The Amazing Spider Man

It’s been just 10 years since Sam Raimi gave Spider-fans the thrill of seeing four decades of comic-book and cartoon memories distilled, purified and celebrated on the big screen.

With three movies still fresh in our minds, it may seem unnecessary, even wasteful, to reboot the series rather than just continue it with some tweaks.

Nevertheless, the Spider-Man of Webb is a grittier concoction that’s closer to the comics in several ways. No bio-organic webs (eww)! Gwen Stacy!

* The web-slinging scenes are even more spectacular after 10 years of special-effects advancements, and especially breathtaking in IMAX (the bit with the cranes, and that final shot – woohoo!);

* The action sequences are terrific and so slickly done that it might be easy to overlook the effort that went into their planning and execution; and

* Garfield and Stone have a great chemistry that makes the film’s romantic elements not only believable but heart-rending too (this IS a Spider-Man tale after all).

‘Compared to my college days, waking up naked in a sewer isn’t the worst post-bender situation I’ve found myself in.’

Some cobwebs need clearing out, though. Aside from the familiarity of the origin story, the principal villain, the Lizard, is a somewhat unremarkable character whose apparent dual personality was already done with the Green Goblin.

There’s no J. Jonah Jameson, which is like … Jack Bauer without terrorists (he would dearly love to be rid of them, but they keep him employed); and the music score is largely generic – a problem that afflicts many Marvel movies – and doesn’t help to energize the film.

Still, this one lays a strong foundation for the second movie in this reinvented, hopefully reinvigorated series to be truly spectacular. Just … no Green Goblin, please.

In a universe bereft of the Raimi-Maguire-Dunst collaborations, The Amazing Spider-Man would’ve been truly terrific. Having to go through a second Spidey origin tale so soon drops the enjoyment factor down a notch, but Webb-Garfield-Stone is a Marvel Team-Up that will certainly bring me back for their next party. – 

I’m not a big superhero fan, unlike Mr. Arul who probably can recite every single line from every single superhero comic book collection he has, if provoked, but I do like Spidey above all other superheroes … yes, even Superman and definitely Batman.

I, like many out there loved Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man and was beside myself when I heard Toby Maguire would not be returning to reprise his role. No one else, I thought, could replace Toby’s Peter Parker, but Andrew Garfield has proven me wrong. He does a brilliant job as Peter and our resident web-slinger.

Garfield’s Peter Parker/Spider-Man is rather refreshing and most importantly the audience is able to connect with his character. This is a totally different Peter than what we’re used to. He’s still scrawny and somewhat nerdy, but he has spunk and when push comes to shove this new version of Peter isn’t going to sit back and take the beating. He’s going to stand up to the class bully, this even before he gets his Spidey powers.

The basic Spider-Man story is still intact. Although you don’t hear the famous line “With great power comes great responsibility”, its essence of it is ever present throughout the show. What’s different with this movie is that we see the human side of the superhero as he desperately tries to find out about his parents and the reason why they left him.

We see a teen, who although is grateful for what he has, still longs for his parent’s love. Peter’s determination to find out more about his father leads him to the movie’s villain, The Lizard.

The Lizard. I found this baddie to be the low point of the movie. The Amazing Spider-Man starts of great and you begin to anticipate something big is just around the corner, then Peter gets bitten and he starts to test his powers. You’re hooked and you wonder what evil mastermind is lurking in Oscorp, “Oh boy, I can just imagine Doc Ock, but better!” you think. Your heart beats faster, your palms start to sweat in anticipation … and then you finally see the evil, evil villain .

You’d think that with the great technology Marc Webb had at his fingertips – the point of view the audience has when Spidey swings from one building to another is just indescribable – The Lizard would have been more menacing, well at least more scarier. But no, The Lizard was just … well, a giant lizard. Even Godzilla was scarier (catch the reference in the movie). Hey, Marc, “with great power comes great responsibility” dude!

But The Lizard, in all its un-scariness, is just a small irritation that’s easily overlooked. The Amazing Spider-Man was amazing and like Davin, I can’t wait for the seque