Spiderman: Homecoming

Spiderman: Homecoming is an English language film released by Marvel Studios as part of its extended cinematic universe. The film shows us Spiderman as he learns to use his new powers and  balance his crime fighting as well as his normal schoolboy life. He is shown as erratic. The film answers the question from The Avengers; what happened to all those broken pieces of alien tech lying around the city? As Civil War proved, considering the consequences of these apocalyptic battles is so much more interesting than just moving on to the next city-destroying set piece.

We had a plane crash and Spiderman  avoided large collateral damage as he managed to bring the plane down far away from the city. Quite a contrast to both of 'The Avengers' films which saw whole cities get destroyed.

WHAT'S GOOD?

Like all Marvel films there were elements of subtle humour. Marvel introduced this into superhero films and it became such a staple that DC film, 'Batman vs Superman:Dawn of Justice' was panned for its dark tone.

The new Spiderman costume is brilliant and unlike the Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield films they actually showed us how Spiderman managed to squeeze into his costume. The addition of 'The Wings' is a good one.

THE WINGS

Like the old Spiderman films, this one didn't waste a half on showing Spiderman get bitten and struggle to comprehend his powers. Frankly speaking, we know Spiderman's backstory.

The sparing use of Iron Man worked for me as this was a Spiderman film. I didn’t want to see Iron Man dominate the screen. His speech to Peter Parker worked brilliantly and his scene is what gets Spiderman thinking and leaves viewers impressed.

The casting was good and Michael Keaton seems to be have hit a purple patch. He delivers yet another powerful performance as 'The Vulture'. His most intense scene was the dad talk he gives to Peter in the car when he learns about Peter's secret.

Tom Holland as Spiderman has the capability of competing with Tobey Maguire for the mantle of 'best Spiderman'. I like the fact that Spiderman is in school and not in college and working freelance. I liked the aunt May casting as in previous films, she seemed more like Peters grandmother rather than an aunt. The damsel in distress element has been eliminated which makes it refreshing. Spiderman fights The Vulture to save the City, not to save someone he loves.

WHAT'S BAD?

Like most 3D movies, the emphasis on the 3D disappears after about ten minutes. Studios need to use the 3D technology for films that actually need it. The 3D makes the screen dark and strains the eyes.

Spiderman's suit seems to be more of an iron man style suit without being made of iron. He gets advice on fastest routes and he has modes like 'instant kill' and 'interrogation'. The boy's suit is more advanced than Captain America's or any of the Avengers suits (with the exception of Iron Man). He can activate different kinds of webs? Like seriously? 

Why keep such a technologically advanced suit? It’s as though he wasn’t bitten and the suits aids him to produce webs and stick to the walls of buildings.

WHO SHOULD WATCH IT?

With Infinity War approaching, every film of the MCEU is forming an important link in the chain. They have constructed it beautifully and hence it cannot be avoided if one wants to watch Infinity War. Also it's Spiderman! Fans have been clamouring for Marvel and not Sony to make a Spiderman film. Marvel have done what Sony failed.

I had read online that Flash Thomson calls Peter Parker as Penis Parker, but Indian cinema halls muted out the word. Even the word ‘porn’ is muted out. Pahlaj Nihalani needs to realise that we are in the 21st century. Also, he needs to realise that he has to just certify films and not censor them. CBFC is Central Board of Film Certification, the word 'Censor' isn't a part of it. Words like 'penis' and 'porn' are not really enough to warrant an 'A' certification.  The man should head off to the Arab countries and certify(oops! Censor) their films. It’ll be cuts galore over there. 

The time I prepared a pizza

I had ordered a pizza from a pizza outlet just the day before and had paid an exorbitant prize for a 10 inch pizza with barely 6-7 chicken pieces. The cheese was so scantily distributed that one could have been forgiven for believing that it was just a base and toppings that had been delivered. In addition to the lack of cheese, the pizza was soggy and it felt like I was eating bread dipped in gravy. That base was actually bending freely in my hand. I had had enough of those fraud pizza outlets.

The line from Ratatouille came to my mind.

Anyone can cook- Chef Gusteau

I have adapted it to, “Anyone can cook anything and everything.”

The next morning I set out to the market and purchased a pizza base packet. 2 bases for 8 rupees. Then I picked up a block of cheese and came home. The tomatoes, onions and capsicum were already there at home.

Half an hour later, I set about making it. First, I removed two tomatoes from the fridge and cut them into bite sized chunks. After a while, I took an onion and a capsicum and chopped them up into small pieces. Each of the three toppings were placed in different bowls.

 The pizza bases were spread on a cutting board. I applied a layer of tomato ketchup on them. I took the grater and grated the block of cheese to form a thin layer of cheese strands over the base. I scattered pieces of tomato, onion and capsicum all over this and then set about grating more cheese.  I gingerly lifted the pizzas and placed it into the oven and set the timer for 15 minutes. What would I do for 15 minutes? I went and Google how to best click a pizza as I figured it would be a good time to use my DSLR to capture an image of these pizza to add to my food album on Facebook.

The oven went ping and I put on the mittens, opened the oven and pulled out the pizzas. The cheese smelt amazing.

The Pizza

It is often said that we first eat with our eyes and according to me these pizzas were a delight to the eyes. I quickly snapped a few pictures of the pizza and then applied a spoonful of ketchup on each quarter. More cheese was grated atop each quarter and then I got a long knife and cut the pizzas into quarters.

"A cheesy delight" said the neighbour who had come over and was asked to have a piece. My mom loved the crunchy base and I honestly felt that I made better pizzas than the pizza outlets. For the 8 pieces I don't think my spending exceeded 150 rupees. That's cheap for 2 pizzas right and the amount of toppings I had sprinkled on a regular sized pizza are much more than what one would get on a large pizza from a restaurant. The amount of cheese on my pizza would put the cheese burst pizzas on the Domino's advertisements to shame.- ya those are just the advertisements .We know how much cheese actually comes on the pizza delivered to our door.

As I made the pizza, I obviously loved it. The crunchy base, toppings generously sprinkled and the cheese which made it feel like a pizza and not the waste that is supplied by pizza stores. The pizzas churned out by the stores here are an embarrassment to pizzas in general and are making a mockery of the Italian delicacies.

With this I had added pizzas to the list of things that had been cooked by me-which included dark chocolate brownie, white chocolate Brownie, Shakshuka, Mousse, etc.

Monsoon moments

There’s just something magical about the Mumbai monsoon right? We all would associate monsoons with shopping for a new raincoat or umbrella and trooping off to school after a two month summer break. Almost everyone has a memory of that one football match in their building compound or the ground. For me, it was tennis practice in the heavy rains (we had a synthetic court and apparently playing with a heavy wet ball would increase wrist strength, i would hit a slice which would cause the ball to spin and release droplets off water with every rotation, making it seem like a chakra floating through the air) Those who come to Mumbai to study or work invariably end up visiting the tourist hotspots in pouring rain, or maybe they take that first ride in a Mumbai local with heavy rain lashing the metallic body of the train.

A day in June 2015 is what comes to my mind when someone talks about the magical monsoon moments.
I had made the final list of the minority quota for the Mass Media course at St. Xavier’s College. I had paid the fees the previous day but, due to an office staff absentee, I wasn't able to pull out my documents which I had submitted for the BA course. They told me to complete the formalities, the following day.

My friend and I set off from Borivali at about 8 am on a cloudy day. I had forgotten my umbrella and the rain gods had mercifully stayed away whilst I commuted from my house to the station. I was sweet talked into getting on a train which started from Virar, at 8 am (which is one reason why I remember this day as it was the first time I had boarded a train commencing from Virar during the morning rush-hour) A slight drizzle welcomed us as we alighted near Charni Road, but it wasn’t really heavy so as to make people open their umbrellas.

We went to his uncle’s place near Charni Road and then set off on a bike to Wilson's College where he had taken admission in the BMS course. He checked the time table over there. Whilst we were inside, it started raining heavily and the wind picked up. My friend, as he was the rider had to wear a helmet. As pillion rider, I could travel without a helmet and I did not bother to put up the hood of the windcheater. We set off to Xavier’s and within seconds, I was drenched.

 It poured cats and dogs as we sped along the Marine Drive, zig zagging between vehicles. I sneaked a glance to my right and saw the waves of the Arabian Sea spraying into the air. They must have been smashing into the boulders with tremendous force.

The heavy raindrops smashed against my skin, I could barely keep my eyes open but I did sneak another glance, this time at the speedometer and saw the needle veering near the 80 kmph mark. We missed our turning and sped along towards Churchgate. He yelled out to me, "let’s take another round." I was totally on board with it. We took another round and this time and turned left and took the Princess Street flyover. The rain persisted, but the wind wasn't as powerful.  My windcheater had proved useless as my t-shirts were completely soaked and were clinging to my body, my jeans were heavy. The damp clothes had made me cold. My teeth were chattering for quite a while.

I entered the college, completely drenched and headed up to the office. (one thing good is that we are just waved into college on rainy days like this so I didn’t have to open my wet bag and search for what I assumed would be an unrecognizable fee receipt) The wooden flooring was wet, the stench of water on wood hung unpleasantly all along the corridor. Upon entering the college office, I rummaged in my bag and fished out a soaked fee receipt handed it over to the office clerk with a rueful smile and said "couldn't help it Mumbai monsoon" she smiled and nodded back and handed me back my documents which I gave to the BMM admission desk.

The day may not even be one of the most fun monsoon days. But the speeding of the bike along Marine Drive in heavy rain and finally securing a seat in BMM at St. Xavier’s itself and the ride in the fast train are a combination of factors that make this rainy day in June unforgettable. I felt happy as I was could do the course I wanted at the only college I could call home right from day one itself.

I did pay the price for that though as I fell sick in the very first week. That was cured in 3 days, but this memory of monsoon, those 20-30 minutes on the bike riding along marine drive in heavy rain, will last a lifetime.