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Spidey Sensitivity

Movie: The Amazing Spider-Man
Contributor: Hunter
Rating: 8/10
I remember way back when Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man came out in 2002 and I thought, "Whoa this is so cool!" I was pretty naive at the spry age of 11, so much so that I easily overlooked plot pitfalls and the inability of Kirsten Dunst to play the part of a true damsel in distress. As I got older and the sequels were released, I slowly began to realize what I fool I had been.

When this one came out, I had the feeling of "here we go again"-ness, but I remained hopeful considering how far along technology and special effects have gotten over the past decade, and I was thankfully not let down. Many felt that Andrew Garfield's rendition of Spider-Man was too sissy-like for an effective hero, but in fact, I like it a lot better than Maguire. Garfield comes across a lot more vulnerable with a lot more to lose, which makes the drama a lot more entertaining for me at least. I don't really have to say too much about Emma Stone. I mean, it's Emma Stone. What more do you want? Rhys Ifans also makes for a very good Marvel villain.

It's hard to get a superhero movie to that level of "wow what an amazing movie!" I think we are able, as viewers, to suspend reality momentarily in order to fully appreciate and value the heroes, but when we walk away, we become a bit disappointed, even saddened, that we have to come back to the real world. Dang, that was an introspective moment!

Anyways, for a superhero movie, it's a solid 9, but for a movie movie, I'm going to stick with an 8. If you are trying to erase the prior trilogy from your memory, this is a great way to do it.

PS - Is it just me, or do PG-13 movies today feel like they would have been R movies 10-15 years ago? I feel like profanity and boobies in movies are not as shameful as they once were.

Written April 20, 2013
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