A few years ago, it was revealed
Spider-Man 4 would never be. Instead Sony was planning to reboot the franchise with an all new cast, and origin story. Was the reboot a smart move on Sony's part or does it fail where the original franchise succeeded? Should
The Amazing Spider-Man be called "Amazing"? Read on.
Cast Andrew Garfield Okay, I have to admit, Garfield is brilliant as Peter Parker. Yes, even better than Tobey Maguire. He makes you realize just how complicated a character he is. There are several scenes in the movie, in which he portrays emotion even with his mask on.
Minor Spoiler: For instance: After rescuing the boy from the car, Spider-Man watches as the father holds his son, realizing the boy has something he never lost when his dad disappeared. Nothing is spoken in that scene and Garfield has his mask on, yet he manages to display all the emotion of the moment. Brilliant performance. Setting a high bar for future Peter Parkers.
Emma Stone Portraying Parkers doomed girlfriend is probably a tough job to handle. Easily distinguishing herself from Bryce Dallas Howard's portrayal of the character, she makes a much better take.
Rhys Ifans Again another good performance. Showing the goodness in Connors, yet showing his insanity. Brilliant performance. The Lizard looks good, not perfect in some scenes, yet still very good. The motion capture worked well.
Denis Leary Captain Stacy is one of my favorite characters in the comics, so Leary has a lot to live up to on this character. Yet he portrays a perfect Captain Stacy, except for one scene. But I will say more on that further down.
Martin Sheen While the famous quote, "With Great Power, Comes Great Responsibility" is never specifically said, (there is a version of it), Martin Sheen portrays an interesting Uncle Ben. Is his performance better than the previous Uncle Ben? No. Mainly because both actors played the character brilliantly.
Sally Field Taking over for Rosemary Harris, she portrays a very different Aunt May. Basing her performance on the Ultimate version of Aunt May, she's tough yet still a lot kinder than her Ultimate portrayal. Is she better than her previous portrayal? I'd say different, yet we don't get to see very much of her so it is hard to say which performance is better.
Irrfan Khan While his hints to
Minor Spoiler: Norman Osborn are interesting, he himself portrays a ultimately needless and easily forgettable character. The story seems to know this because about half way though the film after his car is thrown off the bridge, Spider-Man catches it, he is never seen again.
Chris Zylka While his character is very forgettable in the previous movies, Zylka finally shows us the Flash we all know and love. Venom spin off with Flash Thompson as Venom? Yes please. Just put Eddie Brock in there as well.
Honorable mentions goes to Max Charles, Campbell Scott, and Embeth Davidtz, who play their bit parts excellently.
Story I think the best part of this film is the origin story. Some have said this part is painfully long, and gives us no real care for the mystery surrounding Peter Parker. I couldn't disagree more. I would say this is probably one of the best parts of the movie in fact, giving us a more Peter Parker story than just Spider-Man.
When Peter finally becomes Spider-Man, then the story gets to be a hit and miss. Peter doesn't seem to care about his secret identity, going to little trouble to hide it. Plus he seems to be allergic to his mask, letting several people unmask him and even going about without his mask at times. This is sad to see, as Garfield is able to portray his emotions brilliantly though the mask.
I found some of the biggest problems in this movie, is that it felt like a wannabe
Batman Begins, making it darker, without much humor. And while Spider-Man's quips are funny, there isn't enough of them to relieve the audience. That said, the movie isn't without humor. Stan Lee's cameo is his best cameo yet, and possibly the most memorable scene in the film.
Now, I am going to talk about some pretty big spoilers. So you have been warned! Do not highlight the text if you do not want any spoilers.
Spoilers Okay, here it goes. Where does the Captain Stacy character fail? In his last moments of life, he tells Peter to give up Gwen and stop seeing her. Why do I not like this? Because it is absolutely untrue to the comics, a core character plot is that Stacy tells Peter to "take care" of Gwen for him. This makes Peter feel guilty for failing to save her from the Green Goblin. Creating not only a missed opportunity, but a major character change. Also making it so very similar to the first Spider-Man movie... Action One of the best things in
The Amazing Spider-Man is the action scenes. Managing to give a different feel to the brilliant action scenes in the previous movies, it takes us closer to the action and while I saw it in 2D, it makes you realize at how breathtaking this movie would be in 3D.
Overall While
The Amazing Spider-Man snags its web in a few places, character wise, it is ultimately an enjoyable film.
I give it 7 cast members out of 10.
Be sure not to miss the mid credits scene!