After Peter Parker is bitten by a genetically altered spider, he gains newfound, spider-like powers and ventures out to solve the mystery of his parent's mysterious death.
When bitten by a genetically modified spider, a nerdy, shy, and awkward high school student gains spider-like abilities that he eventually must use to fight evil as a superhero after tragedy befalls his family.
The powerful but arrogant god Thor is cast out of Asgard to live amongst humans in Midgard (Earth), where he soon becomes one of their finest defenders.
Director:
Kenneth Branagh
Stars:
Chris Hemsworth,
Anthony Hopkins,
Natalie Portman
After being held captive in an Afghan cave, an industrialist creates a unique weaponized suit of armor to fight against evil. This leads him to conflict within his own company.
Director:
Jon Favreau
Stars:
Robert Downey Jr.,
Gwyneth Paltrow,
Terrence Howard
With the world now aware of his identity as Iron Man, Tony Stark must contend with both his declining health and a vengeful mad man with ties to his father's legacy.
Director:
Jon Favreau
Stars:
Robert Downey Jr.,
Mickey Rourke,
Gwyneth Paltrow
Steve Rogers, a rejected military soldier transforms into Captain America after taking a dose of a "Super-Soldier serum". But being Captain America comes at a price if he attempts to take down a war monger and a terrorist organization.
Director:
Joe Johnston
Stars:
Chris Evans,
Hugo Weaving,
Samuel L. Jackson
When Thor's love interest gets cursed with a powerful object, Thor must protect it before an army and its ruthless leader try to get their hands on it to take over the remains of Earth.
Director:
Alan Taylor
Stars:
Chris Hemsworth,
Natalie Portman,
Tom Hiddleston
In 1962, the United States government enlists the help of Mutants with superhuman abilities to stop a malicious dictator who is determined to start world war III.
Director:
Matthew Vaughn
Stars:
James McAvoy,
Michael Fassbender,
Jennifer Lawrence
Bruce Banner, a scientist on the run from the U.S. Government must find a cure for the monster he emerges whenever he loses his temper. However, Banner then must fight a soldier whom unleashes himself as a threat stronger than he.
Like most teenagers, Peter is trying to figure out who he is and how he got to be the person he is today. Peter is also finding his way with his first high school crush, Gwen Stacy, and together, they struggle with love, commitment, and secrets. As Peter discovers a mysterious briefcase that belonged to his father, he begins a quest to understand his parents' disappearance - leading him directly to Oscorp and the lab of Dr Curt Connors, his father's former partner. As Spider-Man is set on a collision course with Connors' alter-ego, The Lizard, Peter will make life-altering choices to use his powers and shape his destiny to become a hero. Written by
Nicky Mitchell
According to costume designer Kym Barrett, the Spider-Man costume was specially designed to resemble an acrobat costume: "We wanted a design that would make the body longer and more lithe, someone incredibly agile; the legs of the spider-symbol on the chest were used to emphasize that." See more »
Goofs
When Peter is taking a picture of Gwen, there is a point of view shot of Peter's rangefinder camera that shows the viewfinder markings not consistent with rangefinder cameras. It shows instead an SLR camera's viewfinder markings, something people are more familiar with. See more »
Quotes
[first lines]
Peter Parker:
Five, four, three, two, one... Ready or not, here I come.
See more »
Crazy Credits
SPOILER: Not long into the credits, a scene appears of Dr. Conners in his asylum cell, talking to a mysterious man. See more »
After Spider-Man 3 became something of a critical and commercial letdown and plans for a sequel fell through, the folks at Marvel Entertainment and Columbia Pictures developed a case of itchy reboot button syndrome and immediately put The Amazing Spider-Man into production to swing in and save the franchise. Many fans rolled their collective eyes and the web was abuzz with fiery opinions. Early looks and promotional materials seemed generally underwhelming, and the film quickly became buried by bigger releases such as The Avengers, The Dark Knight Rises and Prometheus. However, this spider has become something of a dark horse and has somehow risen to greet detractors with a shot of webbing to the face.
In spite of the poor first impressions, one would be hard-pressed not to admit that The Amazing Spider-Man is actually a competently-made, enjoyable flick. The approach that the aptly-named director Marc Webb of (500) Days of Summer fame took brings to mind last year's surprise hit Marvel flick X-Men: First Class, in that in combines the youthful appeal of teen drama with relatively large-scale super heroics and action sequences. This film does not repeat the mistakes of Spider-Man 3 instead, we have character development and interaction and clear and easy-to-follow plot progression.
Spider-Man has always been a hero all readers could relate to, with his transition from outcast to hero and his various personal, real-world struggles. Andrew Garfield, sexy nerd incarnate, is an ace casting choice. The actor has said that playing Spider-Man has been his dream since he was a young boy and the role went to the right guy. Garfield has an effortless, genuine charm and his slightly lanky proportions do seem very reminiscent of the Peter Parker of the comics, particularly the Ultimate version. For all the strengths of Tobey Maguire's interpretation of the character, Garfield's somehow rings more true. Whether he's being a smart-mouthed do-gooder, a teen sorting out his issues with his well-meaning aunt and uncle or a young lover unsure of how to go about a relationship with his dream gal, Garfield is in great form.
Speaking of his dream gal, Emma Stone does a similarly good job of playing Gwen Stacy. Many were confused after Stone was cast and then announced as playing a different character from Kirsten Dunst's. Gwen did pop in Spider-Man 3 played by Bryce Dallas-Howard, and is touted as Parker's first love. In an interview, Stone states that "Mary Jane fell in love with Spider-Man, but Gwen Stacy fell in love with Peter Parker". Gwen is smart, kind and funny, surely what every guy looks for in a girl, and her role in the story is just the right size. Sure enough, the chemistry between Stone and Garfield is among the strongest of on screen couples in recent memory and it's no surprise that the couple continued their romance off the set.
One has to feel bad for Dylan Baker who portrayed Dr Curt Connors in Spider-Man 2 and 3 but never got the chance to transform into the Lizard after the cancellation of a fourth entry in Raimi's series. Rhys Ifans fills those shoes, and he marshals a tragic figure who hopes to better society and to fix his own perceived physical flaw. This definitely will push the excellent actor further into public consciousness, and he does a decent job. However, Connors' split-second snap from rational scientist to raving mad supervillain does seem a tad rushed and the design of the Lizard, as has been stated before, is pretty goofy. Also, the relationship between Connors and Parker, while given some attention here, could have benefited from a little mo re.
The rest of the supporting cast is good too. Martin Sheen is easy to buy as the earnest, down-to-earth uncle and father figure who serves as an upstanding role model to his nephew, and so is Sally Field as his concerned, protective wife May. Casting these veteran film industry stalwarts was certainly a good move, especially since this retelling doesn't particularly focus on the two but does convey their involvement in Peter's life. Denis Leary is also well-cast as the Inspector Javert-type Captain Stacy, who could have been an over-the-top, "squash Spider-Man dead!" figure. Instead, Leary makes him a stern but well-meaning authority figure and gives him a good dynamic with his daughter and Peter. His resemblance to Willem Dafoe, aka Green Goblin from the first Spider-Man film, is a little distracting though.
In terms of aesthetics, the movie looks sleek and dramatic director Webb uses his ample experience shooting music videos in the right way. While it could have been something like the horrid Catwoman movie, there is instead clever use of lighting and composition and the action sequences are kinetic yet coherently-shot. This reviewer isn't a giant fan of the costume, produced by the people at Cirque du Soleil (really) and the afore-mentioned facial features of the Lizard. The large amounts of digital effects supplied mostly by Sony Pictures Imageworks (also responsible for last year's Green Lantern film) are also a cut or so below expectations for a big-budget superhero movie, but these don't significantly hurt the end result.
The film brings up the issue of Peter's parents but never fully addresses it, with a slightly ham-fisted mid-credits sequel hook hinting at what is to come. The Amazing Spider-Man has been marketed as "the untold story", which is rather bold given that it's only been ten years since Sam Raimi's Spider-Man and five years since Spider-Man 3. Still, it defies expectations and is thoroughly entertaining. Untold story? Not quite, but well-told story? Definitely.
315 of 593 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful to you?
After Spider-Man 3 became something of a critical and commercial letdown and plans for a sequel fell through, the folks at Marvel Entertainment and Columbia Pictures developed a case of itchy reboot button syndrome and immediately put The Amazing Spider-Man into production to swing in and save the franchise. Many fans rolled their collective eyes and the web was abuzz with fiery opinions. Early looks and promotional materials seemed generally underwhelming, and the film quickly became buried by bigger releases such as The Avengers, The Dark Knight Rises and Prometheus. However, this spider has become something of a dark horse and has somehow risen to greet detractors with a shot of webbing to the face.
In spite of the poor first impressions, one would be hard-pressed not to admit that The Amazing Spider-Man is actually a competently-made, enjoyable flick. The approach that the aptly-named director Marc Webb of (500) Days of Summer fame took brings to mind last year's surprise hit Marvel flick X-Men: First Class, in that in combines the youthful appeal of teen drama with relatively large-scale super heroics and action sequences. This film does not repeat the mistakes of Spider-Man 3 instead, we have character development and interaction and clear and easy-to-follow plot progression.
Spider-Man has always been a hero all readers could relate to, with his transition from outcast to hero and his various personal, real-world struggles. Andrew Garfield, sexy nerd incarnate, is an ace casting choice. The actor has said that playing Spider-Man has been his dream since he was a young boy and the role went to the right guy. Garfield has an effortless, genuine charm and his slightly lanky proportions do seem very reminiscent of the Peter Parker of the comics, particularly the Ultimate version. For all the strengths of Tobey Maguire's interpretation of the character, Garfield's somehow rings more true. Whether he's being a smart-mouthed do-gooder, a teen sorting out his issues with his well-meaning aunt and uncle or a young lover unsure of how to go about a relationship with his dream gal, Garfield is in great form.
Speaking of his dream gal, Emma Stone does a similarly good job of playing Gwen Stacy. Many were confused after Stone was cast and then announced as playing a different character from Kirsten Dunst's. Gwen did pop in Spider-Man 3 played by Bryce Dallas-Howard, and is touted as Parker's first love. In an interview, Stone states that "Mary Jane fell in love with Spider-Man, but Gwen Stacy fell in love with Peter Parker". Gwen is smart, kind and funny, surely what every guy looks for in a girl, and her role in the story is just the right size. Sure enough, the chemistry between Stone and Garfield is among the strongest of on screen couples in recent memory and it's no surprise that the couple continued their romance off the set.
One has to feel bad for Dylan Baker who portrayed Dr Curt Connors in Spider-Man 2 and 3 but never got the chance to transform into the Lizard after the cancellation of a fourth entry in Raimi's series. Rhys Ifans fills those shoes, and he marshals a tragic figure who hopes to better society and to fix his own perceived physical flaw. This definitely will push the excellent actor further into public consciousness, and he does a decent job. However, Connors' split-second snap from rational scientist to raving mad supervillain does seem a tad rushed and the design of the Lizard, as has been stated before, is pretty goofy. Also, the relationship between Connors and Parker, while given some attention here, could have benefited from a little mo re.
The rest of the supporting cast is good too. Martin Sheen is easy to buy as the earnest, down-to-earth uncle and father figure who serves as an upstanding role model to his nephew, and so is Sally Field as his concerned, protective wife May. Casting these veteran film industry stalwarts was certainly a good move, especially since this retelling doesn't particularly focus on the two but does convey their involvement in Peter's life. Denis Leary is also well-cast as the Inspector Javert-type Captain Stacy, who could have been an over-the-top, "squash Spider-Man dead!" figure. Instead, Leary makes him a stern but well-meaning authority figure and gives him a good dynamic with his daughter and Peter. His resemblance to Willem Dafoe, aka Green Goblin from the first Spider-Man film, is a little distracting though.
In terms of aesthetics, the movie looks sleek and dramatic director Webb uses his ample experience shooting music videos in the right way. While it could have been something like the horrid Catwoman movie, there is instead clever use of lighting and composition and the action sequences are kinetic yet coherently-shot. This reviewer isn't a giant fan of the costume, produced by the people at Cirque du Soleil (really) and the afore-mentioned facial features of the Lizard. The large amounts of digital effects supplied mostly by Sony Pictures Imageworks (also responsible for last year's Green Lantern film) are also a cut or so below expectations for a big-budget superhero movie, but these don't significantly hurt the end result.
The film brings up the issue of Peter's parents but never fully addresses it, with a slightly ham-fisted mid-credits sequel hook hinting at what is to come. The Amazing Spider-Man has been marketed as "the untold story", which is rather bold given that it's only been ten years since Sam Raimi's Spider-Man and five years since Spider-Man 3. Still, it defies expectations and is thoroughly entertaining. Untold story? Not quite, but well-told story? Definitely.