4th Of July Double Feature: The Amazing Spider-Man and Rock Of Ages

The Amazing Spider-Man

I'll admit I was one of the many who was shocked and a little annoyed at the announcement there would be a reboot of the Spider-man series. Was Hollywood running out of ideas so quickly they needed to remake a film which had been made in this century already? First it was supposed to be the fourth installment of the Sam Raimi series starring Tobey Maguire. I suppose some studio executive had the brilliant idea of starting all over again from scratch with a new script, director, and actors. Not a surprise it got the green light and the Amazing Spider-man was on it's way. I was on board with those who felt it was completely premature and unnecessary. So I went into the theater already expecting a rehash of the same story with a new face of Peter Parker. I walked away quite pleased at how much I enjoyed it despite the story being revisited all over again. Yes we get an intro to nerdy and bullied Peter pining away for the girl of his dreams while his Uncle Ben nags him about being responsible. Yup been there done that with the 2001 installment. However, it's almost like having the same dream and feeling dejavu yet noticing slight changes. After a while I stopped comparing it to the original and just enjoyed it for what it was. It's still a bit campy, cheesy, and overly sentimental, but it doesn't lay it on too thick like it's predecessor. It has a bit more humor and quite frankly there's much better acting this time around as well. No offense to MaGuire and Dunst, but they both had little chemistry while swooning over each other. I felt a stronger attraction between Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone. Plus I enjoyed the fact that his geeky self wasn't overplayed. He was actually cool even before getting bitten by the spider. The drastic change isn't so much in his confidence, but actual physical strength. The pre-spider Peter has a better sense of himself and what he wants than the 2001 version of pre-bitten Parker did. But enough of the comparisons, this movie stands well on it's own and was well worth the price of admission. I do have a few qualms though. I thought the transition between scenes could have been tighter. Some moments dragged on far too long and I felt myself zoning out. There should have been more of an even tone with the action, serious scenes and as well with the romance (which again I must reiterate is much hotter this time around!). I could have done without some of Parker's remarks to the Lizard Man (I realize that's not really his name but it's fitting) while shooting his webs at him. It made him seem cartoonish and not threatening at all. Peter is a good guy, but he's also dangerous and menacing to those he wishes to demolish and it would seem more intense if he wasn't cracking jokes the entire time. Nonetheless the film worked yet I can already tell there's going to be lots of hate and endless comparisons with the original (which ironically was also hated ten years ago). People just don't like change and love to complain about which they can't control or do better if given the chance. I'd also like to add the special effects were much stronger as well...and made him much more believable as a real life spider. In the end it's a movie based on a comic book and I am not going to nitpick the film to death. I liked it, I liked Garfield, and I was thoroughly entertained. It accomplished what a summer film should. Sidenote: It was great to see former '80s heart throb C.Thomas Howell back on the big screen with his small role in the film. It wasn't so great however to see how drastically he's aged! You don't realize how quickly time is rolling on by until you see faces from the past resurface not looking as youthful as they once did. It threw me for a loop to see a middle aged Ponyboy Curtis and actually took me out of the film for a bit there. Still, I'm glad to see he's getting screen time on the one of the biggest blockbusters of the summer.

Rock Of Ages

I've been a fan of musicals going back to Grease and Little Shop of Horrors just to name a few. The last few entries such as Hairspray and Dreamgirls have been rather lackluster. They were well made, but just didn't have that fun factor. A musical is designed to be infectious and catchy and make the audience feel good. Rock Of Ages succeeded in every aspect! I hadn't seen the Broadway show so I didn't exactly know the plot other than that it involved almost every 1980s classic power ballad. I love '80s rock and recognized 99% of the songs in this film (even if the name of the artist slipped my mind) and it's because these songs were all mega hits at one point in time during that decade. But for those who weren't lucky enough to be raised on '80s music, they should still walk away humming some of those tunes. Despite the film bombing at the box office and getting ripped apart by critics, I held onto some hope this would be an entertaining joyride and I was right. The music is awesome, the acting (for the most part) is well done, and best of all it doesn't take itself seriously but is not a complete farce either. Sure there are some silly moments I could have done without, but overall I found myself really having a blast. It helps to know the lyrics and feel that sense of pleasure when you recognize the opening riff or lyric of a classic ballad. Each song fits perfectly with the story and the moment. It never seemed like overkill to me and I could have listened to them sing (especially on stage) for hours! No question about it, the biggest draw is Tom Cruise as Stacee Jaxx. I personally have have been a Tom Cruise supporter for some time now. I'm able to look past his real life shenanigans and appreciate him as the fine actor he's consistently been. He completely embraced this character and made him quite fascinating to watch. He could have been any real life mega front man. He is basically an incoherent mess who is too busy drinking and behaving like a sex friend to really get himself together. But when he's on stage boy does he sing his heart out. What a great job! He actually has a semi decent voice and half way through the film I forgot I was even watching Tom Cruise with leather pants and fake tattoos. Adding to his performance is an ensemble cast who are equally joyous to watch..even the usually irritating Russell Brand was on point. Again, there were some off putting moments which were treading on being stupid, but the good outweighed the bad and I found myself caring about what happened and anxiously awaiting the next nostalgic filled tune! It was the fastest two hours I'd experience watching a movie in a while and I look forward to seeing it again. It's a shame it wasn't well received, but I could see this turning into a cult classic of sorts. It has a following, but it just got lost in the middle of this superhero dominated summer season. But if you're interesting in have a little fun and break from the action flicks, I say give this a shot!