Comments | lil_shepherd: Reboots Are Us

lil_shepherd

Reboots Are Us

Dec 29, 2012 19:50

Watching The Amazing Spider-man.

God, it's so slow - and I can't believe Garfield as the bullied and unpopular kid. Not the way he looks. On the other hand, the lady who plays Gwen has made her interesting for the first time in comic book history ( Read more... )

comic book, movie, film

Comments 12

fatpie42 December 29 2012, 23:17:56 UTC

Confused. Peter becomes a vigilante BECAUSE of Uncle Ben. He's upset about Uncle Ben for the entire movie. He's even listening to that voicemail message (on his mobile phone you'll notice) after everything else has happened.

Whereas his main upset about Gwen's dad is that he promised her dad that he'd stop seeing Gwen. It's not really on the same scale at all.

I quite like how this Peter Parker feels more like a real person rather than a whiny geek stereotype. This and Chronicle are the only superhero movies to be released this year to contain something akin to real people.

But that's just my two cents.

lil_shepherd December 30 2012, 05:40:03 UTC

If Peter is supposed to be upset about Ben (and what about May? Where is her grief?) then it is a big acting failure.

In fact, I agree with the critic who said this was meant to appeal to the Twilight crowd. It might possibly be effective as a teen romance - it is not effective as either an adventure or a superhero movie. Selling it as either of the latter is false pretenses.

Whatever it was, it sure wasn't Spider-man.

fatpie42 December 30 2012, 13:30:55 UTC

I don't even remotely understand why you think Peter wasn't grieving. It's probably more likely the directing choice than Andrew Garfield's acting.

I'll admit that the romance was one of the better elements of this movie, but Raimi's films had always been trying to be romance films too. They were just no damn good at it.

I think the main reason why this isn't really Spider-Man yet is because it's taking its time over his origins. He's making all those mistakes that he felt so guilty about in the comics. When he's wrestling over his morality in the comics, it's always because of his past. This character will actually have the dark past which makes emotionally wrestling over every issue rather more sensible (and as we both know, he hasn't made all his early mistakes yet - though actually I'd rather they DIDN'T kill off Gwen - she was great).

lil_shepherd December 30 2012, 15:49:43 UTC

It didn't engage. It was incredibly slow. And that allowed me to see all the errors of plot and characterisation while it was actually running. That is a big problem. Normally, if you don't see the plot holes until later, you can forgive the writer.

Peter here is acting out of revenge, not out of guilt. It destroys what was one of the best aspects of the character from the very first appearance back in Amazing Fantasy #15 - his agonised choice to use his powers against criminals instead to make money. Here, that choice isn't made. And he doesn't even get revenge.

Thread 10

theficklepickle December 30 2012, 06:41:09 UTC

Confirms my decisions not to watch it - thanks!

lil_shepherd December 30 2012, 07:09:46 UTC

Oh, I can often have an unpopular opinion, and a lot of film critics liked this one, for the same reasons, I think, as fatpie42, but, for what it is worth, Ina agrees with me.

And I object very strongly to being told there would be sassy-banter with the villains, and there isn't any.

I haven't seen The Dark Knight Rises yet, mainly because Ina did and actually walked out before the end, for reasons that make good sense when she explains them. (And coincide with my own opinion that Nolan, great director though he is, is not capable of killing his babies. There is always at least one scene that goes on far too long..)

So I will have to get the DVD and watch it when she's out.