Not quite amazing, but very damn good.

Rating: 8/10 (6 July 2012)

The biggest glaring issue "The Amazing Spider-Man" falls to is the inconsistency of its special effects: despite getting glammed-up by the Hollywood treatment, the film's CGI waxes and wanes from sleek and stylish action sequences to Windows 98-generated goofiness. It's a small crack in this movie's rather impressive visual exoskeleton, but one that is majorly detrimental to some of the fight scenes and larger set pieces. Still, it doesn't take away too much from what this film is all about: incredibly digestible entertainment value. This is the Spider-Man adventure Stan Lee certainly wants us to see, and the one we as audiences have been waiting for. "The Amazing Spider-Man" serves up exactly what every summer moviegoer seeks: a film that combines the best parts of the franchise's campy melodrama, honest ideals, and web- slinging fun. And when all is said and done, the effort proves to be not just satisfying, but absolutely heroic.