The Amazing Spider-Man

The Amazing Spider-Man

Andrew Garfield slips into the Spidey suit in Mark Webb's new iteration of the classic superhero. In this version, Peter Parker is back in high school when he's bitten by the spider that infects him with superpowers. He needs them to combat Dr. Connors (Rhys Ifans), a onetime ally of his father's who's taken to transforming into a giant evil lizard at night. Garfield and Emma Stone (as love interest Gwen Stacy) bring new life to the franchise, though the plot may be a bit too similar to the Sam Raimi film for some viewers. The DVD comes with deleted scenes, commentary, production art, and stunt rehearsals.

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Your Sister's Sister

Mark Duplass stars as Jack, a man still in the throes of depression a year after his brother's sudden death. Seeking solitude, he travels to his best friend Iris's (Emily Blunt) family cabin, only to find her sister Hannah (Rosemarie DeWitt) attempting to cope with a loss of her own. When Iris comes up to visit, the three have to deal with the dynamics of an uncomfortable love triangle. Director Lynn Shelton delivers a film filled with honesty, humor, and compelling performances. The DVD features the theatrical trailer and commentaries.

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Despite last week's tragic movie theater shooting, The Dark Knight Rises earned $160.8 million in its opening weekend, falling slightly shy of its $190 million expectations. Ice Age: Continental Drift followed in second place, with $20.4 million, while The Amazing Spider-Man took third with $10.8 million in its third week. Ted and Brave snagged fourth and fifth places, earning $10 million and $6 million, respectively.

Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

Families headed to theaters over the weekend, helping Ice Age: Continental Drift open to $46 million. The animated flick claimed the top spot over franchise reboot The Amazing Spider-Man, which came in second with $35 million. Mark Wahlberg's comedy Ted took third place, with $22.1 million, followed by Brave and Magic Mike, which earned $10.7 million and $9 million, respectively.

Photo courtesy of 20th Century Fox Films

After years of speculation about whether or not it was too soon to reboot the Spider-Man franchise, we finally have our answer. The Amazing Spider-Man has proved to be a critical favorite (relatively speaking) and a box office hit. That said, there's a fair amount of critics that prefer Sam Raimi's Spidey trilogy, and while the new installment has made plenty of money, it's still not quite as big a blockbuster as any of the Tobey Maguire films.

Though I'm a big fan of the earlier Spider-Man movies, I was impressed with The Amazing Spider-Man. I really liked what Andrew Garfield did with Peter Parker, and I'm looking forward to seeing the next two movies in the trilogy, especially now that the origin story is out of the way. What about you — did you enjoy the new movie, or should Sony have kept Spidey on the shelf?

Photo courtesy of Sony

It was a good week for Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone, as The Amazing Spider-Man earned $65 million this weekend, bringing its total gross to $140 million and easily topping the box office chart. Last weekend's top earner, Ted, dropped to second place, taking in $32.6 million. Pixar's princess story Brave took third with $20.2 million, followed by Oliver Stone's Savages (in its opening weekend) with $16.2. Magic Mike brought $15.6 million, which landed it in fifth place.

Photo courtesy of Sony

Much like it's titular hero, The Amazing Spider-Man has had to overcome a lot; cynics argued that it was too soon to start over with a new cast, especially in light of the record-breaking success of the original Spider-Man movies. Director Marc Webb promised us that his iteration would be different, and he does his best to inject freshness everywhere he can: Peter Parker has a new(ish) personality, a new girlfriend, and a new villain to tackle. Despite all these tweaks, this reboot of the Spidey franchise still feels like something we've seen before. That said, The Amazing Spider-Man is an inspired take on the comic book that will please fans of the Spider-Man story, and Andrew Garfield proves he can carry the weight of a superhero franchise.

Garfield is our new Peter Parker, and this time he's more of a hipster outcast (complete with skateboard and a seemingly endless array of hoodies) than timid nerd. Still troubled by the mysterious disappearance of his parents years earlier, Peter's lonely teenage years change dramatically when a spider bite leaves him with some serious strength and cobwebs coming out of his ears wrists. Like I said, you've heard this story before, but to find out why The Amazing Spider-Man is still worth seeing, just read more