I have been thinking about The Amazing Spider-Man 2 a lot lately and how much unnecessary hate this series receives. It deserves better from so called ‘comic book fans.’ It hurts and angers me to see a great Marvel movie be constantly crapped on. If you haven’t noticed, Spider-Man is my all-time favorite superhero (between him and Batman, it’s pretty rough, but at the end of the day, I can relate to Spider-Man and so he is my favorite) and TAS-M is my favorite comic book movie, for endless reasons. Recently, a user by the name of ‘LEVITIKUZ’ wrote up a long editorial, which was quite impressive. However, most (if not all) of his arguments/complaints can and will be countered, thus the creation of this article. Go ahead, ask yourself: “Lindsey, why choose to take on LEVITIKUZ’S outstanding article?” Simple, because this is the most recent ‘hate party’ (as I like to call it) on TASM, and more importantly, the most impressive one I’ve seen yet. LEVITIKUZ did a fantastic job explaining why he dislikes TASM (good job, buddy, if you’re reading this) and I mean that in all honesty, but that doesn’t make every single argument true.
Complaint #1: The film does nothing new.
The film DOES do new things.
“But Lindsey, it’s the same story!”
True, it is, BUT The Amazing Spider-Man retells the story in a unique and different way. After finding a clue about his parents’ mysterious disappearance and death (aka the picture of Dr. Connors and Richard Parker), Peter gets bitten by the spider at Oscorp by snooping, NOT by standing directly under the spider as it descends slowly and bites him at a school/collage. We do see Peter in high school again, but this time it spans all throughout the movie, unlike the original Spider-Man movie starring Tobey Maguire. Peter’s parents and their death are a lingering, mysterious shadow peering between the curtains, which is also something we haven’t seen before. Peter’s parents, if I’m not badly mistaken, aren’t mentioned even ONCE in the old trilogy, therefore, adding a new twist and touch to TASM’s plot. We also have the pleasure of seeing the relationship between Peter and the Stacey’s, which does NOT happen in the original Spider-Man movie. An addition to having the Stacey’s in TASM, we get to see the relationship between Spider-Man and NYPD, and frankly, it’s much better explored than in Spider-Man1. Spider-Man1 did a fine job expressing Peter’s sadness after Uncle Ben’s death, but TASM does it differently. Peter’s anger and rage is expressed as he hunts for his Uncle’s killer, which did happen in Spider-Man, but this time we see how determined Peter is to catch this guy because it doesn’t just happen in one night. He doesn’t just attempt once, he goes out several times, and never succeeds (and Peter in Spider-Man1 DID find Ben’s murderer). Also, there is no boxing match in this movie, whereas in Spider-Man1, Peter tries to win money to buy a cool car to impress Mary Jane (which is how he gets the name ‘Spider-Man,’ the announcer gave to him). In TASM, Peter does fall into a boxing ring, but there is no live match. Instead, he gets inspiration to design a mask. There’s no denying that everything in TASM is tweaked and done differently. And it works.
Complaint #2: “The fact that the origin story is retold.”
When you’re working with a character as delicate as Spider-Man, you have to tell the origin story. In the movie business, a series consisting of 3 or more films MUST have a beginning and an end. You can’t expect writers to place Spider-Man in the middle of his career, and if what I said above isn’t enough reason, here’s why: first of all, we wouldn’t know who Spider-Man has already fought or what kind of things has already happened, which could potentially mess up a future movie, and this leads me to my next point: Character and relationship development. If the origin story was not told in TASM, we wouldn’t have gotten to witness all the wonderful first encounters Peter/Spider-Man had with characters like Captain Stacey and Gwen. You can’t get around a Spider-Man story WITHOUT starting at the beginning. Amazing Fantasy 15 didn’t place Spider-Man in the middle of his career, so why should the movies? Think logically about it. Plus, with Peter’s parents involved, you never know how big a role that will play in the future films, and perhaps retelling Spider-Man’s origin was the only way?
Complaint #3: The UNTOLD STORY Never Told.
The ‘Untold Story’ will probably span throughout the entire series. How can this even be a complaint? Sure, they don’t wrap up ‘the untold story’ in the FIRST movie, but they DID leave it open to expand upon. It wasn’t meant to be finished in one movie. Plain and simple.
Complaint #4: Too Much BATMAN BEGINS Influence.
Honestly, the only thing ‘dark and gritty’ about The Amazing Spider-Man was the trailers; the movie was light hearted. There was humor throughout, unlike Batman Begins. TASM is not a dark movie. How is it ‘copying’ Batman Begins’ tone? I’ll use the bathroom scene in TASM, where Peter is first experiencing his superpowers. You wouldn’t see that kind of humor and light-heartedness in a Batman movie. Seriously. “What made Batman Begins the best Batman movie? The answer is that it put Batman in –his- environment. Read Year One. The environment in the book matched the film. Not just that book but the film also gave you so much stuff in Batman's universe perfectly. A great Batsuit, a Frank Millerish Batmoblie, a perfect Jim Gordon/Batman relationship, League of Assassins which is now the Shadows, Scarecrow, Arkham Asylum, mobsters, and so much more. It took what was great in the Batman comics and put in on film. That's why the film is great. The film was dark and gritty because Batman is dark and gritty.” I agree completely about what LEVITIKUZ said here. Batman Begins is a fantastic Batman movie (my favorite of the trilogy) BUT The Amazing Spider-Man IS NOT copying that tone. Batman movies have a very unique tone, which makes it near to impossible to ‘copy.’ There is a HUGE difference between Marvel and DC films, and that is tone. All Marvel movies are light hearted and usually funny throughout, whereas DC movies are mostly dark and bit more violent. The Dark Knight trilogy is a perfect example of that.
Complaint #5: Peter Parker Has No Identity.
“We see Peter the scientist, Peter the loner, Peter the boyfriend, Peter the douche, Peter the helper, Peter the skateboarder, Peter the kid with more hops in his jump than a case of Miller Light, Peter the guy who dented the goal post, Peter the photographer, Peter the Stalker, Peter the nerd.” Minus the jokingly ‘Peter the kid with more hops in his jump than a case of Miller Light, Peter the stalker, and Peter the guy who dented the goal post,’ I agree completely. Peter Parker is probably the busiest comic book character there is. That’s what makes Spider-Man so great. He has so much to do and so little time, and so many identities he must wear in front of various people. Peter the superhero, Peter the nephew, Peter the photographer with the horrible boss, Peter the boyfriend. As LEVITIKUZ said above, this guy has A LOT to put up with, and there’s nothing wrong with that because that’s who Spider-Man/Peter Parker is. He has no life because of the countless things he has to do, which is another reason why I think they placed him in high school again. Spider-Ma2 expresses this aspect Peter, as well. In Spider-Man2, Peter doesn’t have time for anything, and he has all these identities to please the friends and family in front of him.
And as a side note to those who complain that Peter is a ‘douche.’ TASM’s Peter Parker is obviously aiming to be as relatable and real as possible. Me being a teenager myself, I can totally relate to him. Life isn’t fair, and so I can be a pain in the butt at times. I can overlook his attitude because I know how he feels. You can’t argue with that.
Complaint #6: Peter Webslinging With No Mask IN BROAD DAYLIGHT.
Nitpicking. I mean COME ON! You’re REALLY going to hate TASM because of this? I personally thought this scene was AWESOME. Yeah it is a bit unbelievable but this is a Spider-Man movie. And what kind of teenager wouldn’t test their abilities when suddenly they can stick to walls and out of nowhere have enormous strength? At least this Spider-Man is intrigued by his powers. In Spider-Man1, I only recall one scene where he is interested in his powers. Funny how that scene place in BROAD DAYLIGHT too…. “LINDSEY! SEE? THEY’RE STEALING FROM RAIMI’S MOVIES! WAAAHHH! CALL THE POLICE! WAAAHHH!” *shoves binky into your mouth.*
Complaint #7: Peter Parker Starting Fights With Everyone In New York.
I can understand LEVITIKUZ’s points here to a certain extent. But let’s look at the picture from Peter’s point of view. He’s a teenager; he’s going to believe that he can find this guy, even though that chance is highly impossible. Peter Parker might be BRILLIANT but he’s not going to use any sense about this particular situation at all. He’s an angry teenager, and we teens tend not to think clearly when we’re pissed off. It reminds me a bit of Batman: Arkham Origins. Batman is wise in this story but his anger combined with arrogance makes him think he can defeat ANYONE. The same with Peter; he just gained these incredible abilities and so then he’s under the impression that he can weed out this guy and take care of him.
Complaint #8: The First Time We See Spider-Man.
LEVITIKUZ did a tremendous job listing ‘first appearances’ but the car thief scene was NOT Spider-Man’s first appearance in the movie. That clearly was just another act of Peter trying to find Uncle Ben’s killer. Spider-Man’s first appearance in the movie would have been the bridge scene, I mean we’re even faced with the symbol on the back of the costume as Peter changes into the suit; the brief moment screams THIS IS SPIDER-MAN! NOT THE GUY WHO CHASES CAR THEIVES. I may be the only one who notices this, but there is a major change in Peter between the 3 scenes where he aunt May have a miniature argument and the bridge scene; the scene between those two is the dinner scene, where Captain Stacey educates Peter and shows him how he is wrong. THEN, at the bridge, after saving the child, Peter realizes the power he has must be used for something greater, as Uncle Ben tried to teach him the night he died. The realization punches him in the gut as he watches the child and father embrace each other. It’s beautiful. And that is where he becomes Spider-Man for the first time. This leads me to my next point.
Complaint #9: What Is Spider-Man’s Motivation?
“This film never gives a clean stance on what Peter’s motivations for his actions are. Now with The Amazing Spider-Man. At first Spider-Man/Peter Parker fights every Tom, Dick, and Harry to see if they were his Uncle’s killer. Then when the Lizard is on the bridge, Peter decides to do good and save people. His transition to this doesn’t make sense. How did you get from point A to point B. It’s stuff like that that is important.” If you’re still confused, I shall repeat everything I just said: Captain Stacey educates Peter in the dinner scene and shows him how he is wrong. Then at the bridge, after saving the child, Peter realizes the power he has must be used for something greater, as Uncle Ben tried to teach him the night he died. The realization punches him in the gut as he watches the child and father embrace each other. The transition is pretty plain to understand.
Complaint #10: Peter’s Name On The Back Of His Camera.
Look. The guy goes to high school and it could get lost in a big place like that. Even I have put my name on the back of things before, so I wouldn’t lose it, and Peter has his name on his camera because of that very reason. YOU wouldn’t want to lose something as expensive as that, would you? Of course, when a giant Lizard is about to kill you, your camera will most likely get destroyed….
Complaint #11: The Bridge Scene:
“This scene was good but there were problems that bugged me about it. I think this is the second time we see Spider-Man in the film after the car thief scene. THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN THE FIRST REVEAL OF SPIDER-MAN!!! It was so perfect for that. If it was the first reveal, it would be similar to how Batman started. In Batman, they started off with a family being robbed similar to Bruce’s family. In this, we have Spider-Man saving a young boy who gets reunited with his father. Like Batman, Spider-Man is helping and saving someone who he can relate to in a way. It was well done and so good but instead you go for the stupid car thief instead. I wanna slap someone for doing this.”
As I stated before, this IS the reveal of Spider-Man. This is where Peter really becomes and embraces Spider-Man. He even tells the boy and father that he’s “Spider-Man.”
“Ok here was really the one thing wrong with this scene. This scene was the first time Lizard and Spider-Man met. The problem is nothing happened. Lizard ran from the bridge knocking cars off, Spider-Man caught the cars falling off, end scene. I mean what? As I will say when I get to the Lizard, Peter should have been with Connors when he first transformed and Connors should have given a presentation to Oscorp about the cure. We see Spider-Man chase finally catch up on the bridge, fight happens, cars get thrown off, end scene with Spider-Man making the choice of saving the kid in the car or chasing Connors. It just felt odd that nothing happened in their first meeting. It’s like Batman meeting Joker and he’s just like “hey” and he lets him go.”
What? The Lizard was long gone when Spider-Man finally finished rescuing the boy. I mean he could have looked for him, but the Lizard was already transforming back into human form, so chances are he was Dr. Connors again.
Complaint #12: Peter & Gwen’s Relationship.
I don’t really feel the need to defend this, because it just seems pointless. Peter and Gwen’s relationship had plenty development. I mean, most teens these days are ‘doing it’ before the first date.
Complaint #13: The Lizard (originally titled: “The Goomba’s Distant Cousin, The Lizard”)
“This really pissed me off. Yea let’s admit it, the Lizard was horrible. I may get crap for this but I would debate Mr. Freeze was better.” All right, let me stop you right there. Must you REALLY remind us of the horror that was…dare I say…Batman & Robin? Anyway. I agree that the Lizard character was a bit dull (no family and what not). But his motives were clear. He wanted to make everyone equal and powerful, he just did it the wrong way and killed a husband/father in the process. He may not have been a good villain, but he sure was dangerous and the fight scenes were epic. Oh and how…HOW can The Lizard possibly remind anyone of a goomba? There has to be something mentally wrong with you if you see a goomba while watch TASM.
Final complaint: The end scene.
Here we go again. Now, first and foremost, I am not defending the fact that Peter broke the promise, all right? I’m in no mood to go there. The final scene was Peter listening to the voice message from Uncle Ben, which was a really great way to conclude the movie. Everything after that is stuff to set up the sequel. Why else would they put it in there? I mean Peter breaking the promise could have been saved for TASM2. But they put it there to prepare us and give us some insight on what’s going to happen next. Like Dr. Connors talking to the man in the shadows in his cell “Did you tell the boy about his parents?” All this sets up the sequel. The ‘but those are the best kinds’ line is NOT the grand finale of it all, this is:
"Peter, I know things have been difficult lately, and I'm sorry about that. I think I know what you're feeling. Ever since you were a little boy you've been living with so many unresolved things. Well take it from an old man, those things send us down the road; they make us who we are. And if anyone's destined for greatness, it’s you son. You owe the world your gifts, you just have to figure out how to use them, and know that wherever they take you, we'll always be here. So come on home Peter! You're my hero. And I love you."
Also, LEVITIKUZ said the movie sucks, which is untrue. I know that is an opinion, and he is entitled to one, but I just countered every argument he made. Think what you will LEVITIKUZ and those that agree with him, but this HUGE Spider-Man fan is locked and loaded. Please don't misinterpret that, though, I mean ZERO disrespect to ANYONE so voice your opinions in the comment section below! Now that I've spent probably 3 hours writing this, I'm going to give my eyes a break. I might be back later.