The Amazing Spiderman

I really don't get some people. I had the misfortune to catch a Friday afternoon screening of The Amazing Spiderman with a fellow audience that, for the most part, seemed to have been on day release from the Crimes Against Cinema centre. I can deal with people walking in to the auditorium whilst the adverts are running and can just about bear the rustle of popcorn during loud action sequences. But what I can not understand is the total disregard that some people have for their fellow cinema-goers. About thirty minutes in to The Amazing Spiderman (and an hour after the advertised start time), a group of roughly twenty late, inconsiderate and light-polluting imbeciles wandered in and took about five minutes finding their seats. I wouldn't expect such thoughtless behaviour from the lowest forms of pond-life but, there we go. Did this take the edge off my enjoyment of the film? Slightly. Did I give a few people the evils on the way out? Definitely.

Ten years ago, Sam Raimi gave the world his take on the comic book hero otherwise known as 'Spidey'. It may seem a bit too soon to have re-booted the Spiderman franchise but 500 Days Of Summer director, Marc Webb, has done just that. The Amazing Spiderman follows a similar formula to the 2002 film and begins with the origin of Peter Parker's extraordinary talents after he is bitten by a genetically-altered spider. The British actor Andrew Garfield takes the title role and certainly makes the character his own as the web-slinging crusader falls for classmate Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone) and has to defend the public against The Lizard, who is intent on wreaking havoc by using a biological weapon on the people of New York. We've seen it all before, but Webb has certainly done something new with the material.

If we consider the performances first, Garfield makes for a convincing hero and an even more credible teenager. The on-screen chemistry between him and Stone (who was, as ever, enchanting) certainly strengthened the characterisation and padded out the less-than-solid plot. This plot was strung-out over two and a quarter hours and the first half hour did feel rather sluggish. Its saving grace was the appearance of the phenomenal Martin Sheen as Uncle Ben. I'd quite happily watch that man watching another man watching paint dry. Once the film picked its pace up a bit, I have to say that the action sequences were very well-conceived and excitingly put-together. The point of view shots of Spidey swinging through down-town Manhattan felt fresh and inventive and the fact that many of the stunts were filmed in real life added to the excitement and realism.

This realism (albeit an unrealistic realism) is an example of the marked differences between Webb's and Raimi's versions of Spiderman. The imperfections on Spidey's suit, Parker's initial arrogance and the mistakes made by Parker whilst perfecting his web-slinging made the superhero all the more believable and, in some cases, made for quite a few laughs. It was refreshing to see a superhero grounded by the human behind the mask: Peter is, after all, a school student. The 3D was okay but – as ever – muddied the image and took away from the vibrancy which could have shone through much more strongly in the cinematography and production design. Rhys Ifans goes through the motions as The Lizard but I felt that his bad guy character was a missed opportunity and fairly inert, leading to a general feeling of lethargy throughout the film.

The Amazing Spiderman is fine: it's nothing special but is a satisfying superhero flick. Garfield and Stone carry the film and their romance clearly sets-up the possibility for a sequel. Nolan-esque this isn't, but I think it's all the better for it. If only Spidey could teach my fellow audience members a thing or two... 

Clapperboard Rating: * * *