Today I went with a friend to see the new Marc Webb reboot of the Spider-Man series - The Amazing Spider-Man. Currently falling short of the first film in the previous series, Spider-Man (earned $821,708,551 in box office total), The Amazing Spider-Man sits on $341,600,000 as of 8th July, setting a new record for a Tuesday opening previously held by Transformers (2007).
While reviews swing back and forth on preferences between the Tobey Maguire Spider-Man films vs Andrew Garfield in the new adaption of The Amazing Spider-Man, I and all for the new adaption in more ways than one.
I'll try to keep it as spoiler-free as possible!
The biggest criticism that The Amazing Spider-Man seems to be receiving is repetition of plot. Now, I can see where reviewers are coming from, but I also ask the question - what did you expect? Of course the reboot of a series is going to start again with the origins of the superhero - this includes being bitten by the spider (duh) and Uncle Ben still needs to die (no matter how much we love Martin Sheen). I do think Marvel and Marc Webb have completely aced it this time around. The story is much closer to the original comics (aside from Gwen knowing who Spider-Man is early on), we have insight to Spider-Man's parents and the mystery surrounding their disappearance and just how it affected Peter Parker - plus it's modernized: Peter has to deal with bullying (on both ends) and lets face it - he's freaking good looking.
Andrew Garfield's performance as Spider-Man is charismatic, funny and believable. And he lets Peter Parker's intelligence shine through, something we only saw snippets of in the previous series. Emma Stone as Gwen Stacey is completely exhilerating. There were moments I wished I was the one taking her out, completely mesmerized by her smile, eyes and voice. Combined, the chemistry is undeniable, with Andrew admitting in interviews the hardest part of filming was the romance scenes with Stone, as she was in his words: terrifying. It's easy to see how the two became a couple in real life.
Garfield put his heart and soul into this movie, and you can see it on screen. Skateboarding was added into the script due to Garfield's input, and a whole scene involving a carjacking and Spider-Man taunting was included as Garfield remembered as a kid how important the humour and wit was of the original comics. "That was a fun night, because it was all improvised and free. There was nothing scripted about that. That was awesome." To me, that was the biggest problem with the old series of Spider-Man movies - it took itself way too seriously. And by the time they really got a feel of Tobey Maguire as Spider-Man in the 3rd movie - the maze of story lines just created a headache for viewers rather than an enjoyable experience.
Instead of being just another superhero movie, The Amazing Spider-Man is a film that deals with acceptance of change, of being lost and found and overcoming struggles in the face of adversity. As Uncle Ben says, "with great power comes great responsibility", and this film embodies this entirely.
I can honestly say there was no point I was bored (like other Marvel movies that have been released the past few years), and I even shed a tear or two. Again, Garfield and Stone were absolute perfect casting!
A great movie for all ages, 2012 really seems to be the year of the Superheros!
I can honestly say there was no point I was bored (like other Marvel movies that have been released the past few years), and I even shed a tear or two. Again, Garfield and Stone were absolute perfect casting!
A great movie for all ages, 2012 really seems to be the year of the Superheros!
