The creators of the Spiderman franchise have decided to leave the most recent 3 movies (2002-2007) as a trilogy, so this new offering from director Marc Webb is a reboot. For those unfamiliar with this term, to reboot a series simply means to wipe the slate clean to begin the story again. This gives the filmmakers a chance to do things differently, and I personally love what they have done with The Amazing Spiderman.
Peter Parker is taken by his parents to his aunt (Sally Field) and uncle’s (Martin Sheen) home as a small boy. His parents never return, leaving behind plenty of unanswered questions for Peter. His fate changes as a high school student when his searching leads him to a spider bite in a science lab. Soon, he is able to shoot webs from his wrists and climb walls. It's clear in each scene, Director Webb had so much fun with Peter’s newfound super–strength!
What would a heroic tale be without a girl to save, Emma Stone, who solidly portrays Gwen Stacy as a smart girl with a sense of humour and courage. We also have the destestable villain of course (Rhys Ifans) and Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker, who is spot on in his performance of the characters ongoing grief and sense of purpose.
The only downside to the storyline is that Garfield and Stone aged 28 and 23 respectively, are playing the role of teenagers. This unfortunate trend in Hollywood casting is one I reluctantly tolerate.
This movie reminded me why I go to the movies! The Amazing Spiderman gives me characters to cheer for, a great deal of pure fun, a scary villain and good old fashioned family values (shown here by Peter’s aunt and uncle). While true to its blockbuster genre, this story is personal and gives us a daring insight into the human heart.
If you do intend on watching it, be reminded that this movie is rated M 15+ for Action Violence.
Photo credit: www.theamazingspideman.com.au