Directed by Phil Morrison and written by Angus MacLachlan, Junebug is the story of an art dealer who travels to North Carolina with her husband to meet his eccentric family that includes his brother’s young and pregnant wife. The film is a family comedy-drama that explores not just a family that off the wall but a woman trying to understand where her husband comes from. Starring Embeth Davidtz, Alessandro Nivola, Celia Weston, Scott Wilson, Benjamin McKenzie, and Amy Adams. Junebug is a witty and delightful film from Phil Morrison.
After meeting a man at her art gallery and then marrying him, the film is about a woman who travels to North Carolina with her husband to meet a reclusive painter as her husband’s family live nearby where she wants to meet them. Along the way, she would get to know this family of eccentrics that includes her brother-in-law’s sweet yet naïve wife who is pregnant. Angus MacLachlan’s screenplay doesn’t just follow the life and work of Madeleine (Embeth Davidtz) who runs an art gallery in Chicago that explores outsider art. It’s the fact that she is now part of a family with very strong Southern values as they’re a bit wary of her though she means well. Madeleine’s husband George (Alessandro Nivola) is reluctant about not just introducing her to his family. It’s also because he hadn’t been back home for years as it has caused resentment from his younger brother Johnny (Benjamin McKenzie) who is going through issues as he’s living at home with his parents and young wife Ashley (Amy Adams).
While George’s father Eugene (Scott Wilson) is welcoming towards Madeleine, his wife Peg (Celia Weston) isn’t receptive towards Madeleine as is Johnny who is uneasy about Madeleine’s presence towards Ashley who loves her. Yet, Madeleine would notice that there is tension in the family as she tries to balance her time with the family as well as deal with a competing art gallery from New York who also want the artwork of the local artist David Wark (Frank Hoyt Taylor). The time spent with the family would also become more problematic despite Ashley who is the embodiment of innocence as Madeleine is fascinated by her as she wants to be there for the young woman. Yet, the looming tension within the family would come to ahead once Ashley goes into labor as it becomes clear where everyone is at.
Phil Morrison’s direction is quite simple as it is shot largely on location in North Carolina through a trio of small towns including Winston-Salem as it doesn’t go for anything that is visually-striking. While there are a few wide shots, Morrison aims for something more intimate from the scenes inside the car to some of the local gatherings the characters go to. There are some camera movements in the film yet it is more about the simple aspects of George and his family as well as Madeleine being an outsider into this world. Morrison’s compositions are more concerned with the family unit as well as the tension that is looming with Madeleine being this observer. Still, she does get into moments that are uncomfortable such as a scene where she’s trying to help Johnny prepare for his GED exam as well as being there for Ashley. The film’s third act isn’t just about Madeleine kind of being left out as she would attend to her own business but also the resentment involving Johnny and George. Notably as it reveals why the latter hasn’t been coming back home lately with Ashley somewhere in the middle of this family tension. Overall, Morrison creates a heartfelt yet lively film about a woman meeting her new husband’s oddball family.
Cinematographer Peter Donahue does excellent work with the film‘s cinematography as it is mostly straightforward with its usage of lights for the scenes set at night. Editor Joe Klotz does nice work with the editing as it‘s mostly straightforward with a few jump-cuts and fade-outs for transitional scenes from the latter. Production designer David Doernberg and set decorator Sara Parks do fantastic work with the look of the family home in all of its quaint objects as well as the art gallery that Madeleine works at.
Costume designer Danielle Kays does terrific work with the costumes as it is mostly casual with some of the more city-like clothing of Madeleine and the colorful clothes that Ashley wears. Sound editor Eric Offin does superb work with the sound as it is mostly low-key and sparse to play into the surroundings and locations in the film. The film’s music by the indie-rock band Yo La Tengo is wonderful for its low-key indie-rock music with sparse guitar melodies and textures as the soundtrack mostly feature some classical music, traditional gospel, and a soul song written by Stevie Wonder.
The casting by Mark Bennett is great as it feature some notable small roles from Alicia Van Couvering as Madeleine’s gallery assistant, Joanne Pankow as Wark’s sister/attorney, and Frank Hoyt Taylor as the eccentric yet reclusive artist David Wark that Madeleine meets and want to present his art to the world. Scott Wilson is superb as George’s father Eugene as a man who is very receptive to Madeleine as she is interested in his work creating birdhouses and stuff out of wood. Celia Weston is fantastic as Peg as a woman who adores her son George though is wary about Madeleine as she sees her as kind of a snob and not good enough for George. Benjamin McKenzie is excellent as Johnny as George’s younger brother who doesn’t really like Madeleine very much yet harbors some issues towards his older brother which also has him feel strained towards Ashley.
Alessandro Nivola is brilliant as George as a man who falls for and marries Madeleine as he is reluctant to see his family where he copes with not just old issues but also trying to make Madeleine feel like part of his family. Embeth Davidtz is amazing as Madeleine as a British art gallery owner who is fascinated by outsider art as well as get to know George’s family where she finds a bond with both George’s father and Ashley. Finally, there’s Amy Adams in an incredible breakthrough performance as Ashley as this talkative and lively pregnant woman who is hoping a baby would help her marriage to Johnny as she is so full of innocence and wonderment that makes the character a pure joy to watch.
Junebug is a remarkable film from Phil Morrison. Featuring some beautiful images, a compelling story, superb music, and a great cast led by Amy Adams in a career-defining performance. It is a true gem of a film that explores unique family dynamics as well as a woman trying to see where her husband comes from. In the end, Junebug is a marvelous film from Phil Morrison.
© thevoid99 2016
Directed and co-edited by Sam Raimi and written by Sam and Ivan Raimi, Army of Darkness is the third and final film of the Evil Dead trilogy in which Ash Williams has found himself in the Middle Ages where he helps a kingdom fight the undead. The film showcases a man from the 20th Century dealing with different surroundings as he does whatever it takes to return home as well as kill the undead anyway he can. Also starring Embeth Davidtz, Marcus Gilbert, Ian Abercrombie, Ted Raimi, and Richard Grove. Army of Darkness is a sprawling yet whimsical film from Sam Raimi.
Set in 1300 A.D. in medieval England, the film revolves around a man in Ash Williams who had been sent to that world through a time portal as he faces off against the evil dead and helps King Arthur (Marcus Gilbert) fight in the hopes he can go home. It’s a film with a simple premise where it picks up where events from the previous leaves off as Ash is considered a prophet that can save the kingdom from the evil dead. The film’s screenplay by Sam and Ivan Raimi play into Ash’s bafflement in his surroundings but is also aware of what is happening where he is tasked by the wise man (Ian Abercrombie) to get the Book of the Dead yet Ash would deal with all sorts of craziness where the leader of the evil dead would form as an evil version of Ash.
Sam Raimi’s direction is definitely ambitious in terms of the period he chooses to set the film as it’s bigger and has a lot more happening in terms of what Ash is dealing with. Shot in soundstages in Hollywood with some scenes shot in the Californian deserts and mountain, the film plays into a sense of a period where Ash is out of place but also a world that is quite primitive and full of conflict. Raimi’s usage of the wide and medium shots establish a lot of the locations in Ash’s surroundings but also in some of the visuals where Ash would often get himself into trouble either by his own means or things beyond his control. The usage of close-ups would play into some of the humor that include a hilarious sequence in which Ash battles the mini-Ashes who try to kill him as it would then lead to a moment where a second Ash would grow into his body to become his nemesis.
The film also has Raimi play into the world of medieval times where it is played for laughs in some respects while it would have this climax that mixes old-school medieval battles with some 20th Century aesthetics courtesy of Ash. There are these moments that are quite comical but also very dark as it play to what is at stake. Even as Ash has to contend with the demons and those that have become possessed where he is aware of the importance of this book that could bring hope to this land and maybe he wouldn’t have to deal with all of that shit ever again. Overall, Raimi creates a thrilling and wild film about a 20th Century man fighting the evil dead in medieval times.
Cinematographer Bill Pope does excellent work with the film‘s colorful cinematography with the usage of natural and bright colors for the scenes set in the day to the usage of fire and other stylish lights for the scenes set at night. Editors Bob Murawski and Sam Raimi do amazing work with the editing with its usage of stylish montages, jump-cuts, and other stylish cuts to play into the suspense and humor as well as in some of the moments of terror. Production designer Anton Tremblay, with set decorator Michele Poulik and art director Aram Allan, does fantastic work with the look of the castle as well as a few of its interiors as well as the look of the graveyard where the book is found. Costume designer Ida Gearon does nice work with the look of the armor many of the knights wear as well as the clothes that the women wear.
The makeup work of Howard Berger, Camille Calvet, Tony Gardner, Robert Kurtzman, and Gregory Nicotero is great as it doesn‘t just play more into the look of the skeleton army but also the look of the evil dead as well as the evil Ash in his decayed form. Visual effects supervisor William Mesa does brilliant work with the visual effects from the usage of stop-motion animation for the skeletons as well as the way the ghosts and creatures look like during the battle scene. Sound designers Lance Brown and Alan Howarth do superb work with the sound from the way the demons sound as they‘re about to possess someone to the layers of sound mixes in the battle scenes. The film’s music by Joseph LoDuca, with themes by Danny Elfman, is terrific for its orchestral bombast that is filled with sumptuous string and percussion arrangements with Elfman providing the music for the battle march.
The casting by Ira Belgrade is wonderful as it feature some notable small roles and appearances from Angela Featherstone as a woman Ash meets at the place he works at in the 20th Century, Patricia Tallman as the possessed witch, Timothy Patrick Quill as a blacksmith that likes Ash, Bridget Fonda in a cameo appearance as Ash’s old girlfriend Linda, and Ted Raimi in a trio of performances as a cowardly knight, a villager, and a co-worker of Ash in the 20th Century. Richard Grove is terrific as Duke Henry the Red as an adversary of Lord Arthur who is accused of causing trouble only to be aided by Ash. Ian Abercrombie is superb as the wise man as a variation of Merlin who sees as Ash as the prophet that would help him while giving Ash specific instructions of how to stop the evil dead.
Marcus Gilbert is excellent as Lord Arthur as a variation of King Arthur who is unsure about Ash until he realizes that Ash is the one that he needs to battle the evil dead. Embeth Davidtz is amazing as Sheila as the sister of a deceased knight who isn’t keen on Ash at first but falls for him where she is baffled by his own custom as Davidtz gets a chance to be very funny when her character becomes possessed. Finally, there’s Bruce Campbell in an incredible performance as Ash Williams and the evil version of Ash where Campbell brings that smarmy sense of fun into his role in the former as well as a weight of melancholy while also camping it up a bit as the evil Ash that includes some moments where he gets to chew the scene for all it’s worth.
Army of Darkness is a remarkable film from Sam Raimi that features a sensational performance from Bruce Campbell. Featuring some dazzling visual effects, a killer climax, and lots of humor, it’s a film that manages to be more than just a horror-comedy but also a film where it’s about killing the evil dead. In the end, Army of Darkness is a marvelous film from Sam Raimi.
Sam Raimi Films: (It’s Murder!) - (Clockwork) - (Within the Woods) - The Evil Dead - (Crimewave) - Evil Dead II - (Darkman) - (The Quick and the Dead) - (A Simple Plan) - (For Love of the Game) - (The Gift (2000 film)) - Spider-Man - Spider-Man 2 - Spider-Man 3 - (Drag Me to Hell) - (Oz the Great and Powerful) - Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
© thevoid99 2016
Based on the novel by Thomas Keneally, Schindler’s List is the real-life story of a Czech-born German businessman who tries to save thousands of Jews by making them work in his factory during the era of the Holocaust in World War II. Directed by Steven Spielberg and screenplay by Steve Zaillian, the film is a look into the life of a man who tries to do good during one of the most horrific periods in the history of the world as the role of Oskar Schindler is played by Liam Neeson. Also starring Ben Kingsley, Caroline Goodall, Jonathan Sagall, Embeth Davidtz, and Ralph Fiennes. Schindler’s List is a visceral yet evocative film from Steven Spielberg.
Told in the entire span of World War II in Europe from the Invasion of Poland to the aftermath of Germany’s surrender. The film plays into the life of Oskar Schindler during that period in World War II where he decided to have Jews working for him at his factory so they can stay alive while he deals with Nazi officials and such during the days of Polish ghettos and concentration camps. It’s a story that is quite simple yet it is also filled with a lot of graphic detail into what went on in Krakow, Poland and all of these places that the Germans had occupied during World War II. Even as Schindler has to deal with the sadistic Anom Goeth (Ralph Fiennes) who would become a concentration camp leader that has a sense of sick pleasure in killing Jews no matter who they are.
Steve Zaillian’s screenplay does have this very traditional yet broad three-act structure that plays into Schindler’s desire to save the lives of Jews by having him work in his factory and such. Yet, it also display Schindler as a man with some very big flaws such as the fact that he is a member of the Nazi party that would wear a Nazi pin in his suit. He would often socialize with Nazi officers and have drinks with them and was a notorious womanizer despite the fact that he is also married. It is among the many complexities of a man who would do something that is good but he is no saint despite his courageous act of kindness. The first act would play into Schindler’s social life and meeting this Jewish accountant in Itzhak Stern (Ben Kingsley) who has contacts with black markets and such in the Jewish community where he would run Schindler’s enamelware factory in secrecy with Schindler being the one to over see everything.
While Stern is often suspicious of Schindler’s activities in and out of the factory, he is grateful for what Schindler is doing for the Jewish community who had been driven away from their homes and be forced to live in ghettos. The film’s second act plays into Goeth’s arrival and the creation of Plasnow concentration camp as it is a world that is very scary. Especially with Goeth watching over everything as the first taste of that sense of terror is where kills a young woman watching over the building a camp because she made a simple mistake. It adds to this sense of terror where Schindler tries to befriend him in order to keep people safe but it’s not enough where a scene where children are being driven away from their families is a big moment while there’s a few that would hide and manage to stay in the camp. The film’s third act doesn’t just play into the growing realities of what Schindler is facing but also in what he hopes to do as well as see what real power could do.
Steven Spielberg’s direction is very intense not just for some of the graphic violence that occurs in the film from time to time but also in the atmosphere that he creates. While it opens with shot in color of a simple Jewish ceremony where candles are lit, it plays to a world before war but that candle goes out. The film is then presented in black-and-white as it plays into this very chilling period of war and terror. Shot on location in Krakow, Poland and areas nearby, the film does play into a world that becomes undone by prejudice and occupation where Spielberg’s usage of hand-held cameras and tracking shots capture these moments where Jews are driven out of their homes and be cramped into these apartments where overcrowding becomes an issue. Spielberg’s usage of close-ups and medium shots do play into that intimacy but also in moments where there is very little space in comparison to the places where the Germans and Schindler lived in.
The usage of wide shots are also evident to capture the look of the locations as well as these eerie scenes such as the liquidation of Krakow where Schindler and his mistress are watching up on a hill into this moment where many Jews are being killed with some hiding from the Germans. There are also some very eerie scenes of dark comedy in the way Goeth handles situations such as how he kills Jews or a moment where he tries to kill a former rabbi. There are also these moments that play into Schindler’s own sense of disconnect from the realities of what is happening as it features a scene where he’s in a party having fun while Goeth beats a young Jewish maid as that moment is actually far more gruesome than the scenes of people being killed. It is among these moments that showcase not just a stench of death but also some of the eerie symbolism that Schindler is forced to confront that includes this strange image of the little girl in a red coat.
It’s not just these elements of symbolism that Spielberg would put in that are very evident as it relates to Schindler’s disconnect with what he really needed to do but also in how it would relate to the film’s ending. It showcases not just the development in Schindler but also the severity of what he had to do at not just great cost of his own but also in what more could be done. The film features an epilogue as it relates to the people who were saved because of Schindler as they’re presented in color as it reveals not just the fact that some of these people are still alive. It’s a moment where Spielberg breaks the fourth wall and allow these survivors to have their moment into how much Schindler meant to them no matter how flawed he is as a man. Overall, Spielberg creates a tremendously riveting and harrowing film about a man trying to save thousands of Jews in German-occupied Poland.
Cinematographer Janusz Kaminski does incredible work with the film‘s cinematography with its usage of lights for some of the scenes set at night as it has elements of film noir and German Expressionism in its black-and-white photography as well as the element of neo-realist images in its usage of tracking shots as it is one of the major highlights of the film. Editor Michael Kahn does amazing work with the editing as he uses some jump-cuts during a scene where Schindler interviews different prospective secretaries as well as some very chilling rhythm cuts that play into the violence and drama in the film. Production designer Allan Starski does excellent work with the look of the some of the interiors in the homes of Schindler and Goeth as well as the look of the concentration camps and some of the even more chilling interiors in Auschwitz. Costume designer Anna B. Sheppard does nice work with the costumes from the dresses that many of the rich women wear as well as the Nazi uniforms of the officers to the ragged look of the Jews.
Hair supervisor Judith A. Cory and makeup supervisor Christina Smith do fantastic work with the look of the characters from the hairstyle of the women in the posh world to the ragged look of the Jews in the numerous stages they would endure. Visual effects supervisor Steve Price does terrific work with two major moments of symbolism in the film from the color of red in the girl in the red coat and the Jewish candlelight scenes. Sound editors Charles L. Campbell and Louis L. Edemann do superb work with the sound in creating layers of sound in some of the chilling moments in the film as it relates to eerie scenes in some of the camps as well as what goes on in the ghettos along with some somber yet eerie moments late in the film. The film’s music by John Williams is great as it is very low key in its orchestration where it plays in these very eerie and somber moments that is supported by Itzhak Perlman’s violin playing as the music also features some of music that was playing in those times including the traditional Jewish prayer hymns.
The casting by Toya Cypin, Lucky Englander, Fritz Fleischhacker, Liat Meiron, Magdalena Szwarcbart, and Juliet Taylor is phenomenal as it features some noteworthy small roles from Oliwia Dabrowska as the little girl in the red coat, Hans-Michael Rehberg as Auschwitz camp leader Rudolf Hoss, and Andrzej Seweryn as SS Officer Julian Scherner that Schindler befriends to get him to ease restrictions for Jews. Other notable roles from Anna Mucha, Rami Heuberger, Piotr Polk, Norbert Weisser, Miri Fabian, Michael Schneider, Adi Nitzan, Jacek Wojcicki, Beata Paluch, Pawel Delag, Mark Ivanir, and Ezra Daga as the many Jewish refugees who would be spared and saved by Schindler as they would endure some of the most humiliating moments that no one should deal with. Jonathan Sagall is superb as Poldek Pfefferberg as a young Polish-Jew who would be an officer for the SS as he would deal with the many complications of his role as well as protecting friends and family.
Embeth Davidtz is excellent as Helen Hirsch as a Jewish maid hired by Goeth to do things for him as well as be a sick object of desire that she is repulsed by. Caroline Goodall is terrific as Schindler’s wife Emilie as a woman who would see him often though she is aware of his womanizing and such while being the one person he can always turn to for guidance. Ben Kingsley is amazing as Itzhak Stern as a Jewish accountant who serves as the film’s conscience as a good man that would run many of Schindler’s operations as well as be the one person that can connect Schindler to the people. Ralph Fiennes is brilliant as Amon Goeth as this sadistic and insane concentration camp leader who seems to have sick pleasure in killing Jews as well as being someone that is very scary as it is one of the most haunting performances in the film as well as a great breakthrough for Fiennes. Finally, there’s Liam Neeson in a riveting performance as Oskar Schindler as this man who is very flawed in his activities as he tries to make money during the war and hire the Jews to manufacture pots and pans for him where he also deals with the severity of what is happening forcing him to do something in a world where a lot of wrongs are happening.
Schindler’s List is a magnificent film from Steven Spielberg. Armed with a great ensemble cast led by Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, and Ben Kingsley as well as some top-notch technical work and a sumptuous score by John Williams. The film isn’t just one of Spielberg’s best films but also one of the most sobering and harrowing films about the Holocaust and what Jews from Poland had to endure during Germany’s occupation during World War II. In the end, Schindler’s List is an outstanding film from Steven Spielberg.
Steven Spielberg Films: (Duel (1971 film)) - (The Sugarland Express) - (Jaws) - (Close Encounters of the Third Kind) - (1941) - (Raiders of the Lost Ark) - (E.T. the Extraterrestrial) - (Twilight Zone: the Movie-Kick the Can) - (Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom) - (The Color Purple) - (Empire of the Sun) - (Always) - (Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade) - (Hook) - (Jurassic Park) - (The Lost World: Jurassic Park) - (Amistad) - Saving Private Ryan - (A.I. Artificial Intelligence) - (Minority Report) - Catch Me If You Can - (The Terminal) - (War of the Worlds (2005 film)) - (Munich) - (Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) - (The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn) - (War Horse) - (Lincoln) - (Bridge of Spies) - (The BFG)
© thevoid99 2016
Based on the comic by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, The Amazing Spider-Man is an origin story of how a teenage Peter Parker became Spider-Man as he searches for what happened to his parents while meeting a scientist who knew his father. Directed by Marc Webb and screenplay by James Vanderbilt, Alvin Sargent, and Steve Kloves from a screen story by Vanderbilt. The film is new interpretation into the Spider-Man saga by interpreting a new take on Spider-Man’s origin story as he is played by Andrew Garfield. Also starring Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans, Denis Leary, Campbell Scott, Irrfan Khan, Campbell Scott, Sally Field, and Martin Sheen. The Amazing Spider-Man is an enjoyable blockbuster from Marc Webb.
The film is essentially a re-telling of the origin story of how Peter Parker became Spider-Man as it relates to the disappearance of his parents and why he had to live with his uncle Ben (Martin Sheen) and aunt May (Sally Field). The film also explores his relationship with his high school classmate Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone) whose father is the police captain George Stacy (Denis Leary) who is suspicious about Spider-Man’s vigilante antics. Yet, the story follows Parker trying to find answers into why his parents disappeared which leads him to meet Oscorps scientist Dr. Curt Connors (Rhys Ifans) who had been trying to create a regeneration formula that can help restore limbs for humans where Parker helped out giving him an algorithm. Instead, things go wrong when Dr. Connors becomes the Lizard forcing Spider-Man to stop him unleash the formula all over New York City.
The screenplay by James Vanderbilt, Alvin Sargent, and Steve Kloves does allow the film to be both a superhero origin story as well as a bit of mystery where it relates to Peter Parker’s search for answers on not just about his parents but also some of the secrets his father had been hiding. Notably the algorithm in a folder that he had been hiding as he showed to Dr. Connors where Parker would unfortunately set off some things that he shouldn’t have. Along with other incidents that Peter Parker would have to endure, he realized the role he has to play along with the responsibility he would have to carry for all of his life. Still, the film is more about how Parker became Spider-Man and how he would have to bear the responsibility of his role though there are several things in the script like what really happened to Peter’s parents that remain unresolved.
While characters like Uncle Ben, Aunt May, Gwen, and Captain Stacy do get provide some key aspects to the story. It’s Dr. Connors who is the most interesting as he is a man who has good intentions for regeneration as he’s a man that had lost his right arm. Yet, there’s an ambiguity to Dr. Connors as he might know about what happened to Peter Parker’s parents or he doesn’t know what really happened as his superior Dr. Ratha (Irrfan Khan) makes a threat about revealing something that relates to Parker’s parents. Yet, Dr. Connors attempt to test his regeneration formula would have some dire consequences as he becomes this giant lizard that is wreaking havoc on New York City.
Marc Webb’s direction is pretty good as he does a lot of what is expected in a superhero blockbuster story while he also finds the time to make it standout a bit from the previous Spider-Man films that were helmed by Sam Raimi. Notably as he creates some engaging moments in the drama as well as some of the humor of the film that includes a hilarious scene of Spider-Man and the Lizard fighting in a library. While it is shot on location in New York City, there are some scenes where it’s a mix of real-life action and CGI where Webb creates moments that are engaging though there are some shortcomings which relates to the story. Overall, Webb creates a solid and entertaining blockbuster film that does what is needed to do though it doesn’t do enough to make it standout more against its predecessors.
Cinematographer John Schwartzman does nice work with the film‘s cinematography from the look of the day and nighttime exterior scenes to some stylish moments for some of the film‘s nighttime interiors with its lighting schemes. Editors Alan Edward Ball, Michael McCusker and Pierto Scalia do terrific work with the editing as it‘s stylized in a few montages as well as some rhythmic cuts for the film‘s action sequences. Production designer J. Michael Riva, with set decorator Leslie A. Pope and supervising art director David F. Klassen, does excellent work with the look of the Oscorp building and some of its labs inside the building.
Costume designer Kym Barrett does good work with the costumes as it is mostly casual. Visual effects supervisors Jerome Chen, Kevin Kolodinsky, and Jim Rygiel superb work with some of the visual effects of Spider-Man flinging his web from place to place as well as the look of the Lizard. Sound editor Shannon Mills and Addison Teague do wonderful work with the sound to create some nice sound effects as well as some moments in the film‘s action scenes. The film’s music by James Horner is brilliant as it is a mix of orchestral bombast as well as some somber piano pieces to play out some of the growing pains Peter Parker goes through. The soundtrack is decent as it features a few rock cuts by the Shins and Phantom Planet as well as a piece from Coldplay that is just terrible.
The casting by Francine Maisler is remarkable for the ensemble that is used for the film as it features some memorable small appearances from C. Thomas Howell as a father whose son was saved by Spider-Man as he would return the favor, Chris Zylka as school bully Flash Thompson, Hannah Marks as a classmate of Parker, Campbell Scott and Embeth Davidtz as Peter’s parents who appear early in the film, and a hilarious cameo from Stan Lee as a librarian who is oblivious to the fight Spider-Man and the Lizard. Irrfan Khan is OK as Dr. Connors’ superior Dr. Ratha where Khan doesn‘t really get much to do except be used as someone who would drive Dr. Connors into drastic situations. Sally Field is great as Aunt May who worries about Peter’s activities as she also has to remind him that she will always worry about him. Martin Sheen is superb as Uncle Ben Parker as a man who is concerned about Peter while instilling him the role that Peter would have to use as a person.
Denis Leary is excellent as Captain George Stacy as a man is trying to maintain his role as a man of law and order as he sees Spider-Man as a vigilante while trying to deal with the Lizard. Rhys Ifans is brilliant as Dr. Curt Connors as a man whose experiments on regeneration wants him to do good but has him becoming maniacal and ambitious as he nearly loses sight on himself. Emma Stone is very good as Gwen Stacy as a classmate of Peter who knows a lot about science as she also tries to deal with his role as Spider-Man as she would help him fight the Lizard. Finally, there’s Andrew Garfield in a marvelous performance as Peter Parker/Spider-Man as Garfield infuses all of the anxiety of a teenage boy as well as someone who is troubled by what he’s dealing with as Garfield adds a lot of dramatic weight to his performance that makes him a major highlight of the film.
The Amazing Spider-Man is a very stellar film from Marc Webb that features an amazing performance from Andrew Garfield. Along with a strong supporting cast and a unique take on the origin story, it’s a film that is definitely enjoyable and engaging to watch though it does have a few flaws in the shortcomings to the screenplay. In the end, The Amazing Spider-Man is a pretty good film from Marc Webb.
Spider-Man Films: Spider-Man - Spider-Man 2 - Spider-Man 3 - The Amazing Spider-Man 2 - Spider-Man: Homecoming - Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse - Spider-Man: Far from Home - Spider-Man: No Way Home - Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse - (Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse)
© thevoid99 2013
