SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME

Release Date: Malaysia, 03 July 2019

Genre: Action / Adventure

Running Length: 2:09

Cast: Tom Holland, Jake Gyllenhaal, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Angourie Rice, Tony Revolori, Samuel L. Jackson, Jon Favreau, Marisa Tomei, Cobie Smulders

Director: Jon Watts 

Screenplay: Chris McKenna & Erik Sommers 

The first half of SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME felt more like an epilogue to Avengers: Endgame while the second half; the sequel to Spider-man: Homecoming.  The beginning of this film addresses the events of Thanos' The Snap and Endgame, especially the mourning of Tony Stark/Iron Man's death (sorry, spoilers for those who are yet to watch Endgame). 

This is your standard entertaining lighthearted MCU movie which is very much a welcome after the heavy and emotional Endgame.  There are some funny moments and very decent action sequences - pretty much MCU textbook stuff. 

To me, the overall tone and manner is very much similar to Homecoming. It's the typical high-school coming-of-age movie with superhero elements. Not really a bad thing for me but it's just not my favourite genre.   

Thankfully they didn't go overboard with the Peter Parker/MJ romance as it balances out very nicely with Peter's constant struggle of living up to his calling "with great power comes great responsibility" vs. being your regular teenager. 

Tom Holland is becoming more comfortable and believable as the nice guy neighbourhood superhero but the standout here is Zendaya. Her version of MJ is kinda edge and yet, has hints of vulnerability. It's very current and it works. 

You can see Jake Gyllenhaal is having fun doing this movie. This is not your dark and serious Jake as seen in Prisoners or Nightcrawler. 

It's also refreshing to have a change of environment here since the majority of the movie takes place in Europe (Venice, Praque, London) instead of the usual swinging from building to building in New York. 

If anything, the villain here is not as memorable as Michael Keaton's Vulture in the first movie. There are no memorable "highly tensed conversation in the car scene".

Do stay back for two post credit scenes. The mid-credit scene is the more interesting one as it opens up a whole new possibility for Spidey in the third installment while the after credit scene is perhaps an introduction to MCU Phase 4.  

RATING: 7.5/10

THE GREATEST SHOWMAN

Malaysia Release Date: 28 Dec 2017
Genre: Musical / Drama
Running Length: 1:45
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Michelle Williams, Zac Efron, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Keala Settle, Sam Humphrey
Director: Michael Gracey
Screenplay: Jenny Bicks and Bill Condon

THE GREATEST SHOWMAN is supposedly based on a true story of P.T. Barnum, the creator of the "circus" we all know today, yes...the trapeze, elephants, lions etc all under the signature red and white striped tent. Although the filmmakers featured characters and key events that actually happened, I highly doubt the motivations of P.T Barnum (Jackman) is truly represented in this movie. (I believe this article reported in The Daily Mail UK is more accurate of his colourful life)

Nevertheless, what really worked for me are the songs. To side track, I dislike musicals, even cartoons with characters singing about "no worries for the rest of your days" or "letting it go". (La La Land worked for me not because of the songs but because of its realistic ending). So you can imagine the feeling of dread as I sat uncomfortably on the cinema chair. But the moment the opening number kicked off the film, it got my attention!

I think what worked for me are the pop and hip-hop inspired tunes. It was written by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, the duo behind La La Land. It's upbeat, clappy and foot-stomping catchy good! (The soundtrack is currently the no. 1 album in US, UK and a few more countries). And the singing and high energy dancing are all very well choreographed. It just makes the audience feel happy.

As for the story of how the poor boy Barnum became the rich and famous P.T. Barnum, it's ok but not remarkable. In fact as mentioned earlier, the screenplay downplays the aspect that Barnum was actually exploiting the misfits of society for his personal gain. However, he is re-framed here as someone who provides equality, diversity and self-empowerment. As well-meaning as these elements are, it feels forced to fit today's context.   

Jackman, as always is reliable, charismatic and highly energetic. Overall, it’s an entertaining family friendly film packed with infectious and crowd-pleasing numbers. (The other highlight for me was this couple sitting next to me who was so into the movie the girl would exclaimed loudly during key moments; "Oh NO!" "SH T!" "Nonononono").

RATING: 8/10

SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING (2017)

Genre: Action / Adventure
Running Length: 2:13
Cast: Tom Holland, Michael Keaton, Robert Downey Jr., Laura Harrier, Jacob Batalon, Bokeem Woodbine, Zendaya, Jon Favreau, Marisa Tomei, Donald Glover
Director: Jon Watts
Screenplay: Jonathan Goldstein & John Francis Daley and Jon Watts & Christopher Ford and Chris McKenna & Erik Sommers

Tom Holland's Spider-Man in SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING is the most relatable Spider-Man to me. When I was growing up, I read the comic strip off The Star newspapers and I would have a very specific voice for Spidey in my head whenever he talks or even thinks. Somehow, Holland's version of Spidey matches this voice to the T. This IS the Spider-Man that I grew up with.

There are just a lot of nice tiny details of Holland's performance which made his portrayal of our beloved superhero believable (and I really like what they did to the eyes on his suit whenever he emotes). And speaking of tiny, there are just a chock full of easter eggs in this latest iteration which will definitely please fans.

I think what the filmmakers did right this time (after the disastrous Andrew Garfield's reboot) was that they didn't set out to make another superhero movie but a genre movie. Just like Logan, that movie was more of a quiet Western flick than your typical giant beam from the sky kind of superhero movie. As for Spider-Man: Homecoming, it felt like more of a high-school coming-of-age kinda movie. In fact, the filmmakers here inserted a tribute clip to Ferris Bueller's Day Off. 

Overall, I was OK with the movie's light and fun tone with the occasional emotional moments; like when an eager-to-prove-himself Peter Parker was confronted by his "mentor" Tony Stark. But the final 1/3 of the film took a turn into "this shit just got real" territory and that saved the movie for me.

The surprising reveal really upped the risk for Peter Parker as he now has a personal connection to the villain (played brilliantly by the ever dependable Michael Keaton), which then led to the highly tensed conversation in the car. That scene is arguably the most memorable scene for me. The other memorable scene is when Spidey got really vulnerable when he was trapped under some really heavy concrete slabs.

That said, there are some things in this film which didn't work for me like Parker's irritating best friend and the hot Aunt May. And after 6 films, they still couldn't get Spider-Man's swinging right; he still looks very CGI to me when he swings from building to building. That said, Spider-Man: Homecoming is a legit and complete standalone movie and doesn't feel like a set-up to other up-coming Marvel movies.

Note: Stay right to the end of the credits roll for one of the best post credit scenes in recent times.

RATING: 7.5/10