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Most movie-goers are familiar with the famous web slinger Spider-Man, thanks to the Sam Raimi trilogy which began a decade ago with a cast sporting Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco and Willem Defoe. While some consider Spider-Man 3 to be a letdown, the call for a remake only five years later seemed off-putting. Director Marc Webb of (500) Days of Summer (with an ironic last name to boot) helmed this latest movie, The Amazing Spider-Man. Boasting its comic-books-based screenplay along with a darker overtone, The Amazing Spider-Man is a must-see for the great web-slinging action and humor while not straying too far from what movie-goers are already familiar with about The Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. While I don’t consider it “amazing” as the title suggests, The Amazing Spider-Man brings new life to the franchise and is a fun summer blockbuster overall.

The plot revolves around the intelligent and bullied high school student Peter Parker, an orphan who lives with his Uncle Ben and Aunt May in New York City. Curious about his parents’ past and why they left him behind, he eventually discovers that his parents worked as scientists on a project that involved cross-species genetics to enable regeneration of lost limbs and more at OSCORP. Investigating his parents’ past at the corporation, he sparks the intrigue of his father’s colleague Curt Connors (Rhys Ifans). When Peter decides to snoop around, he is bitten by a genetically-altered spider in the lab and obtains incredible feats of strength and agility. Parker struggles to balance his newfound powers to exact personal revenge or face a greater threat in the city. Trying to catch the eye of smart and beautiful OSCORP intern/classmate, Gwen Stacy is also on his mind in his struggles of adulthood and superhero-dom.

Fresh faces grace the screen in The Amazing Spider-Man, with Andrew Garfield of The Social Network and Emma Stone of Easy A and The Help headlining the movie as nerd-turned-superhero Peter Parker and love-interest Gwen Stacy. The duo have great on-screen chemistry, as Gwen is a refreshing take on the leading lady since she has brains and brawn to boot while Mary-Jane Watson served more as the screaming chorus in the previous trilogy. Garfield embodies the nerdy aspect of Parker so well that his demeanor comes off natural instead of forced. Once he dons the spandex, the cocky behavior of typical Spider-Man is a good touch. To me, Garfield is the better Parker over Maguire’s campy impressions at times. Starring alongside acting veterans such as Denis Leary, Martin Sheen and Sally Field, Garfield’s acting isn’t phased by the star power as he performs well.

While at times I felt the plot was stagnant at times (or in one case, an important subplot is dropped altogether), The Amazing Spider-Man will entertain all fans of the web slinger (and please those who are pro mechanical web-shooters in the debate) with great fight scenes including awesome iconic poses, a neat look into the backstory of Parker and his family’s history with OSCORP, and great acting all around by the newcomers and all-stars. Though, I’m still on the fence if I like this adaptation better than Raimi’s Spider-Man, to be honest. While Garfield’s acting was a definite standout, the rest of the movie seemed to blend in with the rest of them. It wasn’t as a drastic reimagining of a franchise like The Dark Knight was for Batman or anything, but The Amazing Spider-Man is a good movie overall. So take a break from the heat while waiting for the fireworks to start, and go check out this great reboot of the Spider-Man franchise.

Until next time,
Rachel