Disclaimer: Contains spoilers!
Plot Summary: Peter Parker is bitten by a genetically modified spider which bestows him with superhuman abilities thus turning him into a masked superhero.
Review: At first I was not sure what to make of this film because I love the character of Spiderman but hated with a passion the second and third of the Raimi trilogy. Thankfully this version delivers a more serious approach while still trying to remain true to the comics and beloved characters; I did like "Spider-man" more than I liked this film though. Although this film did an amazing (yeah, I went there!) job at revitalizing the franchise, there were most certainly hits and misses in the process. The character of Peter Parker, and Spiderman himself, feel more like how I imagined the personality of the comic and especially my vision based on the '90s cartoon. Peter is more of a normal guy despite being a dork, and Spiderman is much more of a comedian than in the Raimi films; I suppose this can be a bad thing if you preferred the emo Peter obsessed with Mary Jane. I appreciated Andrew Garfield's performance, but his look still isn't quite what I imagine Peter to look like. Spiderman's powers felt more accurate as well since now the webbing was back to web-shooters and he wasn't stopping trains! How Peter is bitten and this whole connection to Oscorp with his parents was just "meh" for me. I felt the same way with how he got the costume and not being the wrestler this time since it could have been done better, but I understand the attempt to distance themselves from the first trilogy. As far as going back to Peter's original love interest, Gwen Stacy, I felt that was a much needed change of pace and Emma Stone was a decent choice for that role. Ironically, Ms. Stone with her usual red hair dye is how I imagine the Mary Jane character to look (don't even get me started on how much I loathe Kirtsen Dunst's portrayal). Their little romance felt more casual and less trying to be soul mates or whatever bullshit the Raimi films were trying to convey. On the other hand, the relationship with Uncle Ben and Aunt May felt significantly weaker even though more time was spent building the connections. I can't quite explain it but it was handled more accurately the first time around, and I was annoyed they removed the "with great power comes great responsibility" line. Another weaker aspect was with the villain, the Lizard, compared to the superbly presented Green Goblin. The Lizard just wasn't fleshed out enough or something and is defeated far too easily after a nonsensical plot to turn the city into lizards. At the same time, he didn't bring the kind of threat or screen presence that Willem Dafoe was able to do through the goblin. I know that the Norman Osborn character was lurking in the background but whatever. Overall, the story, action, and pacing felt solid and definitely set the tone well enough for a new franchise. The presentation of Peter, Spiderman, and the general direction showed a lot of promise and improvement. There were some lame moments like with the construction guys helping Spiderman, and some characters and the villain weren't as memorable this time around. For what it is, I tried to rate this film as if the first trilogy didn't exist for comparison, and this allowed me to better appreciate this film for its own merits. I definitely recommend this to fans, but realize you will be treading over covered material for a large chunk of the film. Only with a sequel will we get to fully realize what this new franchise is capable of, but I am very much interested so far.
Notable Moment: When Peter finally stands up to his bully, Flash, and indirectly shows off his powers. This part is both satisfying and corny as hell.
Final Rating: 7/10
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