The Amazing Spider-Man
Written By: James Vanderbilt, Alvin Sargent and Steve Kloves.
Photography: John Schwartzman
Starring: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone and Rhys Ifans.
Year: 2012
Country: USA
It's hard to believe that the Sam Rami Spider-Man movie was only 10 years ago, with the third instalment only 5. But nether the less we already have a franchise re-boot. But don't forget that Spider-Man has another 50 year old source material.
The Amazing Spider-Man goes back to the origins that we saw in the first film, it tries to retell it in an original way. Which I think it does honourably, but fails to pull off successfully.
I've been a reader of Marvel Comics since I was thirteen and Spider-Man was always a particular favourite of mine, so I had a lot of hopes and predictions for this movie, a lot of which came true.
I was pleased that spider-strenght was among Spider-Man powers. Although the way this was established was done poorly. A bathroom scene where he breaks taps and doorhandels, a scene I saw a few years ago in X-Men Origins: Wolverine and other films before that. And then a basketball scene lifted straight from Teen Wolf.
Web-blasters are back, although these seem to be unlimited web-blasters because he doesn't run out or change cartridges at any point.
There were lots of little things I liked about the movie, that Spider-Man wears a backpack when he's swinging through New York. That Peter has a Rear Window poster on his wall, Richard Feynman as his desktop picture and has equations written on the bottom of his skateboard decks.
Andrew Garfield is a great Spider-Man, a great Peter Parker and a great actor. A lot of people are talking about how great it is that Spider-Man is funny, like he's supposed to be. But this is only true in one scene. The scene where's stopping the carjacker, which we've all scene in the trailer.
Emma Stone is fantastic as Gwen Stacy. Given that her and Andrew Garfield are a couple in real life, too means chemistry between the two in the film is incredibly believable.
Rhys Ifans, who's an overrated actor as it is, is quite good as Dr. Connors but in my opinion is pretty poor as the Lizard. I wasn't a fan of the way the Lizard looked either.
Marc Webb's only directorial experience is (500) Days Of Summer. Coming in to a big action blockbuster
with only indie rom-com credentials is a pretty big jump which Webb doesn't quite make. The action scenes were badly directed and for the most part incoherent.
The film's pretty sloppy, too. Story threads are dropped at random, like Spider-Man's hunt for Uncle Ben's killer. Aunt May, who is such an important part of Peter's life, is as good as pointless, and the final battle with the Lizard was just copied from Iron Man.
Which brings me to The Amazing Spider-Man biggest fault: it's too reliant on a sequel to finish telling the story, so much that it doesn't work as a stand alone film.
This review is sounding mostly negative, which is because it is. But there were things I liked about it: the score from James Horner was incredible and the practical effects and stunt double work was a treat.
The Amazing Spider-Man is flawed, but so where it's predecessors. Despite these flaws, I believe there's enough there for me to have confidence that Marc Webb can come back with more directorial experience, and in the sequel give us the Spider-Man movie that we want.
Score: 2.5/5
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