The Dark Spider Rises

Rating: 7/10 (10 July 2012)

Sony Pictures has ignored the old adage: "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Five years ago, the studio canceled the fourth installment in the Toby Maguire "Spider-man" franchise with original director Sam Raimi at the helm. Sony cited escalating production costs as justification for abandoning the series. Now, not only has Sony rebooted it with a different director and a different pair of leads, but also the studio has retooled it with a darker screenplay. You could call it "The Dark Spider Arises" because the filmmakers are channeling "Batman" in this entry. Unfortunately, "The Amazing Spider-man" isn't as amazing as the original "Spider-man." "(5oo) Days of Summer" director Marc Webb struggles with two problems: a lackluster villain straight out of a bad B-movie chiller and a drawn-out running time. Essentially, "The Losers" scenarist James Vanderbilt, original "Spider-man 2" scribe Alvin Sargent, and "Harry Potter" penman Steve Kloves have kept intact most of the best parts of the original. Dare they depart from the canon? Happily, they've have retained the radioactive spider bite, the confrontation with obnoxious Flash, and the marvelous web-slinging training sequences. Webb and his writers have put into effect some interesting changes. Ostensibly, except for a single close-up on a stack of newspapers, they have omitted the Daily Bugle newspaper. This time around they show Uncle Ben's murder in graphic detail, an event that occurred off-screen in the original. Further, they have made the heroic Peter Parker a lot smarter than he was in Toby Maguire's incarnation.
Along the way they have forged a few surprises, particularly with Peter's other romantic interest; Gwen Stacy has replaced Mary Jane Watson. Peter contends with new antagonists both natural and supernatural. The most prominent villain is Dr. Curt Connors (Rhys Ifans), while the second is Gwen's father, New York Police Department Captain Stacy (Denis Leary) who abhors vigilante interlopers and has nothing but contempt for Spidey. Unfortunately, the film stretches itself perilously thin in the final quarter hour into a 136 minute running time. Actor Rhys Ifans' maimed scientist villain is seamlessly mutated into a giant green lizard, but he lacks half of the ferocity that Maguire's adversaries provided him with in director Sam Raimi's trilogy. The Green Goblin was a lively, audacious adversary, but The Lizard is rather dreary. The special effects are terrific as is the cinematography. Although he is 28 years old, British actor Andrew Garfield looks more believable as a skinny teenager than Toby Maguire. Indeed, he would be fantastic as Norman Bates if Hollywood ever reboots the Hitchcock classic.
Several scenes stand out in "The Amazing Spider-Man." The scene on the Williamsburg Bridge when Connors mutates into the Lizard is one of the best, with the nimble Spidey compelled to save multiple characters. The most memorable is a little boy stuck in an SUV. What makes this instance so significant is that our hero identifies himself as Spider-Man to a grateful father (C. Thomas Howell) after he has rescued his son. When our hero rushes off to warn Captain Stacy about the malicious machinations of Dr. Connors, Stacy reacts with disbelief because Connors is Gwen's mentor. The scene where Spidey tests his new found abilities to leap and lung is reminiscent of Kevin Bacon's dance antics in the original "Footloose."
Martin Sheen is good as Peter's uncle, but he cannot eclipse Cliff Robertson in the Tobey Maguire origin. Gwen learns about Peter's alter-ego Spider-Man when he shows up battered at her room in a New York high-rise apartment. The chief difference here between the Tobey Maguire "Spider-Man" and Garfield's is that Gwen and he don't kiss with our hero dangling upside-down. One of my chief complaints about this slick reboot is the scene between Peter Parker and Flash. After Peter acquires his mysterious powers at Oscorp, he humiliates Flash on the basketball court and is summoned to the principal's office. Later, Uncle Ben reprimands our hero for wanting a little payback. Stan Lee shows up for his usual cameo. This time around he is in the high school library wearing head phones while the Lizard and Spidey tangle with each other.