There is a wonderful moment in “The Amazing Spider-Man: that perfectly encapsulates what the film should have been/ was meant to be.

I remember watching this scene in theatres and having a sense of giddiness, that the first franchise wasn’t able to bring. There is emotional weight here because you feel happy for Peter nervously asking out Gwen Stacy and you believe that they really like each other. Like their predecessors Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst, the chemistry between the two leads Emma Stone and Andrew Garfield spawned an off-screen relationship, but here either perhaps due to the lack of hype or a more interesting female character, and (dare I say) better looking actors, Director Marc Webb is able to capture the two leads on-screen chemistry in a refreshingly low-key and more honest way than previous director Sam Raimi was able to.

In choosing Marc Webb to direct this movie Amy Pascal, co-chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment, and Matt Tolmach, president of Columbia Pictures, said, “At its core, Spider-Man is a small, intimate human story about an everyday teenager that takes place in an epic super-human world. The key for us as we sought a new director was to identify filmmakers who could give sharp focus to Peter Parker’s life. We wanted someone who could capture the awe of being in Peter’s shoes so the audience could experience his sense of discovery while giving real heart to the emotion, anxiety, and recklessness of that age and coupling all of that with the adrenaline of Spider-Man’s adventure. We believe Marc Webb is the perfect choice to bring us on that journey.”

Building on the momentum and energy of the previous scene transitioned via my favourite and underplayed Coldplay song; Peter is messing around on his skateboard, and stumbles into taking his first swings as Spider-Man. The meaning of the character, which serves as a framework for adolescence begins to shine through, the director and actors deliver what they were brought on to do, and the movie becomes more than just an exercise in maintaining rights to Sony’s only mega franchise. This, if only for a moment.

Additional Credits:

New International Trailer for “The Amazing Spider-Man 2”: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXhv7CoLAOo

Sony Studio All-Time Grosses: http://boxofficemojo.com/studio/chart/?view2=allmovies&view=company&studio=sony.htm

Collective thoughts on this film hilariously summed up by Screen Junkies: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2KSPiTOMR8

Link to the press release of the director being signed on:
http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=62499