Film Screening 19th August, 2017

Poster for Spider-Man: Homecoming

Spider-Man: Homecoming 

7:00 PM, 19th August, 2017
No Guests

  • M
  • 133 mins
  • 2017
  • Jon Watts
  • Tom Holland, Michael Keaton, Jon Favreau, Robert Downey, Jr.

As a life-long Spider-Man fan, this is a film I never thought would ever happen. Two major studios – Sony, rights holders to the Spider-Man franchise, and Disney/Marvel with its Cinematic Universe (MCU) – putting differences aside to share their characters in an unprecedented move. Of course, it probably didn’t hurt that a Spider-Man film featuring The Avengers (or vice versa) is practically guaranteed to earn a gazillion dollars.

And so comes Spider-Man: Homecoming, picking up immediately after last year’s Captain America: Civil War first introduced Tom Holland’s teenaged Peter Parker to the MCU. Back at home in New York City, Peter struggles to fall back into his daily routine at school. He’s gotten a taste of the hero life and is desperate to prove himself worthy to his new mentor, Tony Stark (Downey, Jr.). Peter soon gets more than he asked for, however, when the villainous Vulture (Keaton) emerges as a new threat.

Spider-Man’s homecoming to the world he belongs is everything we could have hoped for – a fun, inventive, spectacular joy from start to finish. With Peter Parker, the MCU gains something it doesn’t have in Captain America or Thor: an innocent, relatable, high schooler’s perspective on the world of superheroes. And the film as a result is John Hughes by way of a radioactive spider bite. This is your friendly, neighbourhood Spider-Man finally done right.

Adrian Ma

Poster for Rough Night

Rough Night 

9:23 PM, 19th August, 2017

  • MA
  • 101 mins
  • 2017
  • Lucia Aniello
  • Scarlett Johansson, Kate McKinnon, Zoë Kravitz, Jillian Bell

My idea of a rough night is probably one where my bed’s uncomfortable – but when you’re Scarlett Johansson, about to be married, and have a bunch of crazy friends, the definition spans a lot wider.

Jess (Johansson) is running for public office and has a million things still needing to be done, with barely enough time to spend with her fiancé. She secretly dreads the bachelorette weekend that her best friend Alice (Bell) has planned for her. Alice, on the other hand, is constantly reminiscing about the good ol’ college days with Jess, and has big plans for an unforgettable weekend involving tickets to a foam party. Of course, if that was it, it wouldn’t be too rough of a night, would it? No, the formula for a night of epic proportions requires alcohol, drugs, a stripper, and maybe even murder!

Rough Night is a refreshing change of pace for Johansson. In the last few years, she has pretty much only appeared in action flicks, dressed in variations of tight clothing – think Ghost in the Shell or Marvel’s Black Widow – not that I should be complaining about a bod like hers.

Top tip: hang around after the movie for bonus scenes during and after the end credits to obtain answers to questions you might not realise hadn’t been addressed yet.

Xin Yi Tan