But alas, all great things must come to an end. Marvel was acquired by Disney, which did not sit too well with Sony Pictures (the producer of the first Spidey trilogy). The negotiation with the original director, Sam Raimi, failed, and they had to bring in a new guy (Marc Webb). Not to forget the current trends to reboot famous trilogies (read: Batman, whose trilogy finishes with The Dark Knight Rises this month, and Superman soon). All of those have led to this 2012 version of Spider-Man, which as I am writing this, inevitably sets off various box-office records globally.
Despite being the biggest opponent to this "Spidey reboot" idea, deep down I am also a fan. I will watch ANY Spidey movie, even if it stars Mr. Bean and is directed by Ang Lee (which failed miserably when he directed the Eric Bana version of Hulk). Casting all hate aside, I sat on a theater for 2-hours-plus last weekend to try to find a reason, any reason, to love this new Spidey trilogy and make me forget about the Tobey Maguire version I have grown to love.
In short, here are my ten cents about the movie:
(Spoiler Alert! If you have not watched this movie and want to have a pristine experience when doing so, do not read further!)
1. This movie was produced by Sony Pictures, so it was no surprise that all the gadgets "advertised" in the movie are Sony's. The new Xperia phone Peter was using. The Vaio laptop that Dr. Connors had in his office. I am an Apple fanboy, so seeing these Sony gadgets in my favorite superhero movie was somewhat disturbing. In a parallel universe, I hope Apple acquires Sony or Marvel, so I can see Spidey makes calls using an iPhone and Dr. Connors tapping away on his Macbook Air. A boy can dream, right?
2. During various web-swinging and fight scenes in the movie, the camera angle resembled a first-person-shooter game, so it felt like the audience was actually Spidey, swinging from building to building or punching the bad guys. Loved this new camera innovation. I bet these scenes will look better in the 3D or IMAX version of the movie, so if you have the time and extra dough to watch this in 3D or IMAX, I would recommend you to do so.
3. Garfield (no, not the cat) vs. Maguire. I first saw Andrew Garfield in The Social Network (which I loved and have watched numerous times), so naturally my brain kept imagining him as Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, but with a Spidey suit. His skinny and gawky posture fared better as Peter Parker than Tobey's, who is shorter and less geeky. This however did no justice to the fact that Tobey is a much better actor. The witty dialogues that are trademarks of Spidey sounded more lively coming out from Tobey's mouth than they did from Andrew's. It was also difficult to gauge Andrew's emotions during the movie, as his facial expression remained flat through happiness, sadness, anger, or love. Taking the best from both actors, I would lump together Andrew's posture and Tobey's voice & acting to come up with the perfect Peter Parker.
4. Tobey's Spider-Man shot webbing right out of a small incision on both his wrists resulting from spider bites, while Andrew's shot it from his modified wristwatches, complete with auto-refill cartridges in case it runs out. Guess which one I love better. Superheroes are humans with super powers, not super gadgets. A fatwa I always believe in. Near the end of the movie, the Lizard destroyed both of Andrew's watches during battle, and the we were left with a Spider-Man who could no longer shoot webbing and had to rely on punches and kicks. Where was the fun in that? Tobey's win this one big.
5. Whoever design the Lizard needs to read Spidey comics. The dude was supposed to have a pout! The movie version looked like the Incredible Hulk with tail. Seriously. Maybe it was difficult to design a Lizard costume with pout. But I guessed that was what CGI is for. Welsh actor Rhys Ifans was a terrible choice for Dr. Connors. He looked to young to be a friend of Peter's father, and too goofy to be a professor. I first saw him in Notting Hill, playing Hugh Grant's idiotic roommate. This was another image that I could not get off of my brain as I watched him play Dr. Connors. I kept waiting for him to pull off a t-shirt saying "You look beautiful" in front and "Fancy a shag?" in back.
6. Peter Parker was an orphan nerd, living with his uncle and aunt, both of whom are working-class New Yorkers, earning just enough to pass by. Peter worked part-time in the Daily Bugle, taking pictures of Spider-Man. Yet with all this limits, Andrew's version have no trouble sporting a shiny Sony Xperia phone, which last time I checked was pretty expensive. Who was his Sugar Momma?
7. Peter's Spidey managed to keep his identity secret from Mary Jane until the very end of the second movie, when he had to take off his mask to fight Doctor Octopus. He kept saying no to MJ's advances, in fear of casting her and whoever close to Spider-Man in grave danger. Excellent job, Tobey. Andrew's Spidey meanwhile just couldn't keep his mouth shut (and his tongue secured). About midway through the movie, while lounging in Gwen Stacy's balcony overlooking NYC, he revealed his identity to her and then they smooched lustfully. Guess he will learn to be more discreet and proper when he meets MJ in movie number two.
8. Bryce Dallas Howard (Ron Howard's busty daughter) played Gwen Stacy in Spider-Man 3, and watching Emma Stone in The Amazing Spider-Man made me want to go back in time. Who did the casting for this movie? Bryce was definitely hotter, looked smarter, and could act better than Emma. I hope they do better when they cast for MJ in the next movie.
9. After watching the final battle, you have to wonder. Who stopped the Lizard: Spidey or Gwen Stacy? Near the end of the battle, Spidey was virtually weaponless (his webbing-watches were smashed by the Lizard), crippled (his right leg was shot by the NYPD moments earlier, which made him unable to run, jump, nor swing properly), and hopeless. But the scientist in Gwen somehow came up with an anti-Lizard serum that she dispersed to the air around the building, effectively terminating the Lizard's power. Nice going, Spidey. Maybe in the next movie, MJ will play the superhero and kill the Goblin with a broomstick.
10. Marvel was known to insert hints (or Easter Eggs, as we nerds call them) about sequels in their movies' ending credit. That's why I was among the enlightened few who remained in my seat even after they turned on the theater lights. For this Spidey flick, the Easter Egg was showing Dr. Connors in his prison cell, right arm gone (again), talking to a neatly-suited man in shadows. The mysterious man applauded Curt for his efforts and asked him if Peter knew the truth about his father, Richard Parker, to which Curt replied in the negative. Various theories have surfaced in web forums about who the man was, from Norman Osborn (owner of Oscorp, the company which Dr. Connors worked for, and the Goblin), Mysterio, Otto Octavius (fellow scientist and Doctor Octopus), or even Richard Parker himself. No matter who, we should know more about him in the next movie.
All in all, a great Spidey reboot movie with new cast members, villains, and movie-making technology, but didn't give me the same great feeling I got after watching the first Spidey movie in 2002. Since this franchise has been tagged as a trilogy, I believe it was too early to judge based on one movie only. I'm going to have to watch the full trio to make my verdict, and believe me when I vow that I will be the first in line to watch. Go get 'em, tiger! (AI)
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