The Amazing Spider-Man

The Amazing Spider-man

2012

Action (Comic Book)

Rated: PG-13

Running Time: 136 minutes

Starring: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Martin Sheen, Rhys Ifans, Sally Field, and Dennis Leary.

Directed By: Marc Webb

Rating: 6 out of 10

Outline

Peter Parker’s journey from becoming Spider-Man to fighting the bad guys of the city is detailed in this movie.

Review

I am going to apologize to start this review. I really wanted to write this review with no comparison to the Sam Raimi directed Spider-Man movies. As I progressed though, I found it was inevitable that it has to be reviewed like this. They are too similar and filmed too close together not to compare. It really bothers me that we are watching a retelling of a film barely 10 years old. I was not a big fan of Sam Raimi’s first 3 Spiderman movies. I found them to be too cartoonish instead of comic booky (Yes I am sticking with the word comic booky). Spider-Man is back and his story is being retold. This story sees Peter Parker’s journey from becoming Spider-Man to having to save the city from the evil clutches of the Lizard.

I will say this about this film. This is what Spider-Man should have been from the start. Its darker cinematography and accompanying musical score make this film a much better watch. This movie will probably appeal more to people who have not seen the first Spider-Man movie from 2002. That is because this film was basically thrown into some sort of movie thesaurus and it spat out the same movie with the odd tweak of storyline here and there. Because of the non original storyline the first half hour of this film is insufferable as it is just repeated material. As the film progresses though you realize this films content and style is much better than the first three films. A scene where Peter Parker discovers his emerging spider powers on a packed subway prepares you for a much better shot action film. The film may be darker but Spiderman still spouts off his cheesy comical lines during tense situations which are a nice touch.

The original three movies were not my thing but I still really liked Tobey Maguire as Spider-Man. Andrew Garfield has a tough job in reprising this role in this film and he doesn’t disappoint. He is charismatic in a super dorky way which is very easy to follow. He gave a very respectable performance. Spider-Man’s love interest Gwen Stacy played by Hollywood’s it girl Emma Stone was a great leading lady. The two of them have a painfully awkward love interest but seemed well suited for this film. The two of them are able to have the love angle story line but not have the movie overtly caught up in their romance.

Rhys Ifans as Doctor Curt Connors/Lizard Man is perfect with his quiet portrayal. He has a sort of Jekyll and Hyde thing going which was right for the role. He has a subtle sinister and evil quality to him that made his performance so great. Martin Sheen, Sally Field, Dennis Leary all have supporting roles if you are fans of theirs.

Once all the same tired back-story is fulfilled and Spider-Man is able to shoot his white stuff at will (keep it clean people) this movie really gets going. He battles bad guy’s right through the city. I was interested in the multiple storylines. I wanted to see Spider-Man get the girl. I wanted him to track down the blonde haired convenience store robber. I wanted to see him battle his inner demons. Lastly I wanted to see him battle the giant Lizard man. I got to see all these things so ultimately I felt this movie did its job. It was way too long and too similar to the first but I felt it got it right.

Director Marc Webb (he must have been chosen for his last name) was a strange choice for a franchise of this magnitude. He had only the small indie love story flick 500 days of Summer on his resume so it was a big risk. I must say he did a good job with this movie. He put a dark edge on it which is the rage these days and never went overboard with it. He took some chances with the cast but it paid off and the action scenes were for the most part crisp and enjoyable. He could have cut this film down by at least a half hour and had a more original script but he produced characters you cared about and that is all that mattered. Overall this is a solid job from a relatively unknown director.

I am going to give this movie a recommendation. It will be enjoyed more by people who are not familiar with Raimi’s version and overall it may not be amazing but it is certainly decent.

T Factor + If you like Spider-Man as a character this movie could score higher on the rating scale.

T Factor – If you have seen the original Spider-Man film this could score lower on the rating scale.

If you liked this film reel recommendations: Daredevil, Iron Man