The Amazing Spider-Man


This has been said before, but it's still quite funny that a guy called Marc Webb made a new Spider-Man movie. What's next? Wayne Knight producing and writing Bruce Wayne: Dark Knight? Clark Gable starring in a remake of Lois and Clark? Vincent Price narrating Tim Burton's Vincent?

Laughs aside, Webb has shown to be a very capable director with his darling of a film called (500) Days of Summer, an effort that can be summarised as a romantic comedy that isn't one - or at least one that plays by its own rules. He doesn't wholly apply that technique to The Amazing Spider-Man, although the result is hardly what you can call a by-the-numbers superhero flick. The pros and cons of such an early reboot (a mere five years after Sam Raimi's latest installment) have been discussed at large on dedicated sites. And while there's no denying that certain scenes do look very familiar, Webb has used mainly and many a fresh perspective.

Andrew "You better lawyer up, asshole!" Garfield is perfect. With his (t/sl)ender frame and boyish looks, he's an ideal Peter Parker. Emma Stone has added yet another fine character to her library, but she always uses the same voice tics. Gotta break that mould, miss Stone. Your otherwise fine Gwen Stacy sounds dangerously close to Jules from Superbad or Skeeter from The Help. Nothing personal. Sally Field and Martin Sheen are bigger names than their predecessors Rosemary Harris and Cliff Robertson, but are they just as good as Aunt May and Uncle Ben? Yes, they are. Funny how you half expect Aunt May to say: "Life is like a web of challenges, Peter". Poor Martin Sheen could use some new dentures, though. Rhys Ifans surprised me with his good looks. Sure, he'll never be a Hugh Jackman or an Alexander Skarsgård, but his Dr. Connors is a far cry from his lousy Notting Hill character.

The Amazing Spider-Man has the added benefit of awesome 3D-effects, that even left an impression on this near-sighted four-eyes. Certain pieces of debris appear to be landing in the theater and that final crane shot is a marvel (not a pun) to behold.

An unnecessary reboot? Maybe. But this movie rights a few of Raimi's wrongs and adds new content to the eight-legged's everlasting mythos. When all is said and done, this is just one excellent and downright fun multiplex affair. Kudos to Webb and his crew for delivering such a good time at the movies. See it on the biggest screen you can find!



Julian De Backer, 13 July 2012