Holland, cast delight in ‘Spider Man: Homecoming’

One thing is certain: Culture has not been lacking in takes on Spider-Man for the past 15 years. First there was Tobey Maguire, who under the direction of Sam Raimi for three films ushered in the modern superhero era, and then there was Andrew Garfield whose two films with Marc Webb were immediately forgettable. And now, like all obedient franchises, they’re trying to start all over again, this time with the much more age-appropriate Tom Holland in “Spider-Man: Homecoming .’’

And you know what? Superhero cynicism aside, “SpiderMan: Homecoming’’ is really fun.

Director Jon Watts, whose only previous feature film credit is the indie thriller “Cop Car,’’ has confidently put his stamp on the friendly neighbourhood web-slinger by making one bold move: actually casting teenagers to play teenagers.

Yes, after two films with late 20-somethings donning the Spidey suit and getting bitten by that pesky spider, Spider-Man finally gets to be a kid (and we get to skip over the whole origin/ Uncle Ben story). Instead, Watts’ film, which is upsettingly credited to six screenwriters, picks up with Peter Parker (Holland) right before, during and after the events of “Captain America: Civil War,’’ which introduced Holland’s Spider-Man in that epic airport Avengers battle.