Anthony Stokes on The Amazing Spider-Man…
As a kid growing up in the 90s, Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy was effectively my Star Wars. I loved them as a kid, and grew up and then appreciated them even more. They’re dark, funny, inventive, and sometimes extremely scary. To me they weren’t quite a close adaptation of the comics, but still great in lieu of the Spidey equivalent of The Dark Knight.
When Sony announced it was to reboot the franchise, I was skeptical. The Amazing Spider-Man seemed like it was made to pander to every demographic. It’s got the darker, Dark Knight aesthetic. It’s focused more on the romance. It’s “closer to the comics”, which I don’t necessarily agree with. And low and behold, the movie came out and honestly I felt like it was the most mediocre movie I’d ever seen. Just flatlined. But this sent out a great message to studios everywhere.
When you get down to it there’s one main reason why Marvel, Pixar and HBO are the most successful companies in the entertainment business: Quality. People know that if they turn on HBO or walk into a Marvel or Pixar movie they’re going to get their money’s worth. This is why Pixar movies have dipped in box office receipts and why Guardians of the Galaxy outgrossed Man of Steel. People care about quality, and that makes a big difference.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 came out to not only the worst reviews of the franchise, but also the lowest box office total. Sony was the first victim of trying to copy the Marvel Cinematic Universe formula by stuffing in as many characters as possible in as a set-up. I’ve given Warner Bros. and DC a lot of stick, and still do, for stuffing too many characters in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, but it seems like they care a little about the movie being good. Sony’s reboot was pretty much a disaster from the start, and surely only made around two-thirds of what the studio was expecting.
Now these leaked emails have come out and it seems as if Sony has learned their lesson. Kind of. The potential list of directors for a new reboot shows that they’re going more for a filmmaker with a voice rather than a studio director. And hopefully other directors are paying attention. Why hire some boring director like Jonathon Liebesman instead of a Brad Bird or a young indie director who will do it better for less?
My only hope is that other studios can learn a lesson from The Amazing Spider-Man franchise that pandering to everyone can really hurt in the long run, and that people want a good story more so than a cluster of things they recognise.
Anthony Stokes is a blogger and independent filmmaker who also hosts the podcast Delusional Losers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL18yMRIfoszFJHnpNzqHh6gswQ0Srpi5E&feature=player_embedded&v=Z2vq4CudKRk
Originally published December 16, 2014. Updated April 13, 2018.
