evans and Paul Rudd as Captain America and Ant Man respectively. Watch out for Stan Lee's obligatory cameo appearance too, and then remain seated for the mid-credits and end-credits sequences also.

'Spider-Man : Homecoming' is a worthy reboot of the reboot of the franchise that still manages to feel fresh, new and approachable, and perhaps it is because Spidey is here earning his stripes with The Avengers that adds another dimension that the previous five films did not. Here Peter Parker has to prove himself to his mentor Tony Stark and demonstrate his worthiness to stand alongside Iron Man et al, as well as prove to himself that he can stand up and be counted with the best of them, as well as see out his all important education, and stand up for his family and friends, all the while aiming to bring down an opportunistic bad guy that has a heart after all. This is definitely a return to form for the Spider-Man franchise, and a solid entry into the MCU dovetailing nicely into future 'Avengers' instalments and a future standalone sequel. Tom Holland has reportedly signed up for six Spider-Man appearances including the cross-over instalments and if he keeps his character as grounded, relatable and easy-going as he has now set out, then a good time will be had by all.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-