Let There Be Movies

Review by Elliott

What another Spiderman!?! Didn’t they just put one out a few years ago? All new actors, villains and story? There’s no need to make another one. Tobey Maguire did a pretty good job didn’t he, (this statement is based on Spiderman 3 never existing). Those movie studios are just greedy. They should wait at least 10 years before making another.

That about sums up most people thoughts when they first announced The Amazing Spiderman. I didn’t care, I was just extremely excited for more Spiderman. Growing up, Spiderman has always been my favorite superhero. But just because he’s my favorite doesn’t qualify him for a reboot. Fortunately that wasn’t the only reason. I won’t go into all the details(the link at the bottom of this paragraph has more info), but they had some good reasons for rebooting the series. One of those reasons was that in 2000, Marvel Comics launched their “Ultimate Marvel” comic book universe, starting with Ultimate X-Men and Ultimate Spider-Man. They wanted to modernize the series and this is what the new movie is based on. http://screenrant.com/spider-man-movies-reboot-comic-book-retcon-kofi-155955/

Although the story is different than the original it still has a lot of similarities and familiar characters. I’ll give a brief rundown of the story but I won’t go into too much detail. Our main goal at LTBM is to examine the moral/spiritual situations in movies. My plan is to give a brief overview of the movie, make some moral/spiritual application and give you my opinion of the movie overall.

This isn’t just a story about someone who gains some superpowers and beats up bad guys. Although those two things happen, that’s just the fluff of the story. This is about a boy trying to figure out who he is, where he came from, and who he’s going to become. It’s about a boy that gains abilities and powers, who then has to make the decision of what to do with them. It’s about choice and responsibility.

As the story begins, it’s a rainy night, Peter Parker(Andrew Garfield) is playing hide and go seek in his families home. He walks into his father’s office, a window is broken and papers are strewn about. His father immediately starts gathering up his work and they leave. His parents take him to his Aunt(Sally Field) and Uncle’s(Martin Sheen) house and explain that they have to go away for a little while, but they will come back. The movie then jumps forward, Peter is a high school nerd. He enjoys taking pictures, skateboarding, and getting picked on by bullies. We are quickly introduced to Gwen Stacy(Emma Stone), the smartest girl in his class and his soon to be crush. He discovers a mysterious briefcase that belonged to his father, this begins his quest to understand why his parents left, which leads him directly to Oscorp and the lab of Dr Curt Connors(Rhys Ifans), his father’s former partner. He finds out that his father and Dr. Connors worked on cross species genetics, with the goal to cure mankind of illness and deformities. While exploring Oscorp, he happens upon a laboratory full of genetically modified spiders and it’s at this point that he is bitten, gains his powers and the real story begins.

Application

One of the reasons I really like this movie is because it is full of moral applications. Aside from Peter, my favorite character from this story is Uncle Ben. He is an outstanding father figure and moral compass. Throughout the movie he is giving advice and trying to teach Peter important character traits. He doesn’t just tell him how to live, but he also shows him in his own actions and choices. One of the big moral issues that Peter Parker faces is that of revenge. Very soon after Peter gains his superpowers, his Uncle is shot and killed in a tussle with a thief. In the midst of his anger he searches for the killer, in order to exact his revenge. It’s at this time that Peter develops the reputation of a vigilante,by stopping small crimes and beating up thugs. Despite this, he still thinks it’s fine that he’s taking the law into his own hands.

Although most of us can’t relate to this exact situation, we all deal with people on a daily basis. And we as people tend to intentionally or unintentionally wrong each other. When that happens, it’s almost second nature to lash out and get back at the person who just wronged us. To carry out our own vengeance. But as christians we have to fight against our own emotions and desires and give our anger and frustrations over to God. We have to trust in His justice. It’s not our job, it’s God’s. It’s our job to love and forgive.

Rom. 12:17-21: Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

“With great power, comes great responsibility.”

Although the sayings origin can be traced back further than Stan Lee, it’s partially due to the Spiderman series that this saying is so well known. They change up the saying a little for this movie.

You’re a lot like your father. You really are, Peter, and that’s a good thing. But your father lived by a philosophy, a principle really. He believed that…that if you could do good things for other people, you had a moral obligation to do those things. That’s what at stake here. Not a choice, responsibility.

This same idea is reflected in Luke 12:48:

48- But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

This is one of the most important moral applications of the movie. Its at this point that Peter has to decide how he’s going to use his powers. For his personal gain or to help others. As we all know he makes the right choice. Although none of us have superpowers, we have all been blessed by God with all sorts of things; abilities, talents, jobs, money, family, and on and on… This idea of moral responsibility is something that our society has all but forgotten. When we see something that needs to done and we have the ability to take care of it, we need to have the moral courage to take action. What will you do your blessings? Keep them for yourself or use them to help others?

My Thoughts

If you can’t tell yet, I really like this movie. Andrew Garfield does an awesome job as Peter Parker. He’s nerdy, funny, and full of sarcasm, which is exactly how Spiderman should be. Not only does he have his superpowers but he also builds his own equipment. So he’s basically a combination of Superman and Batman, only better! I really like how they tell the story. He’s not just some random guy bitten by a spider, the story is much more involved. Although not fully explained yet, his fathers research has ultimately lead to him gaining super powers. By the end of the movie, we still don’t know how any of this ties together or what became of his parents. The goal of this movie was to establish his back history and get the story rolling and it does an excellent job at both. With that said, this is the first of 4 movies, which will tell the rest of the story. I for one can’t wait till next the movie, which is slated for May 2, 2014 and will feature Electro and the Rhino as the villains.