Spider-Man Starts

As someone once pointed out — probably over at IO9 — the main problem with comic book adaptations is that they usually end up being origin stories. Despite having decades of plot lines and a pantheon of supporting characters to draw upon, the movie studios seem compeled by the need to introduce the superhero to their audience. These tales are seldom the most interesting there are to tell.

So here we are again, ten short years after Toby Maguire first donned the red and blue spandex, introducing a new generation to a new Spider-Man. I guess it gives Andrew Garfield something to do until the inevitable Andy Murray biopic (which has been posponed for another year due to the dour Scot's inability yet again to provide the requisite happy ending). This new Spider-Man is less emo than Maguire's — which isn't hard: there are suicides in eyeliner factories which are less emo than Maguire's Spider-Man — and more of a sk8r boi.

And, well, that's about it. Martin Sheen at least made the character of Uncle Ben memorable, Denis Leary is alright as Commissioner Gordon, and Rhys Ifans, you feel, is always tottering on the edge of suddenly being hilarious and Welsh, but never is. To my eternal embarrassment, my lack of comic book knowledge meant I spent most of the film thinking that the main bad guy was Killer Croc. (But given he was actually "The Lizard", an 'it's Friday afternoon so let's just think of something anything doesn't matter what and then go down the pub' kind of character name if ever I heard one, you can perhaps excuse me that.)

The mechanical web shooters were a nice touch — although probably one motivated by a desire to connect to the kids in the audience who haven't woken up one morning and suddenly found themselves able to shoot spider silk from their wrists — but it was never made clear whether it was the spider bite which kicked off Peter Parker's other super powers or whether they just coincidentally manifested themselves at that convenient point in the plot. Still, I guess if we want answers to this, and to the mysterious disappearance of Peter's parents, we'll just have to wait for the sequels.