I had no idea why they were rebooting Spider-Man when I first heard about this. The more cynical commentators out there have noted that if Sony/Columbia didn't make another Spidey film, then the rights would have reverted to Disney/Marvel and given what a cash cow it's been for them, they were probably eager to get something, anything to a multiplex near you. But it still didn't make sense to me- although the 3rd of the Sam Raimi Spider-Man's was an exercise in foolishness (why have him kiss and make up with Harry Osborn? Really?) it wasn't so bad that it had tarnished the brand itself.
Then I saw a preview for this movie and was cautiously intrigued. Andrew Garfield brought a more awkward, gangly look to Peter Parker that seemed to fit the character better. And with a supporting cast of Dennis Leary (Captain Stacy), Martin Sheen and Sally Field (Uncle Ben and Aunt May respectively) as well as Rhys Ifans (Dr. Curt Connors) it seemed like they were doing their best to bring a fresh take on the Spider-Man story- and having seen the movie last night, I can say with no hesitation that they did all that and more.
The story is more or less familiar- but with a twist. Peter Parker's parents vanish and die in mysterious circumstances leaving him to be raised by his Aunt May and Uncle Ben. Dark, brooding, awkward and gangly, Peter Parker is struggling with the slings and arrows of being a teenager as well as the fact he doesn't know what happened to his parents. That mystery underlines Peter's struggle to establish an identity- and remains present for the presumably forthcoming sequel.
Peter's love interest this time should appeal to fans of the comics as they went old school and brought back Gwen Stacy, played with charm and appeal by Emma Stone. Unlike Mary Jane Watson who seemed to be portrayed as an 'out of his league' type of girl that Peter eventually gets, Gwen is more on Peter's level. Smart, science-y, she recognizes Peter's intelligence and presumably his dark brooding looks do the rest for her. Their relationship doesn't seem forced and doesn't drop back into cliché. Even though circumstances force them apart by the end of the movie (go see it- I'm not going to spoil it for you!) there's hints that even that may not keep them apart for long.
Dr. Curt Connors makes an appealing villain this time around, with The Lizard actually proving to be a formidable challenge to Spider-Man. There's an urgent sense about all their battles that makes you wonder if Spider-Man is going to get out alive and unlike a lot of super hero movies that don't show a lot of bumps and bruises for their heros, in this one, Spider-Man takes a beating. Of course, inevitably, good triumphs over evil. (I hope that's not too much of a spoiler!) But it's nice to see a dollop of realism dropped into the proceedings.
Martin Sheen and Sally Field bring a nice amount of heft to the movie as Uncle Ben and Aunt May- and although you do see Uncle Ben's death coming a mile away, it's still an emotional moment. The one quibble I had with this movie comes in Uncle Ben's soliloquy to Peter about responsibility. Every comic nerd knows the important line in that is: 'With great power comes great responsibility.' But this time, they changed it. That felt wrong to me- it's the most important line in the whole Spider-Man ethos. You just can't leave it out...
Overall: An enjoyable, exciting reboot of Spider-Man. I'm still not sure why they needed to reboot it, but after seeing this movie, I'm glad they did. I'd even go out on a limb and say this was the best Spider-Man movie yet.
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