The Amazing Spider-Man

Never being a fan of the Sam Raimi trilogy, mainly because I couldn't buy Toby McGuire as Peter Parker, I was relieved that he was relieved of his duty. However, I found it hard to believe Marvel, with all its knowledge and infinite success over the last decade would decide to retire a Billion dollar franchise, only to reboot it with a new origin, new story, and new Spider-Man. That being said, Marc Webb's version is not only better than the previous 3 installments, but more enjoyable than several other superhero films that I also enjoy. The set up which takes around 45 minutes is perfect. So awesome to rewrite it the way they did. Not boring at all, and Andrew Garfield is the perfect Peter Parker. It develops with one story which is almost identical to the first Spider-Man, but to keep with the comics is kind of has to be that way. Uncle Ben has to do, which will give Peter his drive for revenge. I knew it had to go that way, but Martin Sheen was such a great Uncle Ben, I was hoping it could have played out differently. I understand why it could not, but this launched the early revenge driven Spidey to fighting crime. As we see Peter evolve and become about as mature as a 17 year old can be, it becomes very neat to watch him defend his city. The first trailer was a first person perspective of Spidey flying through the city, and as awesome as it was, I knew it could easily be overused and become stale. That did not happen and I was stoked to see it the first time, and a very short second time and end it with that. Marc Webb truly directed a perfect film. When a new threat hits New York, Parker already has the inside bead on it. He has a very string suspicion he knows the Giant Lizard is Doctor Curt Connors who he recently met. The destruction the Lizard does is awesome, and the end game of what he wants to accomplish really brings the story home. The CG team did some of the best work I've seen. Anytime CG is involved in fast motion, it tends to look fake. Not the case here. It seemed very flawless. The one thing that got me was seeing the Lizard speak. He never spoke in the trailers, so I just assumed he was completely different than his human counterpart. I really enjoyed that aspect of the film, along with Peter's sarcasm and campy jokes during fight scenes, this truly is well worth owning. I watched it twice in 2 days, and that is saying something. Very impressed, and can't wait for the sequel, also being directed by Webb. Also stay tuned through the credits. A mid credits scene shows may come in the next film, not to mention they are currently casting Mary Jane Watson and Harry Osborne.

NBM rates The Amazing Spider-Man - Phenomenal