Michael Giacchino has fast become the go-to guy for Disney and Marvel. His score for Pixar’s Coco is imminent, and fans are already salivating over next years Incredibles 2 soundtrack. His work on Spider-Man came quickly on the heels of both his debut Marvel score for Doctor Strange and his ridiculously swift 4-week turnaround for Lucasfilm’s Rogue One. In short, as Octobers 50th anniversary concert at the Royal Albert Hall clearly displayed, Giacchino is a much-loved, highly respected, Oscar-winning workhorse.
All true, but does that come together to deliver the rip-roaring Spider-Man Homecoming score Marvellites desire? Giacchino isn’t only a swift and precise musician, he’s also more than willing to incorporate musical cues from other composers. Indeed, the first theme we hear is a take on the classic 60’s theme by Paul Francis Webster and Bob Harris over the opening credits and then straight into Alan Silvestri’s Avengers theme. As a composer, Giacchino enjoys the nods and the winks to prior themes and melodies and that continues with tips of the hat to Danny Elfman, Hans Zimmer and the late James Horner, composers who have all tackled Spider-Man scores this century.
Homecoming takes place a few months after the events of Civil War, where Peter Parker made a spectacular first appearance in the MCU as Spider-Man. Clearly, 15-year-old Pete thought that would lead to a career as a full-time Avenger, but Homecoming picks up 2 months later with Peter anxiously checking his mobile every few minutes, waiting for the call to adventure. Giacchino’s score parallels that with the opening two numbers ‘The World Is Changing’ and ‘Academic Decommitment’ which introduces his lighter, fresher main Spidey theme. Gone is the more adult foreboding of the previous 5 films – this Spider-Man isn’t a man, he’s a boy (and he will be for a good while yet) and the Sturm und Drang we know so well from Spidey’s past hasn’t happened to this iteration of Peter yet. Giacchino is more than up to the task of developing that over the coming years as Peter embeds himself further into the fabric of the MCU, but for now, the lightness of touch and jazzy float of the Homecoming score is more than enough to evoke the character at this point of his life.
In parts subdued and in other bold, brassy and bombastic in a way that many modern scores simply aren’t (specifically the Vultures theme), Homecoming is a lot of fun and very much feels like a marker for subsequent scores to build and develop. While last year’s Doctor Strange score was arguably the best MCU soundtrack yet, this is a lighter movie, and a breezier, less substantial soundtrack.
SPIDER-MAN HOMECOMING / COMPOSER: MICHAEL GIACCHINO / PUBLISHER: SONY CLASSICAL / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
