With this being the 8th Spider-Man film to have been released in the last 17 years it is safe to say that I like most people have started to find it difficult to get exited whenever Spidey is back on the big screen. That being said I am a big fan of 2017′s Spider-Man: Homecoming so I was fairly curious to see what director John Watts was planning on doing next with the character.

I was pleasantly surprised by the overall quality of this film. Watts seems to realise that both Spider-Man and the MCU as a whole are seen as a little played out by this point, he attempts to breath new life into both in a way that may not sit right with everyone but personally made me love this movie. There are so many jokes, one-liners and light comedic jabs aimed at the conventions seen in this franchise that it almost borders on self parody. Given the grand nature of many of the most recent MCU films it is refreshing to see something like this that is able to take a step back and point out how ridiculous the whole thing is. Martin Starr and J.B. Smoove have so much more screen time than I would have expected and really get a chance to deliver some funny material. This could be a turn off to some comic book fans but I think they do a good job with the comedy throughout and so it never bothered me.

That is not to say that the film never takes itself seriously, in fact the character interactions and dialogue in this film are consistently sharp and well written, with a few moments even allowing Tom Holland to fully show of his dramatic skills. Peter Parker’s groups of friends are also just as fleshed out and interesting s they were in Homecoming with some of them even getting more screen time ans baring on the plot this time around.

Jake Gyllenhaal (despite appearing like he has never seen any of these movies) delivers a characteristically brilliant performance bringing a fan favourite character to life in a unique an genuinely entertaining way.

My favourite aspect of this film is best not talked about in a spoiler free review but I do have to give major props to the special effects department.

While I feel like this does not have quite as much replay value as Homecoming this is well worth checking out as a fun summer blockbuster with some moments of genuine brilliance. Hardcore fans of Spider-Man may not be happy with the direction that the MCU is going with this character but personally I think if they keep making movies that are this good then I don’t have much of an issue.