I have always been a fan of Super Hero movies, especially the big, blockbuster films featuring what I think of as The Big 3 (Superman, Batman, and Spider-Man). Theses were the heroes of my childhood, and the way that they have been depicted over the years has always been an important factor in shaping my sense of pop culture.
Sadly all of these franchises have had their low points over the years. Superman 4, Bad. Superman Returns, Painful. Batman and Robin, Awful. Spider- Man 3, Garbage. In each of these cases it wasn't long before the studios rebooted the series with fresh talent and direction in an effort to revive the franchise.
Spider-Man is the latest series to receive this treatment, and the timing couldn't be better. It has only been 5 years since Spiderman 3 disapointed audiences around the world. Despite introducing a much anticipated villan in Venom, the film was a hot mess. Fans of Spidey wanted more, but they didn't want it to be in any way influenced by the failings of the last film.
The Amazing Spiderman opened on Tuesday with a slight revision on the origin story, a new leading man, Andrew Garfield in the role of Peter Parker, and a new Director, Marc Webb. It was certainly one of the most anticipated movies of the Summer, right up there with The Avengers, and The Dark Knight Rising. ( How cool is it that the 3 biggest movies of the summer are all Super Hero flicks!).
Marc Webb's new reboot of the Spiderman Franchise lives up to the hype. Earning 59.3 Million dollars in its first two days, it immedietly catpulted to the #2 position for biggest 4th of July Opening ever (Transformers still holds that coveted #1 spot).
This is a leaner, meaner Spider-Man than what you are used to from poor, down trodden, love struck Tobey McGuire. In this film, Spidey is still in high school when he gets bit by his radio-active spider. He has a skateboard, he has a cell phone, most importantly, he has DEPTH. While he is definitely not one of the cool kids, Andrew Garfield portrays him with an assurance and self-confidence that has been missing from the previous series. He comes across as a little shy and quirky when first dealing with his love interest Gwen Stacy, played by Garfield's current real life girlfriend Emma Stone, but gone is the sad, lost, little puppy. Good riddance.
Speaking of Emma Stone, the two have some pretty great chemistry on screen. When they do flirt, or when eventually things turn serious, nothing seems forced or false. Anyone who has seen Christian Bale and Katie Holmes in Batman Begins (Great movie, terrible chemistry) can attest to how important good chemistry between a hero and his love interest is to a story line.
Point of fact, this time around, they also highlight the fact that Parker has an advanced technological mind through various inventions he has created around his Aunt and Uncle's home, including the eventual creation of his web slinger technology. Fans of the comics should enjoy this montage after all the bad press the first series got for simply explaining these away as a by product of Parker's spider bite.
As with any super hero movie, special effects play a huge role with this film. Spidey's trade mark acrobatics and web slinging are beautifully rendered throughout. Just slow enough to follow with the naked eye, but quick enough to look effortless and fluid, Webb allows the audience to track Spider-Man in a manner that lets the audience feel like they are in on the action. A couple of times, he even incorporates a Point of View perspective that lets the audience experience Spidey's acrobatic feats first hand. FUN! Especially in Imax 3D.
The villan of the movie is also very well executed. Dr. Curtis Connors, played by Rhys Ifans, is a brillaint bio-engineer / herpetologist toiling away at Oscorp, looking for what basicially amounts to the key to human regeneration (Think Wolverine's healing factor mixed with a healthy dose of the Gieco gecko). When the suits at Oscorp threaten to pull the plug on his research, Connors injects himself with his serum, transforming him into The Lizard. Big, mean, and able to actually act through the CG animation, unlike poor William Dafoe in that stupid Green Goblin mask from the first film, the Lizard is an interesting and engaging nemisis for Spider-Man to tangle with.
The big surprise for me is actually how much time Spidey spends with his mask off. This is not a hero traditionally known for hanging around with his face visable and identity exposed to the general public, but this time around there are plenty of scenes where Garfield spends time in the suit without the mask.
Of course it is impossible not to mention the suit. Spidey's red and blue spandex is one of the most recognizable costumes out there, and the design team once again does a brilliant job rendering him in vivid, textured detail. As always, my only complaint about the suit is that poor Peter Parker hypotheticially created it himself from scratch, something that a wardrobe designer friend of mine tells me is not nearly as easy as it looks! That aside, in the suit Andrew Garfield, and all of his stunt doubles, certainly look like Spider-Man.
Spider-Man co-creator and Marvel comics icon, Stan Lee makes his mandatory appearance in the fim (his 17th appearance in films featuring his characters for those of you keeping track). As always, Stan's quick cameo acts as a fun-filled wink at the real fanboys in the audience, you know who you are.
Those same fans will be happy to hear that this film has officially been confirmed as the first in a new trilogy of movies featuring Spider-man. For insight on who will menace Spidey in the next film, be sure to stick around through the credits after the movie. As always with a Marvel film, there is a short teaser scene that introduces us to someone very important in the Spider-Man mythos.
No comments:
Post a Comment