Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)

Spider-Man: Homecoming deals with academic pressure and heroism in a way that's genuinely uncomfortable at times. But that discomfort is the point. Jon Watts never lets you look away, and the film is better for it.

There are scenes in cinema you never forget. For me, the ferry rescue in Spider-Man: Homecoming is one of them. Jon Watts constructs it with total precision and it lands exactly as intended. Pure craft.

Spider-Man: Homecoming ended and I sat with it for weeks. The academic pressure and heroism theme kept circling back. I'd be doing something mundane and the ferry rescue would pop into my head. That kind of resonance is rare.

Spider-Man: Homecoming is not background viewing. Every scene requires you. Put your phone down. Jon Watts is doing too much to be half-watched. Give it the attention it deserves.

I went into Spider-Man: Homecoming knowing nothing — no trailer, no plot summary. I strongly recommend that approach. The the everyman hero hits much harder when you haven't been primed for it. Go in cold.

Every choice in Spider-Man: Homecoming feels deliberate. The framing, the pacing, the Vulture reveal — Jon Watts is operating at a level most filmmakers never reach. It's the kind of film you study rather than just watch.

I've seen Spider-Man: Homecoming multiple times now and it just keeps getting better. Michael Keaton's relatable villain is something rarely matched in cinema. If you haven't watched it yet, clear your evening.

Every actor brings something to Spider-Man: Homecoming, but the lead performance is genuinely extraordinary. The subtlety involved, the way the character changes without announcing it — it's a masterclass.

The music in Spider-Man: Homecoming is so deeply married to the images that you almost can't separate them. It stays in your head days later and when you hear it again the emotions return immediately.

I liked Spider-Man: Homecoming when I first saw it, but the second viewing is where it clicked. Once you notice how Jon Watts plants every detail early on, the whole film transforms. Layers everywhere.