philosoraptor42

The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)

Okay so Spider-Man has always been more of a favourite for me than The Avengers anyway. I've never read comics for any of the Avengers characters asides from The Incredible Hulk (never mind read a comic where they band together).

First of all, I should probably explain why this is better than Raimi's previous three Spider-Man movies. I was a bit concerned when Mark Kermode said that this beat all of them except the second one. I must admit that of Raimi's Spider-Man movies I'd always liked the second one the most (with a clip of Spider-Man ineffectually reaching out to catch an engagement ring in the middle of a fight being enough to put me off the third). The reason why I was so horrified is that I still didn't really LIKE Spider-Man 2. Looking back on it on DVD I found it embarrassing. However, I need not have been worried.

While Raimi's Spider-Man movies constantly seemed to be giving the audience "oooh isn't that emotional" or "look he's making progress towards being a real hero" moments with orchestral flourishes, but in The Amazing Spider-Man I finally feel like those moments are earnt. Even before Spider-Man becomes the hero I feel concerned about his plight to find out about his missing parents and to undercover their mystery. Andrew Garfield is a fantastic actor whose facial expressions convey the rich inner life of the character. Martin Sheen and Sally Fields are also fantastic choices for his aunt and uncle who are concerned about the emotional changes their nephew goes through as he becomes a man. When things get emotional it really feels like it matters and I found a stark contrast with Raimi's first movie where Uncle Ben suddenly and unexpectedly announces that "with great power comes great responsibility" (seriously: cheesiest line ever) only to be instantly killed without ever having been properly developed. And Uncle Ben doesn't feel like an unrealistic saint in this movie either. He isn't afraid to be harsh with Peter because he cares about him and that's why his death is genuinely tragic this time around. No surprise then that Peter Parker spends more than a single night trying to avenge him this time around.

Thinking back, it's actually incredible to think how much happens in this film. A great deal occurs before we have Spider-Man donning the uniform, but even during that early period we also see the development of the bad guy of the piece "The Lizard". While many have worried that the end product would look daft, the way The Lizard's mouth always curves upwards like a smile is extremely effective. The fight scenes with The Lizard remind me of the way some fight scenes in Buffy the Vampire Slayer worked, with Spider-Man seeming to learn more about the potential and the limits of his powers as he fights. On top of that, the fight scenes are truly spectacular with Spider-Man rushing from side to side of the screen and the use of his "spider sense" being clearly demonstrated. Which brings me to another point. There's a scene on the subway where Spider-Man first discovers his spider-sense and it is not only brilliantly choreographed but absolutely hilarious. People worried that this Spider-Man would be too dark have nothing to worry about because all the darkness (which Spider-Man has always had even in Raimi's movies, just not done as well) is perfectly balanced by laugh out loud moments galore, whether those be in the interactions between the characters or more slapstick-like moments in the action.

Before I miss it, Gwen Stacey. Emma Stone plays a love interest who actually feels like a proper character who can hold her own. Her interactions with Peter Parker are really well done and with only very limited time on screen she is able to milk that screen time for all it is worth. I personally think it was a really good idea not to make everything about the love interest this time around. Spider-Man needed bigger issues than "when will I ever get a girlfriend" to justify the angst in Raimi's movies, but this time with the main focus being placed on his absent parents his angst feels more justified and less like self-indulgent whining. We can understand in this Denis Leary's character (Gwen Stacey's dad), being worried that Gwen's boyfriend is no good for her, but on the other hand recognising that Gwen is strong enough to make her own decisions.

Okay, okay, okay, so I liked it a lot, but better than Avengers Assemble? Well I don't doubt that Joss Whedon's film was epic with great dialogue, very entertaining, with some great action sequences, the real achievement of that film was balancing a vast array of characters and giving them all their own part to play. As successful as the film was to achieve this, the fact is that focussing on a single character will always give you more scope for development. While the Hulk has all that intrigue bubbling under the surface as he delivers his lines, we never get to explore that because too much else is happening. I also must say that I never felt I understood the emotional background of Captain America. Everything in Avengers Assemble is played for laughs, but I'm not sure that the laughs were better and the emotional side of things was less powerful as a result. And let's not forget, I really enjoyed "Avengers Assemble". When comparing it with "The Amazing Spider-Man" I am resorting to MASSIVE nit-picks. But that's my point. The Amazing Spider-Man is really THAT good. Finally there's a Spider-Man movie that I can really enjoy and don't find it embarrassing to watch. It doesn't let itself get cheesy, taking the time to develop and earn its moments rather than just indulging in unwarranted pathos.

There was one point where I was worried we were going to get a repeat of local New Yorkers shouting "you take on one of us, you take on us all". There's a moment where it looks close to doing that, but this time New Yorkers aren't able to take on the main villain by chucking empty beer bottles at him. Spider-Man always has to fight the battle himself (though admittedly Gwen Stacey gets her moments).

There was every reason to think that "The Amazing Spider-Man" would fail to meet the hype, but it met my expectations perfectly. I absolutely LOVED this film.

A+