Vastly superior to the previous 3

Rating: 8/10 (6 July 2012)

Raimi tried and failed, to depict Spider-Man as a neo-Hamlet with the love triangles, deceit, betrayals, and revenge. He likened Shakespeare to...Spider-Man ? I don't like Raimi's theme of "Love story with some comic book action" It should be the other way around.
Then there was Maguire who didn't resemble anything like Peter Parker. He was just a caricature of nerds abroad. Andrew Garfield looked and sold the part as a more grounded, sarcastic, and presumptuous Spidey. Webb did a superb job of what Raimi failed to do 3 times. Show what Peter Parker did between being sappy and overly dramatic to being Spidey. In this one, we see a more vulnerable, more accessible Spidey repair his suit, training, and asserting his opinions. Abrasively, if he needs to. He also tries to adjust to his newly gained attributes such as regulating his efforts to closing doors carefully. He does this through trial and error. While the film get's off to a slow, albeit phenomenal pace, once it picks up speed, it goes full bore. Raimi punctuated dialogue heavy scenes with action. Webb seemed to make the dialogue more bearable, and less theatrical, and worked it around the action.
Also, Webb realized what Raimi and Burton failed to do; "You don't have to kill the antagonist!" While the only gripe I have, is that the agenda of Curt Connors's alter ego, The Lizard is pretty cheesy. Like it's out of a Bond film or an episode of The Tick. Webb did a different take on the style of how Spidey traverses the city. Where Raimi used a greenscreen to superimpose the acrobatics, it looked flat like Spidey was swinging in front of a cityscape painted wall. Instead, Webb opted for a more visceral and dynamic style befitting this Spidey's bolder, more confrontational style. Even utilizing first person camera angles here. Webb actually wanted the viewer to enjoy the ride as it were, without cutting it too short.
Also,Spidey is shown as human. He is shot and limps about while gazing in the distance at how much farther he has to go and sighs.Little,trivial things like these ground Spidey and to me, make him seem less perfect and more human as Spidey still retains his fallibility. Sadly, for Raimi fans, the more humble beginnings do not warrant the appearances of either Norman or Harry Osborn and no J.Jonah Jameson chewing up scenery since Webb is going for a re-telling origin story. This is how Spider-Man was supposed to have been told. Not Raimi's over-inflated and over-ambitious take.