New Spidey

PROLOGUE
It's the reboot no one asked for. Cutting the usual crap, I could say that I don't like this film. So, for this 'unique' occasion, I'd like to change the normal layout and do a +/- post and a comparison between Marc Webb's The Amazing Spider-Man starring Andrew Garfield & Emma Stone and Sam Raimi's Spider-Man starring Tobey Maguire & Kirsten Dunst. As a fan of the 2002 film, I could not resist to compare it to the latest Spidey film. You could disagree with me, everyone's entitled to an opinion. It's a free world. I'm not a North Korean. Oh one more thing, spoiler alert!

PART 1: +/-


^ THE POSITIVES

- Andrew Garfield & Emma Stone are amazing actors. They are terrific in their respective roles as Peter Parker & Gwen Stacy. Rhys Ifans as Dr. Curt Connors too.
- Marc Webb just upgraded his status from an indie director to a studio director with flying colors. His direction is top-notch.
- The CGI are smooth and slick. It's well-made.
- There are two scenes that stand-out [spoiler alert, you've been warned before]
       1. Spider-Man told a kid to put on his mask to save himself by saying that the mask gives power.
       2. The crane operators helped the injured Spider-Man (best scene)
- One of the best Stan Lee cameo scene to date.


^THE NEGATIVES
- Bloody same plot points, especially Uncle Ben's (Martin Sheen) death.
- Not-so-satisfying origin story, bit boring to be honest.
- 'The untold story'. You could walk out of the cinemas after the first 5 minutes, cos that was the untold story.
- Worst superhero villain brought to silver screen to date. Well, the film tries to be earth-bound and realistic, and then they featured The Lizard, which kinda destroyed the initial goodwill.
- I cannot relate to the nerdy, hipster, sneaky, a-bit-horny, a-bit-bullish Peter Parker.
- The film is not supposed to exist.

PART 2: Spidey vs Amazing Spidey
[Foreword] Despite its few flaws, Sam Raimi's Spider-Man has become an iconic super-hero film, according to me at least. It is an insult, really, to release a reboot to the film I loved. Fuck it if I'm already 60 years old and you want to reboot the whole Marvel universe but not now. So here comes the inevitable comparison between Tobey's Spidey and Andrew's Spidey.

1. Peter Parkers
Tobey's Peter Parker is practically a loser, call that PP1. Whereas PP2 isn't that much of a loser. PP1: A loser who became a hero, I'm sold. So, I'd choose the more relatable PP1 rather than PP2.
Verdict: 2002 Spidey wins

2. Origin & Powers
The scene where Peter discovers his Spider power is more interesting in Sam Raimi's. He woke up and he got all Mr. Universe, he didn't need glasses, he accidentally humiliate Flash Thompson with em and he got all happy when he found out that he could leap from building to building. In the latest film, Peter couldn't control his power until the very end, which by LOGIC would make the whole school suspicious about him. He also wrecked a subway train, beat up innocent guys and harassed a woman. Whereas the bitten-by-spider scene was equally good, although, yeah, I prefer the 2002 version. The Spidey suit was an upgrade but the web-shooter thingy was useless.
Verdict: 2002 Spidey wins.

3. Villain
Willem Dafoe vs Rhys Ifans. Dafoe wins by unanimous vote. That was Green Goblin, one of Spidey's baddest villain. Dafoe was menacing as Norman Osborn. Ifans was also threatening but Curt Connors would never be as menacing as Osborn. Also, I never liked The Lizard's figure, which appears to be smiling all the time.
Verdict: 2002 Spidey wins

4. People Around Parker
More interesting people = more interesting subplots. More stories are being told in Sam Raimi's version. The film was richer than the latest one. Look at all the characters in the 2002 version: Mary Jane, Harry Osborn, JJ Jonah Jameson. The characters were made expertly, especially Jameson as the head of the Daily Bugle. But in the latest version, we got a deficit of interesting characters. Note: Captain Stacy was not that interesting. Denis Leary told that Stacy would be the Jameson of the new movie. Meh.
Verdict: 2002 Spidey wins

5. Uncle Ben's Death
This scene is very vital. So vital that Sam Raimi actually raped this scene until it has become illogical in Spider-Man 3. Let's rewind to the 2002 version: The guy who actually gotta pay Peter is a jerk, he got robbed, Peter didn't stop the criminal, Uncle Ben got shot. The 2012 version: Peter is a jerk who wants to buy milk, the guy who sells milk got robbed, Peter didn't stop the criminal, Uncle Ben got shot. Look at the difference. New Uncle Ben didn't say something iconic either before his death which makes his death less impactful. Very important note: Rosemary Harris & Cliff Robertson were cast made in a place higher than heaven. You can't just replace them with anyone else. That goes with the role of Peter Parker too.
Verdict: 2002 Spidey wins

YEAH, I'm fabulous, says 2002 Spidey

FINAL VERDICT:
2002 Spider-Man rules. I haven't even mentioned the iconic Spider-Man kiss and also the intense scene in Peter's apartment with Norman Osborn.

EPILOGUE

This is the final word on The Amazing Spider-Man: It was a skillfully-made superhero film that features great, talented cast. Andrew Garfield was a bit too cool to be Peter Parker and Emma Stone is amazing as always The film has its great moments. Marc Webb's future is undeniably bright in Hollywood after making two nice films. What hurt this film the most is that it is a reboot of a very young franchise. This could be more enjoyable if Sam Raimi's trilogy didn't exist at all. I'm sorry, this film is not for those who loved 2002's Spider-Man. The Amazing Spider-Man: rated 2.5/4 stars

*as from this post, I changed the scoring system to 'stars' with the highest being four stars. Recently reviewed-films are already changed to the star-system :)