This
first part will hopefully answer the question as to why this movie is
coming out and it all has to do with money. Had Sony decided to do a
fourth movie with the entire crew they had on, a sizable chink of the
movie's budget would have gone to the movie's stars including 50 million
to Tobey Maguire and far more creative control to director Sam Raimi
after having Venom shoved down his throat despite not wanting to deal
with that villain. So it was cheaper to go out and get a new younger
staff of up and coming actors that are bordering on the A-list if not
already there and a director who has only done one other movie and that
being (500) Days of Summer.
The other factor being that
Sony was about to lose the rights to the character. Back in the 90's
Marvel was hemorrhaging cash so they sold off their characters to
various movie studios. Had Sony not made a new movie by this year the
rights to the character would have reverted back to Marvel and they
could have made their own movie. So that is why this movie had to be
made.
So they went out and they got their younger cast crew.
First off and this is an easy point to get past but how do Andrew
Garfield, who is 28, and Emma Stone, who is 23, look like they belong in
high school? But no movie high schoolers ever do. The next problem is
that Garfield is a good looking guy, and doesn't really get the same
nerdy image we got from Maguire when he played the young teen. But a
credit to his skill Garfield is able to get at the awkwardness that any
out of touch high school student may feel, making the character
believable. Emma Stone may have been the best piece about this movie,
and far better portrayed than Bryce Dallas Howard throw away part in the
third movie. The chemistry between the two actors, who are dating in
real life now, pops on the screen and drives the story forward. I loved
Martin Sheen as Uncle Ben and thought he played a very strong mentoring
figure, but there was no way that Sally Field was going to be better
than Rosemary Harris for the role of Aunt May, Harris was perfect for
that part just look at the difference.
But
with a remake and re imaging of the series they have the opportunity to
go in whatever direction they like, but when retelling the story that
seems to be all they do, retell the story. Even if Uncle Ben is now
played by President Bartlett how can anyone continue to feel for him if
we know he is going to die every decade or so. Both Batman series got
it right, with Tim Burton's he didn't feel the need to start Bruce Wayne
out before he was Batman; everyone already knew he was. Christopher
Nolan recreated the origin story when he rebooted the series because he
took his Batman in such a different and grittier direction.
In
Spider-Man we still see Peter Parker as a dweeby high school student who
gains his power when he is bit by a radioactive spider and understands
his responsibility after his Uncle dies. The only more depth we get is
the audience watching Peter's parents walk out on him and the burden
that leaves on the boy. He even reappears in a wrestling ring and lets
his Uncle's killer get away, nothing has changed. To their credit, the
creative team does a great job retelling the origin story, and connects
you with who this Peter Parker is going to be. But it takes up the
whole first half of the movie, and you almost wish they just could have
skipped all that and gone straight to the action.
It is unfair to
always comparing the two franchises, if you can judge this movie on its
own merits it really is good. Garfield and Stone carry this movie and
Webb writes towards that strength. It is easy to see just why Emma
Stone is all over the place in Hollywood as she has become such a
versatile actress. And Garfield does great with teenage angst. The
on-screen chemistry bursts off the screen and you get a real sense of
first love all on top of a gloomier timeline for Peter Parker. The
visuals are stunning and there is a solid use of 3-D specifically in the
fight sequences and inside the lab. It was also nice seeing our hero
doing some live stunts instead of going straight to CGI as soon as the
mask comes on. I didn't need the first person point of view as
Spider-Man flies through the streets, but I respect Webb taking a chance
and going for it.
The Lizard wasn't an especially daunting
villain and his motives seemed too crazy and illogical even for a mad
scientist. I really wish that the physical threat of the Lizard could
have been what they made the Venom character into. Despite a darker
tone, as the movie reaches its climax the characters get a little
campy. That is understandable as that is always how Spider-Man was
written, even though it appeared he wasn't that way at all until the
movie reached its last few fight sequences.
There is a good movie in here and walking into The Amazing Spider-Man
with low expectations helped. You expect to see the same thing, and
unfortunately they show you the same thing. It is very similar to
hearing your friend tell you the same story again and again, but you
don't mind hearing it because it is a really good story. But in the
back of your head you already know how this one is going to end. B-
No comments:
Post a Comment