A Delightful Web

Rating: 8/10 (4 July 2012)

I was slightly hesitant to watch the Amazing Spiderman, having grown up with the idea that Tobey Maguire was the boy wonder. I was happily surprised, however, that I spent the money and time with a Spiderman for a new generation. Some argue that not enough time has passed between the Amazing Spiderman and Spiderman 3 (which I thought was awful), but I beg to differ. At the rate at which information travels, how social networking shapes the daily lives of all around the world, and when CGI changes the way we watch film, a Spiderman for 2012 is a welcomed addition to Marvel.
While the story is similar to that of Spiderman 1- the story is based upon the comic book tale of Peter Parker for crying out-loud and so will be the same- I found that what made the Amazing Spiderman amazing was the fresh, tender face of Andrew Garfield. It may seem strange to think of Spiderman as tender, but above anything else this movie offers- action, love, revenge, responsibility- it offers a reality check for all those out there who think that being a superhuman offers the best of both worlds. Garfield makes Spiderman more than a mask, more than a super-human who fights for what is right. Garfield as Spiderman struggles to find his way and demonstrates that it is not always easy to find the right path and stay on it. Life, ultimately will get in the way of whatever and whoever you decide to be and how the Amazing Spiderman deals with living a life of secrets and power, is what makes this film soar.
There are a few cheese-filled scenes that slowed the film down, but overall they did not alter the theme of the movie. Emma Stone was brilliant, as always and casting her alongside Garfield was simply one of the best matches I have seen in a long time. Rhys Ifans was a likable villain, which is something that must happen in superhero films these days. No longer is being bad 'just because' a characterization, the villain (whether Voldemort or even the Joker from the Dark Knight) has to have justification for being evil because just as being good is defined by choices, so is being bad.
Ifans seeks to be change who he is and uses science as the way to reach his goal. His experiment backfires and he is left changed in more ways than one and the last half of the film focuses on the results of mixing unknown science with human desire.
Throughout the Amazing Spiderman is this idea that wanting something and changing who you are do not always yield greatness. Peter Paker struggles with his new identity and powers, just as Dr.Curt Conners must accept his fate. The interaction between the two characters is, in the beginning genuine and so it makes the fallout from their alter-egos all the more interesting. The struggle of whether or not being different is a blessing or a curse is flushed out, as well as the loneliness that often follows the cost of greatness.
The CGI and music are acceptable, a misplaced Coldplay song through me off a little, but I like any movie that plays the Shins. The action scenes with the instrumentals was lacking, loud piano cords do not a scene suspenseful.
If the future of superhero films is telling the tale of why superheros are not so different from the rest of us, the future of superheros is bright indeed.