THE BEST OF 2021 - The Best MOVIES Of The Year

 

THE YEAR IN MOVIES - 2021

- While the state of the movies is very uncertain (as is the state of the world, come to think of it!), I can say one thing about 2021: after over a year without seeing a movie in a movie theater due to the raging pandemic, going back to the movies this past Spring was, truly, amazing. My first movie back, post-vax, was In The Heights. Seeing it on the big screen, in the ol' Burbank AMC 16's first-rate Dolby theater, was an experience I won't soon forget. The colors, the sound, the immersiveness and *bigness* of it all gave me chills. Because, man, as much as I'd made the best of a year of movies at home - for me, a passionate theater-goer, it just wasn't the same. So I was eternally grateful to go back to the movies in 2021. And as each new at-the-movies milestone rolled around - my first big action movie (F9!), my first new Marvel movie (Black Widow!) ... my residual nervousness of being in any sort of crowded indoor space was, mostly, offset by the feeling of sheer relief that, once again, I could go to my happy place.

Of course, that relief was somewhat fleeting. For one thing, a lot of my favorite LA-area theaters didn't survive the pandemic - notably the iconic Arclight Hollywood. Since moving to LA in 2005, I've had countless memorable movie-going experiences there. Avengers: Infinity War opening night, Q&A's with filmmakers, landmark movies seen for the first time with great crowds who loved film as much as I did. While some Arclight locations eventually re-opened under different corporate banners, we're all still waiting for news about the Hollywood location (and its historic Cinerama Dome) and crossing our fingers that it returns in some way, shape, or form.

For another thing, a lot of movie theaters failed to adapt as things evolved with the pandemic. When I went back that first time to see In the Heights, there was social distancing in place. Soon enough, social distancing was gone and it was back to business as usual. Later, some theaters thankfully began requiring proof-of-vax for admission, but others - like my local theaters here in Burbank, did not. The reason is that the City of LA is requiring this for theaters, whereas LA County - which includes surrounding areas like Burbank and Glendale - does not. I'm sure there are similar discrepancies across the country, and it's kind of ridiculous. Here's hoping that, as long as this pandemic is ongoing, more local governments get with it and require proof-of-vax for theaters, indoor restaurant dining, etc. And ... it's not just that. Pre-pandemic, theatergoing could be marred by inconsiderate people talking, checking their phones, etc. Now, post-pandemic, we have to worry about people not properly wearing their masks or, worse, deciding that they absolutely must scarf down a bucketful of popcorn even in the middle of an airborne pandemic. Why, people - why?! To adapt, my moviegoing has become much more strategic in the backend of this year - sticking to theaters requiring proof of vax, searching for emptier theaters, and going at off-peak times when possible. Not ideal, but worth it, to me, to see movies on the big screen.

Now, all of that said ... people, we've got a lot to talk about when it comes to movies. For one, we're seeing a total paradigm shift in who goes to movies and when and how often. The success of Spider-Man: No Way Home at the box office over the last few weeks has raised a lot of questions, and led some to be more optimistic about the future of movies and movie theaters. But was this one an anomaly - a lighting-in-a-bottle convergence of buzz and hype and fandom and multiple multiversal Spider-Men and people wanting to get to the movies at least one more time before new variants made the pandemic worse? And even in the face of Spider-Man's success, is the writing still on the wall for any smaller, non-event films of the low or mid-budget variety? Or, is it more so just that studios - desperate to attract big name talent, have let big name directors have carte blanche with their projects, even if those projects (say, remakes of sixty-year-old musicals) are not exactly hyper-commercial? The fact is, there's A LOT happening now, and it's still a total wild west in terms of where the movie business is at and where it's going. There's no question: streaming has changed everything. And once again, some of the year's best movies were Netflix or Amazon or even Apple originals. And even if many of those films received limited theatrical releases, people's behavior has changed irrevocably, and many are just perfectly fine watching films on their TV at home via streaming services they're already subscribed to - thank you very much. The problem, of course, is that this leads to more passive viewing selection vs. proactively seeking out the best stuff. It also hurts the overall movie-watching experience - because while many may not want to admit it, most can't go for a few hours anymore without multitasking on their phones. This is why the theater, in my view, is so vitally important to preserve. Putting screen size aside, movies are best enjoyed and appreciated with one's full attention given - with as few distractions as possible. The greater the immersion, the better. That's why I love seeing even smaller indie movies in a theater. For me, it's just a different, better experience.

So how do we save theaters? That's a question slightly above my pay grade. But I think lower ticket prices, more safety measures during the pandemic (requirement of vax!), promotional partnerships with streaming services, more premium viewing experiences, and more "eventizing" of movies (even smaller ones!) can go a long way. Here in LA, Licorice Pizza was released early in just one theater in Westwood. But seeing the film became a real event - the marquee was done up with 70's-style flare (matching the movie's setting), and a pop-up pinball arcade was opened adjacent to the theater. It was a real scene, and was super cool. And people went in droves to see the movie. More stuff like this!

Now, all of that said, it was great to be able to watch great content at home during times when going to the theater was not a good option. Windowing is continuing to shift, and I do think that movies becoming available for early digital PVOD rental, only a few short weeks post-theatrical, is a net-positive for the business. My sense is that a lot of movies - especially older-skewing ones - have had a good chunk of change added to their overall revenue because of early at-home availability.

Of course, there's also a more macro question here: does the next generation of potential movie-goers even care that much about movies? In a world of shortform social media videos, gaming, etc. - does sitting still for 2 or 3 hours to watch one thing really appeal to Gen Z and younger? It will be interesting to see if many movies are able to break out in the next few years with younger generations, save for the occasional Spider-Man-sized event.

Finally - whew! - we got A LOT of movies in 2021. Remember: a number of "2020" movies didn't actually come out in 2020. And so a lot of early 2021 movie viewing, for me, was catching up on films like Nomadland, Minari, I Care a Lot, One Night in Miami, and The Father that, while eligible for this year's awards season, had only screened for a handful of critics the year prior. So you'll still see those films on my Best Of list below. Also, because of production delays and COVID concerns, a huge number of movies were back-loaded into the last couple months of the year. So we had the usual parade of Oscar hopefuls in October, November, and December - but ALSO a ton of pushed-back blockbusters like Dune, The Eternals, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, and Spider-Man: No Way Home. Thank the movie gods that Dune eventually re-released in IMAX in December, after its initial October run was cut short. This meant, too, that many a movie got lost in the shuffle. Movies already challenged by older audiences staying home also had to deal with an insanely crowded marketplace (which included not just theatrical releases, but streaming movies too). It meant that some great films like Nightmare Alley and Red Rocket perhaps didn't get the attention from fans that they deserved.

So ... it was a year of many movies, and a year of a lot of very good movies. Even great ones! Where 2020 was sparse, 2021 was overstuffed. Even with all the movies I've seen (and I've seen ... a pretty good amount!), there are still a ton of strong-word-of-mouth films I still haven't got too. I still want to check out Drive My Car, Lost Daughter, and Parallel Mothers among others. But, I can only watch so much, and so, here's my list.

DANNY'S BEST MOVIES OF 2021:

1.) Nomadland

- Seen by select critics in 2020, Nomadland released to the public early this year and, over the last 12 months, no other film has stuck with me as much. A powerful, unforgettable film, I wholeheartedly endorsed the movie's Best Picture and Best Director win at the 2021 Oscars. Chloe Zhao created a masterwork with this movie, and Frances McDormand delivers an all-time great lead performance. This is a poignant film about a broken America and the people barely getting by within the systems we've created.

2.) Licorice Pizza

- I'll confess - this was a very tough year to narrow down my favorites. And with Licorice Pizza in particular, I went back and forth ... a lot. A couple of things about the movie nagged at me. I wish that writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson had ironed out some tonal issues, in which a racist character somewhat invites us to laugh with him as opposed to at him. And yet ... I get what PTA was going for. And still ... I can't shake the feeling that this was the best new release film of 2021 - a masterful look at a moment between eras, between childhood and adulthood, between failure and success. It's funny, heartbreaking, and feels "real" in a way that few other movies in recent memory do. It's got some of the year's most laugh out loud moments (Bradley Cooper!), most amazing performances (Alana Haim!), and most memorable sequences (that backwards truck drive is one for the ages). An imperfect (but such is life, and such is art) masterpiece, and one of PTA's best films to date.

3.) Pig

- Through work, I'd been hearing about this one and anticipating it for a long while. But when I finally saw it (back in theaters, baby!), my already-high expectations were not just met, but far surpassed. Because this is that rare beast - a Weird Nicholas Cage Movie that's also a Great Nicholas Cage Movie. And when those twain do meet, it's a beautiful thing indeed. Pig has it's moments of vintage Nic Cage Cage-iness, but it's also incredibly powerful and moving and thought-provoking - a soulful meditation on love and loss that hit me as hard as any movie has hit.

4.) Spencer

- This one floored me. Much like the movie Jackie, this is historical biopic as horror story - a look at how royalty - and its glaring spotlight - trapped Princess Diana in a literal and psychological prison that she wanted nothing more than to escape from. Anchored by a seminal performance from Kristen Stewart as Diana, this one is a jaw-dropper. And it's got the best movie ending of the year to boot.

5.) Dune

- The best big-budget blockbuster of 2021, Dune gave me that chill-inducing sense of awe and wonder that only a select handful of sci-fi and fantasy epics have ever been able to provide. Directed with incredible imagination and sense of scale by Denis Villeneuve, seeing Dune in IMAX was a monumental cinematic experience. Bring on Part 2.

6.) Tick, Tick ... Boom!

- This Netflix original is, somehow, Lin-Manuel Miranda's first-ever directorial effort for film - and he absolutely knocks it out of the park. A musical tour de force about the life of Rent creator Jonathan Larson, the film brilliantly weaves together Larson's music from his one man show into a meta-story about the ingenue's life and creative struggles. Filled with memorable songs, this one's also got a career-best performance from star Andrew Garfield that's more than deserving of Oscar gold.

7.) The Mitchells vs. The Machines

- From some of the same folks who gave us the brilliant Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse, The Mitchells vs. The Machines is one of the best animated family movies in recent memory. The movie is funny, timely, and has a great message about supporting your loved ones as they chase their dreams. It's also visually dazzling and full of imagination. And a stacked voice-cast, too. Highly, highly recommended.

8.) Red Rocket

- Sean Baker, who directed my top-ranked movie of 2017 with The Florida Project, does it again with Red Rocket. Simon Rex delivers an incredible lead performance (note the way he subtly and not-so-subtly changes his tone of voice depending on who he's talking to and in what context) - in a film that is a wild, memorable, satiric parable of an America on the verge of Trump-ian hell.

9.) The Father

- Another 2020 film that was only released to the public in 2021, The Father featured one of the best performances I've ever seen in a film from the legendary Anthony Hopkins (who rightfully won the Oscar at the 2021 ceremony). The film takes a grim subject - dementia - and creates a masterfully composed puzzle-box mystery around it ... leading to a film that has its share of melancholy but also never fails to entertain.

10.) The French Dispatch

- When it comes to Wes Anderson ... haters gonna hate. But for me, there are few things as awesome in film as Wes Anderson at the top of his game - and he surely is with The French Dispatch. The film has Anderson's usual hyper-attention to detail and precision and impeccably-arranged stylized aesthetic (and yes, it's quirky af). But this one's also got a real message behind the meticulously-designed sets and costumes, for The French Dispatch is, ultimately, a moving ode to the dying art of longform journalism (and, specifically, to The New Yorker). In chronicling the adventures of intrepid writers committed to delivering truth, Anderson - in his own whimsical way - reminds us of what we've lost in this social media age.

JUST MISSED THE CUT:

11.) Barb and Star Go To Vista Del Mar

- One of the funniest and most quotable comedies in years, Barb and Star was just the brand of absurdist comedy insanity we needed to get us through those dark days of early 2021. An instant cult-classic that you need to watch asap.

 

 

12.) Nightmare Alley

- This one had a lot of my favorite things - Film noir! Femme fatales! Weird carnivals! - but it still surprised me with some of the strange detours it took. It of course paid homage to classic film noir, but also with lurid shades of classic EC Comics - all with that unmistakable Guillermo Del Toro style and aesthetic. Cate Blanchett is the show-stealer, but the entire cast is excellent. Geek-out worthy for sure.

 

 

13.) The Sparks Brothers

 

- Edgar Wright's rock doc about the legendary cult-favorite band Sparks is a true marvel. I knew literally nothing about Sparks before watching this, but I now love them. This movie is one of the most creatively inspiring films I've seen in a long time - a wonderful ode to imagination, artistry, music, and free-thinking. It's the movie equivalent of a good friend geeking out to you about their favorite band. The passion is palpable.

 

14.) Minari

- Another 2020 holdover, Minari netted a well-deserved Best Supporting Actress Oscar win for Youn Yuh-jung. This story of one immigrant family struggling to live out the American dream - starring the always great Steven Yeun - is filled with fantastic performances, memorable moments, and a lot of heart. And it's surprisingly harrowing to boot.

15.) West Side Story

- Did we need another version of West Side Story? Probably not. And yet ... from moment one, this new adaptation is just Steven Spielberg, seemingly, showing off - directing the hell out of this movie with a level of skill that amazes, delights, and further cements his legend. Spielberg and writer Tony Kushner don't just dazzle us, they also cagily tweak the story to feel resonant to today's America. It's an impressive high-wire act that only two huge talents could pull off.

THE NEXT BEST:

16.) One Night in Miami

- Released in early 2021, though part of this past year's awards-season, One Night in Miami is a tour de force. The four main actors - depicting real life icons Cassius Clay, Sam Cooke, Jim Brown, and Malcolm X - were each incredible and awards-worthy. The great cast was matched by a razorsharp script that examined all sorts of issues of race, class, gender, and equality. And director Regina King nailed it too.

17.) Cyrano

- All hail Peter Dinklage. I mean, what can't this man do? In Cyrano, the Game of Thrones star kills it as not just a leading man, but a musical leading man! He sings, sword-fights, and romances his way through a hugely entertaining musical romance/adventure, directed with aplomb by Joe Wright. I can't wait for more people to see this one - it's a crowd-pleaser for sure.


18.) Annette

- What a year for Sparks! The cult-favorite band went mainstream this year - getting their own Edgar Wright doc, and penning the music for their own original movie musical to boot. And this movie, well - it's so gloriously weird. It feels like the closest we might ever get to a David Lynch musical. Adam Driver gives 1000% in this one and there are so many scenes/moments that I won't soon forget.


19.) Free Guy

- I'm so glad I got to see this movie on the big screen, because Free Guy was flat-out awesome - legitimately one of the best original blockbusters in years. Ryan Reynolds, Jodie Comer, Taika Waititi, Lil Rel, Joe Keery (Steve from Stranger Things) all killed it. The movie had ncredible action and HUGE applause moments and some big surprises to boot. I was cheering in my seat. A razor-sharp script, tons of heart - what more do you need?

20.) The Card Counter

- The Card Counter draws clear comparisons to earlier Paul Schrader works like Taxi Driver. As with that classic film, this is a story about a loner with barely-suppressed rage trying to make sense of a broken world. I was also reminded of Schrader's First Reformed, in terms of its at times almost surreal/nightmarish vibe. I found it to be mesmerizing, disturbing, thought-provoking, and at times downright jaw-dropping. Oscar Isaac is phenomenal in it, too - delivering a strange but unforgettable performance in the lead role.


21.) Benedetta

- Legendary director Paul Verhoeven - he of Robocop, Starship Troopers, and yes, Showgirls fame - has only gotten more daring and fearless in older age. And Benedetta is both an over-the-top, shock-value-for-days satire, but also surprisingly profound to boot. I was hyped going in, but this one lived up to that hype for me 100%. What a crazy film!


22.) Belfast

- Written and directed by Sir Kenneth Branagh, Belfast is full of charm and heart and nostalgia - as it's based on Branagh's own childhood growing up in Belfast in the 60's, during the start of The Troubles. This one left me misty-eyed, thanks in large part to stellar supporting turns from Judi Dench and Ciarán Hinds.


23.) The Matrix: Resurrections

- Okay, some of you led me to believe that this long-awaited new Matrix movie was some random meta side story / quasi-reboot. But this was not that - it was a full-blown sequel, baby - and it was awesome! The movie was rife with clever and winking meta-commentary, yes - but there was real epicness too. Lana Wachowski and team gave us a movie that expanded on the mythology of the original films in interesting ways - and actually retconned a bunch of stuff to make more sense and/or feel more important than it did in the sequels. There was some incredible sci-fi imagery, cool action, and IMO there was actually *more* heart than in the previous movies - namely, I cared about the central Neo/Trinity relationship more in this one than I ever had before. This one is divisive, clearly - but I come down on the side of: "it rocked!"


24.) Titane

- Titane is right up there with director Julia Ducornau's Raw as an all-time visceral, disturbing, and just plain crazy film. It's incredibly strange and uncomfortable to watch at times, but man, does Ducornau know how to create some incredible imagery. Working heavily in metaphor, she tells the story of two extremely damaged people who form a strange connection that probably shouldn't be, but somehow is.


25.) In the Heights

- I had zero familiarity with the In the Heights musical going in to this one, but man, it was really Lin Manuel Miranda at his best - clever, catchy, funny, moving, poignant, and inspirational. Jon M. Chu did an amazing job directing - adding tons of big-screen-worthy visual flair to the story. Several sequences were total showstoppers.


MORE GREAT FILMS OF 2021:


26.) King Richard

- Will Smith delivers his best performance in years, and the entire cast of King Richard is so fantastic, top to bottom. Just an impeccably written, acted, and directed feel-good film - that will no doubt net awards attention for Smith. The true-life story of Venus and Serena William's rise to the top of the tennis world - and the driven dad who got them there - is a classic crowd-pleaser.


27.) No Sudden Move

- A crackling period-piece crime caper with one hell of a cast and some surprising twists. Surprisingly timely as well. David Harbour *kills* it in this one - I think this is my favorite performance of his to date. Benicio Del Toro, Don Cheadle, Jon Hamm, Brendan Fraser, Ray Liotta, Bill Duke, Amy Siemetz, Kieron Culkin, and <redacted> are great too (it's truly an all-star cast). Another fascinating and thought-provoking film from the always-unpredictable Steven Soderbergh


28.) The White Tiger

- Another early 2021 release that was a 2020 holdover, The White Tiger was a unique and fresh take on the classic rags to riches story - vibrant, colorful, unpredictable, and darkly funny. And a scathing and fascinating look at Indian society as well.


29.) Zola

- A funny and entertaining fever-dream of a film that's also got a lot to say beneath the surface about social media, trash culture, feminism, and America (among other things). Amazing cast, and Janicza Bravo directs the heck out of this one too.

30.) Judas and the Black Messiah

- A powerful film about the rise of the Black Panther movement and the controversy it created, this one features two great performances from Daniel Kaluuya and Lakeith Stanfield, and is a fascinating look at a not-often-dramatized chapter in the fight for racial equality.

31.) A Quiet Place Pt. 2

- With quick, no-filler pacing, a smart script, some *killer* set-pieces, nonstop tension, and a great cast - A Quiet Place Pt. 2 is arguably one of the best horror sequels ever. John Krasinski ... man, this guy can seriously direct, too.


32.) Werewolves Within

- A nearly note-perfect horror/comedy/whodunnit that's often incredibly funny, Werewolves Within also has an amazing cast of "oh hey, it's that hilarious person from _________" actors. Seriously though - this is one of the best indie movies of the year and a must-watch new cult classic.


33.) House of Gucci

- What a year for Ridley Scott. I enjoyed this WAY more than I thought I might. It's ridiculously entertaining and insanely over the top (fitting, I suppose, given the subject matter). Adam Driver and in particular Lady Gaga are great, but ho-lee lord Jared Leto as Paolo Gucci is just INSANE. See also, Al Pacino. I’m going to need memes of his epic “NOOO! I’M DEAD!” freakout scene immediately.

34.) Riders of Justice

-  A darkly satirical revenge story that also has a genuine emotional core. Mads Mikkelsen is great (and this continues what I assume will be his Danish midlife crisis trilogy). Seriously though, highly recommended.


35.) Passing

- This Netflix original is a great directorial effort from Rebecca Hall. Ruth Negga and Tessa Thompson are excellent as the leads, in a film that is a thought-provoking, fascinating exploration of race, sex, and class in recent American history.


36.) The Harder They Fall

- A hyper-stylized Western revenge story with some serious Tarantino vibes, it featured an amazing ensemble cast and memorable characters - and some real visual panache from director Jeymes Samuel. Plus, a *killer* ending that really sealed the deal for me.


37.) The Many Saints of Newark

- I really enjoyed this long-awaited Sopranos sequel. The cast - from Ray Liotta to Corey Stohl (so great as younger Uncle June here) to Vera Farmiga to Michael Gandolfini was really strong. A welcome return to this world of the show.

38.) The Last Duel

- Anytime the great Ridley Scott gives us an historical epic, I'm all in. But, this one, really, is a much more deliberate and ambiguous drama than something like Gladiator - giving us the same story from multiple perspectives, a la Rashomon - in order to make a very timely point about how patriarchal societies can obscure the truth at the expense of women, and how that very much needs to change. Adam Driver and Matt Damon are both very good, while Jodie Comer (of Killing Eve fame) steals the show.


39.) PG: Psycho Goreman

- This movie is pure joy. A hilarious and ridiculous hand-crafted homage to 80's sci-fi and horror. A new midnight movie classic. This one deserves your love, so go rent it asap.

40.) The Alpinist

- An absolutely crazy story - filled with fascinating characters, as well as incredible freehand climbing footage. 2021 was a great year for docs, but this is one of the best.


41.) I Care a Lot

- A pitch-black satire of American greed, moral hollowness, and kill-or-be-killed mentality. Rosamund Pike definitely earned herself her Golden Globe in this one. And Peter Dinklage - so good.


42.) F9: The Fast & Furious Saga

- This much-delayed sequel was the perfect movie to welcome audiences back to <insert Vin Diesel voice> "the movies." An insanely over the top and breathtakingly entertaining bit of popcorn-movie magic, F9 was a step above 8 and featured kick-ass action and plenty of awesomely insane set-pieces.

43.) Spider-Man: No Way Home

- An incredibly fun spectacle, NWH had the epic, big-event, can't-miss feel that was a bit lacking in this year's other Marvel movies. But the funny thing is ... despite all the multiversal adventuring, big-name hero and villain appearances, and giant action scenes ... really, the reason, 100%, why this movie works as well as it does is simple: the relationships between Peter and his girlfriend MJ, and between Peter and his best friend Ned. It's a good reminder that no matter how big the spectacle, none of it matters if your story doesn't have a beating heart.


44.) Last Night in Soho

- Soho has some of the most visually-stunning scenes of Edgar Wright's directing career. Wright channels movies like The Shining and Suspiria to create a unique horror-mystery. It's fascinating to see Wright swing for the fences and try for something different, and I can't wait to see how he continues to evolve from here and what he tackles next.

45.) Encanto

- Encanto is a smaller-scale story vs. a lot of animated Disney movies, but it's got really fun music from Lin Manuel Miranda and a great and unique main character in Mirabel. There's also a great message here and some moments that I think will really resonate.

 

46.) Shiva Baby

- A dark comedy that's also practically a horror movie, Shiva Baby is so dead-on accurate in the way it portrays the awkardness and agony of coming of age in an overbearing Jewish family that I almost found it hard to watch at times. A really cool little indie film.

47.) Coda

- This Apple TV original is a very sweet film with some fantastic performances and a seriously great cast as well. Emilia Jones delivers what feels like a breakout performance as the lead (though she's also great on Locke & Key!).

 48.) The Tragedy of Macbeth

- Joel Coen's Shakespeare adaptation is more straightforward than you might expect from one half of the storied Coen Bros filmmaking duo - but it's also one heck of a film. Visually stunning and anchored by a commanding lead performance from Denzel Washington, the film is arguably one of the definitive filmed versions of the material.


49.) The Power of the Dog

- Jane Campion's enigmatic Western thriller is a slow-burn ... and the kind of film that almost demands multiple viewings to fully wrap your head around its subtly-revealed plot. That's not to say that the film, as a whole, is subtle. It's a strange, hypnotic movie filled with evocative imagery, dialogue, and character moments - with Benedict Cumberbatch's lead performance being one of the year's most unforgettable. 


50.) Ghostbusters: Afterlife

- A fun reinterpretation of Ghostbusters as an Amblin-esque kid-adventure movie, this one hit my nostalgia buttons and left me eager for a sequel. Mckenna Grace was SO good in this too. She completely steals the movie as the new franchise hero, and I'd love to see her character's further adventures.

HONORABLE MENTIONS - OTHER RECOMMENDED MOVIES FROM THIS YEAR:

- The Eyes of Tammy Faye

- The King's Man

- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

- The Green Knight

- C'mon, C'mon

- The Suicide Squad

- Don't Look Up

- Reminiscence

- Roadrunner

- The United States vs. Billie Holiday

- Final Account

- Black Widow

- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

- Candyman

- Copshop

- Halloween Kills

- Venom: There Will Be Carnage

- Fear Street 1994 / 1666 / 1978

- Under the Volcano

- Stillwater

- Malignant

- Port Authority

INDIVIDUAL 2021 AWARDS (Oscar 2022-Eligible Movies Only):


BEST LEAD ACTOR:

1.) Andrew Garfield - Tick, Tick ... Boom!
2.) Simon Rex - Red Rocket
3.) Peter Dinklage - Cyrano
4.) Nicholas Cage - Pig
5.) Tie: Will Smith - King Richard, Oscar Isaac - The Card Counter

(2021-Eligible Additions: Anthony Hopkins - The Father, Steven Yeun - Minari)


BEST LEADING ACTRESS:

1.) Kristen Stewart - Spencer
2.) Alana Haim - Licorice Pizza
3.) Agathe Rousselle - Titane
3.) Rachel Zegler - West Side Story
4.) Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo - Barb and Star Go To Vista Del Mar

(2021-Eligible Additions: Frances McDormand - Nomadland, Rosamund Pike - I Care A Lot)


BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR:

1.) Ciarán Hinds - Belfast
2.) Bradley Cooper - Licorice Pizza
3.) Al Pacino - House of Gucci
4.) Jared Leto - House of Gucci
5.) Mike Faist - West Side Story

(2021-Eligible Additions: Leslie Odom Jr. - One Night in Miami, Daniel Kaluuya and Lakeith Stanfield - Judas and the Black Messiah)


BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS:

1.) Cate Blanchett - Nightmare Alley
2.) Ruth Negga - Passing
3.) Judie Dench - Belfast
4.) Ariana DeBose - West Side Story
5.) Rebecca Ferguson - Dune

(2021-Eligible Additions: Youn Yuh-jung - Minari)


BEST DIRECTOR:

1.) Paul Thomas Anderson - Licorice Pizza
2.) Denis Villeneuve - Dune
3.) Lin-Manuel Miranda - Tick, Tick ... Boom!
4.) Steven Spielberg - West Side Story
5.) Wes Anderson - The French Dispatch

(2021-Eligible Additions: Chloe Zhao - Nomadland)


BEST SCREENPLAY:

1.) Spencer
2.) Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar
3.) The French Dispatch
4.) Zola
5.) The Card Counter
6.) Pig
7.) Free Guy
8.) The Mitchells vs. The Machines
9.) Licorice Pizza
10.) Werewolves Within

(2021-Eligible Additions: Nomadland, The White Tiger, The Father, Minari, One Night in Miami)


And that's a wrap on the Best of 2021. Yeah ... I'm ready for a nap. See you guys in 2022 - hopefully in theaters, probably on Netflix, and who knows - maybe in the metaverse!

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2's Great Cast Can't Quite Overcome Its Tangled Web of a Script

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2 Review:

- There's a lot of rage out there being directed towards THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2. On one level, I get it: the movie is, in many ways, emblematic of everything that is frustrating with the current blockbuster movie landscape. On one hand, you have the mighty Marvel Studios seemingly doing just about everything right. On the other hand, the other studios - especially when it comes to beloved Marvel characters - well, not so much. Everyone wants to see Spider-Man revert to Marvel Studios, star in the next Avengers movie, and just generally be in movies as awesome as, say, Captain America: The Winter Soldier. And then there's the other thing that Spider-Man 2 represents, which is an increasing frustration with empty-feeling blockbusters that seem to feel less like a coherent story and more like a collection of marketing-friendly moments. It's likely no coincidence that a lot of the recent big movies that felt the brunt of this type of criticism were written by the Kurtzman-Orci team. In the past, I've defended some of the movies that they've written. Star Trek: Into Darkness was one where, whatever failings the plot had, the crackerjack direction of JJ Abrams mostly made up for it. But THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2 has some of Kurtzman and Orci's most glaring, most perplexing plot-holes yet. And when you combine those very noticeable logic-gaps with the perception that these films exist largely as a way to keep rights from reverting to Marvel ... a real dark cloud of cynicism begins to creep in.

With all that said, I enjoyed the movie. I like director Marc Webb a lot, and he really nails the look and feel of Spider-Man. The majority of the action scenes look fantastic, and the physical/visceral essence of Spider-Man is captured better than it's ever been. What's more, the cast is, again, excellent. I liked Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst in the original Sam Raimi trilogy, but I also always felt that there was something a little off about them. Maguire was always too dopey for me - he never seemed like the wise-crackin' Spider-Man of the comics and cartoons. But Andrew Garfield - to me, he's the definitive Peter Parker and the definitive Spider-Man. What the movie - and Garfield - get totally right is the way in which Garfield's Spider-Man does his superhero thing: swinging into battle with fluidity and grace, all the while kicking ass while never failing to accompany each strike with a well-timed quip. Spidey feels like Spidey. And Spidey - and Peter's - relationship with Emma Stone's Gwen Stacy is superb. Say what you want about this film, but you can't deny that the scenes between Garfield and Stone sparkle with a chemistry and likability that was never really there with Maguire and Dunst's Mary Jane Watson in the originals. Chalk it up to the real-life relationship between the two actors, sure. But I do think that you've got to give some credit to both the script and to Webb (who made his mark with the charming rom-com 500 Days of Summer) for the equally-charming banter and evolving relationship between the two leads. And there's the rub: aside from a couple of fun action scenes, what THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2 does best, by a country mile, is the teen romance stuff.

But what's super-weird about the movie is that the Peter-Gwen scenes, as in the first film, feel pretty naturalistic - almost like something out of Webb's 500 Days - and yet, many other scenes in the film are seemingly from an entirely different movie. A superhero film from the dark days of the mid-90's, when Joel Schumaker gave us Batman villains that would make you laugh at their ridiculousness, if you weren't too busy cringing from their awfulness. Suffice it to say, the tonal shifts in this sequel come often and come hard. Relative to the first Amazing Spider-Man, it's sort of jarring. That whole film seemed to be going for a bit of a darker, edgier vibe than the Raimi trilogy. Here, the Peter-Gwen stuff, mostly, retains the tone of the first film. But the scenes introducing the new villains - in particular Jamie Foxx's over-the-top-to-the-extreme Electro - reminded me less of anything in the first ASM, and more of stuff I had semi-blocked out of my memory from the infamous likes of Batman Forever and Batman & Robin.

If there's one major disaster in THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2, it's Electro. And oddly, the character of Max Dillon starts out as sort of interesting, but soon completely devolves into a guy who just wants to destroy stuff and kill Spider-Man for no real reason. From the first moment we meet Max, something, to me, felt off. Foxx seemed to be playing him too broad, too cartoonish and silly for the movie that he's in. Still, the movie seemed to be going for something interesting by making Max a truly tragic villain - a well-meaning if slightly-strange guy who can't seem to catch a break. A low-level technician at OsCorp who is sort of a punching bag, the Spider-Man-obsessed sad-sack gets a life-changing shock when an on-the-job accident transforms him into the bright-blue, electricity-charged Electro. But as soon as Max makes the transition to supervillainy, he inexplicably seems to lose all traces of humanity. And Spider-Man, despite knowing Max's tragic origins, seems to have little regard for the once-amiable dude's well-being. Whatever potential Max had to be a very different sort of villain very quickly evaporates. In short order, he's just some low-rent Dr. Manhattan-looking antagonist who wants to fight.

The generic nature of Spider-Man's fights with Electro highlights another major oddity about the film in general: Peter Parker is sort of a jerk. It's not something that's there, overtly, in the script. But time and again, Peter doesn't seem to have much in the way of compassion. He promptly stops caring about Electro's tragic origins. And when his childhood friend, Harry Osborn, asks Peter to help him secure some of Spider-Man's blood - which Harry believes might be the key to curing the degenerative disease that's killing him - Peter flatly refuses. In reality, the problem is not so much with any obvious agenda on the movie's part to make Peter a jerk. It all stems back to the script's jumpiness. 1+1 doesn't equal 2 in this movie. Electro is a tragic villain, and then not. Harry finds out that his middle-aged dad is dying from a slow-burn degenerative disease, finds out that he has the same ailment, and then for some reason is sure that he has only a matter of weeks to live. Peter refuses to give Harry any of his Spider-enhanced blood, but as far as we can tell, there's no good reason why he wouldn't. Basically, Peter - as far as he knows - could save the life of his friend with a quick blood sample - but refuses for reasons that aren't quite clear to us. Only later does Peter actually find out that the radioactive spider that bit him, that made him Spider-Man, was genetically-engineered by Peter's scientist dad to work only on members of the Parker family. Unnecessary changes to the mythos aside, this is a clear case where clearly Plot Point A is coming to light after Plot Point B, when the reverse should have been true.

This is just one example (and you can find many exhaustive articles online calling out many more) of why THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2 has, regrettably, one of the most poorly-structured plots of any recent big blockbuster movie I can think of. Countless plot points seem conspicuously omitted, only to resurface after the fact. Character motivations surface up out of thin air, making characters feel two-dimensional and silly.

Harry Osborn's transition to the Green Goblin is another example of this. In Raimi's original trilogy, Harry slowly but surely turned against Peter and Spider-Man. Here, Dane DeHaan's Harry is set up from his first scene as having a dark side. But he goes from merely dark and brooding to evil and murderous with the flip of a switch. The whole thing feels rushed. It's a shame because a.) DeHaan is a great actor and does gradual villainy well (see: Chronicle), and b.) Harry Osborn is by far the more compelling of the movie's two villains, but what could have been a gripping, movie-spanning turn to the dark side is instead a total rush-job. When Harry eventually becomes the spiky-haired, green-skinned, sharp-toothed, stark-raving-mad Goblin, it's sadly pretty laughable. Just as Electro is set up to be the tragic villain, only to become a generic criminal, so too does Harry go from multidimensional adversary to random rogue who just wants to blow stuff up and kill people. Strangely, the goofiness of the villains is only amplified by their costumes and character-design. As much as Spider-Man looks exactly right, the bad guys look like conceptual design-work gone very-wrong.

The movie seems to just give up on trying to tie any of this together thematically. Peter and Gwen's romantic storyline is completely separate from the story of the two villains. And the two villains' plotlines are also completely separate from each other - eventually coming together in the same way that a kid might mash two random action figures together - just because.  What this means is that when the big finale brings Peter, Gwen, Electro, and the Goblin together for the big final showdown, it all feels very random, and there's little emotional weight to it all. In a different Spider-Man movie, that could have been not-that-big-a-deal. But, without spoiling anything, THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2 is *trying* for a big, huge, emotional moment in its final act. And that moment, which should have been absolutely devastating, is instead only marginally affecting. Why? Because it's so forced in the context of the story, and so removed tonally and plot-wise from anything that's come before.

Going back to Kurtzman and Orci, lack of structural integrity in their films has been the biggest knock against them for years. They tend to do well with the witty banter and they tend to have a knack for setting up imaginative set-piece sequences that translate well from page to screen. But for some reason, plot always takes a huge back seat. Now, historically, blockbuster action movies don't always have the tightest of plots - and there's many a big blockbuster that is ripe to be picked apart by those looking for logic gaps and plot holes. But THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2 does feel particularly problematic. Maybe it's because the movie is so good in other ways, from the eye-popping visuals to the great chemistry between its leads. Maybe it's that the gaps here are ones so central not just to the plot, but to the core characterizations of the main players, that you can't just separate them out in your mind. I mean, look, in Star Trek: Into Darkness, it annoyed me that Spock only learns about the extent of Khan's evil through a Spock Prime-provided info-dump. But at least in that case, the structural laziness was solely an issue with the plotting, and didn't really affect characterization. Here, the issues are much more interconnected, and less easy to isolate. Peter not helping Harry by giving his blood isn't just a plot hole, but, like I said, it makes Peter look like an irrational jerk. Harry and Max's villainous meltdowns aren't just examples of bad plotting - their sudden transformations into uber-badguys completely undermines the characterization that had been used to establish who they were as people. It was only recently that Captain America: The Winter Soldier gave us a superhero film that smartly delivered a plot about a hero having to fight against his former best friend. In that film, the Cap vs. Winter Soldier conflict was not just the film's plot, but the center of its entire emotional core. Here, Harry vs. Peter is just a rushed set-piece. The emotional core that should be there - two lifelong best friends tragically having to fight to the death - is almost entirely absent.

At some point too, you can't just blame Kurtzman and Orci for this. As director, Marc Webb has to tie each scene together, and has to find that connective tissue, that emotional core, at the heart of his film. But because scenes feel randomly-assembled, and character motivations seem to come and go on a whim, all of the movie's big emotional beats hit only at the surface level. There are a lot of moments that feel like they are, perhaps, *supposed* to be emotionally resonant, but that simply feel cold and unaffecting. We know that Webb is capable of better. I'll still defend the first Amazing Spider-Man as a very solid, well-done superhero flick that was, overall, a lot more effective and affecting than its sequel. Now, the first film had a different set of writers (some of whom worked on Raimi's trilogy), and more leeway to breathe and just sort of establish this new take on Spider-Man. The second film seems to be boxed in by all kinds of studio pressure. I don't know the full-story, but this, again, feels like a throwback to the 90's when it was all about more=better. Two villains are better than one. Twelve subplots are better than three (and indeed, this film is overloaded with mostly-useless subplots - from Aunt May's training as a nurse to the secret history of Peter's dad and Norman Osborn). Ultimately, the film seems to be building to some vaguely-outlined Sinister Six movie that, again, feels less like a natural extension of the story, and more like a studio-mandated directorate to give Spiderman his own connected movie universe - just like what's happening over at Marvel Studios. There's really no solid narrative through-line that takes us from this film to Sinister Six. It's just "oh hey, remember those villains from this film? Well, there's a bunch more that we haven't shown you yet, and soon they may just decide to team up!" So you've got to wonder: did Kurtzman and Orci's tendency to place minimal importance on structure, combine with the studio's insistence that various stuff be unnaturally shoehorned into the film, to create a perfect storm of superhero schlock? Doesn't seem too far-fetched.

And yet ... the movie generates enough goodwill - through Peter and Gwen's charm, through the cool visuals, through the fantastic score, and through the odd individual scene that really works well - to help sort of cover-up all of the gaping holes. I mean, man, the movie's first big Spider-Man set-piece (following a slightly meh flashback opening to Peter's dad's final days), is pretty awesome. We see Spidey take on Paul Giamatti's low-rent criminal Rhino in a pretty glorious sequence that nails Spider-Man to a T (Giamatti is mostly wasted, but that's besides the point here). Everything I said before about Spider-Man feeling 100% spot-on in this film - from the look of the costume to the wise-cracks to the way he fights - is all there in this sequence. The scene is all Webb, and it's Webb at his best. I don't know if anyone has directed better Spider-Man action sequences, ever, and that's a credit to the director's talent and feel for the character.

For those moments where THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2 so perfectly nails ol' web-head, I think that it is well-worth checking out, despite its flaws. Certain moments will bring a smile to the face of new and longtime Spidey fans alike. And for those who are able to tune out all the sound and fury of the villains and larger plot, what you're left with is a very charming and likable love story between two goofy-yet-lovable kids named Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy. At the same time, this is a long movie, and one that's jam-packed with characters and plot. And at some point, the plot holes and weird characterizations and goofiness of the villains begin to weigh down the movie. And ultimately, the weight causes the movie - held up by the flimsiest of structures - to collapse, and sink. This is a film that's heavy with plot, and the plot simply doesn't hold up - and what's more, it actively undermines the film's broader emotional and thematic intentions.

I think that this director and this cast are more than capable of giving us a classic Spider-Man movie. They already gave us a really solid one with the first film. But here, things begin to unravel a bit, and now I am slightly worried for the health of this franchise. This sequel certainly has its moments. Like I said, I enjoyed it, overall. But it's also a prime example of how a big franchise film can start to go off the rails, by worrying so much about being a big franchise film that it forgets the basics of good storytelling. The first ASM defied the odds and successfully re-booted Spider-Man. But hey, Spider-Man himself said it: with great power comes great responsibility. And filmmakers should have faith that if you prioritize first the responsibility to tell a good story, then good things will follow.

My Grade: B-

Hey, True Believers! Spidey Returns in THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN!

 THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN Review:

- No matter what, there is going to a specter hanging over this latest effort to bring Spiderman to the big-screen. It was only a few short years ago that the third Sam Raimi-directed Spidey film was released, a film that ended up being the finale of a trilogy that was a big part of the modern superhero cinematic boom - a trilogy that made Stan Lee and Steve Ditko's 1960's creation more popular than ever. And anyone who follows movies knows that this latest Spiderman flick was a movie that, essentially, *had* to be made by Sony. If they didn't make a new one, they'd forfeit the rights to the character, and the property would revert back to Marvel Studios. So yes, we get a new Spiderman movie now, but if Sony hadn't retained the rights, then hey, Peter Parker and friends would be back home at the House of Ideas, free to co-mingle with Iron Man, Captain America, and Nick Fury. So sure, there is a certain cloud if cynicism and corporate politics that hangs over The Amazing Spider-Man. And yet, my own long-held skepticism about the film slowly but surely began to wear away as I watched it. No, this one never reaches the loopy comic book highs of the still-brilliant Spiderman 2 (the pinnacle of the previous series), but it helps make the same ol' origin story semi-fresh again - with a more-than-up-to-the-task cast, a slightly darker and more modern feel, and plenty of classic Spidey action.

The fact is, even if Sam Raimi's Spiderman 3 has a small but vocal group of supporters, I've rarely seen a more disappointing entry in a beloved blockbuster franchise. To me, Spiderman 3 was a huge black mark in Marvel movie history, and so I was ready for a clean slate. Sam Raimi remains one of my all-time favorite directors, and he did great things with the character. But there were certain things that did intrigue me about a reboot. For one, I've become a big fan of Andrew Garfield, and he seemed to be a great choice to play Peter Parker. Tobey Maguire always seemed a little off to me as Spiderman, so I was eager to see if Garfield could bring a little more of the wise-cracking, smart-alecky Spiderman of the comics to the big screen. As it turns out, Garfield does a pretty great job here. He is appropriately awkward as Peter, but there's also a toughness in him that makes him feel like a natural as a superhero. He also has great chemistry with Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy, Peter's pre-Mary Jane gal pal. No, they don't have the will-they-or-won't-they drama that Peter and Mary Jane did in the earlier films, but that's okay. It's fun to see Peter with someone who's less a fantasy object and more a partner in crime. So yeah, even though Garfield and Stone are pushing believability a bit as high school students, I really enjoyed both, and they definitely brought some real depth and sense of fun to the two lead roles. They've created versions of Peter and Gwen who I'd gladly follow into future sequels.

And that's the thing with this movie - its biggest accomplishment is probably that it lays some fantastic groundwork for future sequels, establishing a great new cast and a fresh start for Spiderman's cinematic adventures. Not that the movie isn't well-done and entertaining in its own right - it's just that, again, the shadow of the Raimi films looms large. What I mean is that you can almost feel this one stretching to avoid major beats from the first Raimi movie. The film's villain, Dr. Curt Connors - aka The Lizard - works at OsCorp, but Norman and Harry Osbourne don't factor into the film. Peter still takes the inspiration for his Spidey costume from a pro-wrestler, but this film avoids the protracted wrasslin' sequence of Raimi's. Uncle Ben utters a variation of his famous credo - "with great power comes great responsibility" - but paraphrases, in a moment that seems to scream "this is not the Spiderman you know." And yet ... certain sequences mirror the Raimi original almost to a T. Even the font of the movie's title is almost identical (calculated move by Sony, given that they later co-opted that font for the PS3?). Point being, movie fans now have a taste of what comic book fans have long suffered through - having to see your favorite character's growth endlessly stunted by a continual cycle of reboots and retcons, the same origin stories told over and over and over again - always tweaked for more modern audiences, but always familiar to longtime fans. So here it is, mainstream: your chance to know the unique anguish of the comic book fanboy. Ironically though, the film reintroduces one of the main concepts that comics fans complained was absent from Raimi's films - the idea that Spiderman's webshooters are mechanical - invented by boy-genius Peter Parker - rather than an organic part of his spider bite-induced transformation. Personally, I can take or leave the mechanical webshooters - while they are comic book cannon, it *does* seem a little silly that web-shooting isn't just a power of Peter's ... ya' know?

Still, The Amazing Spider-Man surprised me in a number of ways. Not through any crazy plot twists, per se, but more so in how much it actually did get right. I mentioned the strength of Garfield and Stone as the leads, but let me mention Martin Sheen as Uncle Ben. He rocks. Sheen plays the hell out of ol' Uncle Ben, and the strength of his performance really anchors the early part of the film. Sally Field is also really good as Aunt May. No, she isn't the vegetable-esque grandma of the older comics, but that's fine by me. At this point, I don't mind May being more of a three-dimensional character and less a one-note joke. Another big surprise for me was Denis Leary a Captain Stacey, father of Gwen. Leary makes what could have been a minor character into a memorable badass, and really steals a couple of key scenes. I also enjoyed Rhys Ifans as Curt Connors. While his motivations for villainy were a little silly, Ifans did a nice job, I thought, of making The Lizard into a more multidimensional villain than probably was written on the page. I know some couldn't get over some of the goofier aspects of The Lizard's evil plan (he wants to ... turn all of NYC into ... lizard people?!), but it didn't bother me that much given that Ifans sells the character well and makes him into a formidable menace. And no, I didn't love the character design of the CGI-created Lizard (looked more like Killer Croc from Batman), but I also didn't think it was that bad. Personally, I was won over by the fact that we had numerous, fun, kinetic action scenes of Spiderman fighting a giant reptilian monster.

On that note, I was also surprised by how much I enjoyed the film's action scenes. They're mostly smaller-scale and less over-the-top than some of the big set-pieces in the Raimi films, but I thought there was some really solid stuff here. The action definitely has a fast-paced, videogame-esque sheen to it, but I thought that there were some pretty kickass moments, with plenty of interesting, web-slinging moves that we've yet to see on the big-screen. A fight between Spidey and The Lizard that takes place in the halls of Peter's high school was particularly fun and innovative-feeling (and featured a fantastic cameo from Stan Lee!), and was a major highlight. I also admired the use of first-person during a few web-swinging sequences - if it was overdone, it could have been annoying, but given that it was used sparingly in a couple of key moments, I enjoyed it. That said, Marc Webb is a talented director, but he follows in the footsteps of one of the most visually-innovative modern directors in Sam Raimi. All three previous Spidey flicks had a couple of those jaw-dropping, vintage Raimi moments (think the Doc Ock transformation scene in Spiderman 2) that helped elevate those films. I don't know that the new movie has that one sort of instant-classic visual moment, per se. But it still looks great overall, and given that this was Webb's big leap to blockbuster action, I think it's a great first step.

Where Webb is 100% in his comfort zone though is when dealing with the quirky-cute Peter/Gwen relationship. It's no surprise that the guy who made the charming 500 Days of Summer would do a bang-up job with the young romance portion of The Amazing Spider-Man, but still ... Maybe it's just that we've had to endure so many lame, forced-feeling romances in superhero movies over the years, but man, this one was refreshing. Not for any melodramatic stuff that occurred, but more so just for the little moments of banter and flirtation between Gwen and Peter. In short, most superhero movies - yes, even the mighty Christopher Nolan Batman films - make you cringe at the romance subplots. But not here - you can't help but root for these crazy, mixed-up kids to find love.

One final surprise for me was that, despite being smaller-scale, the movie had a couple of big, heart-filled emotional beats that caught me off-guard. Maybe I'm just a sucker for any superhero story where a whole city rallies around their local hero (I am), but I thought that the film did a nice job of remembering that Spiderman is of and for New York City. Even if it's a bit darker than the Raimi films, this one still has a very New York feel to it (Garfield even does a pretty good NYC accent), and I liked that - even if the setup to get there was a bit contrived - the movie eventually paints Spiderman as a hero to the people of New York, even if the police and media think of him as a menace. And, even if the Raimi films owed more visually to the old Lee/Ditko comics, I still thought that this movie maintained a bit of that old Marvel feel, with certain shots evoking the comics both old and new. Sure, purists might complain about superficial updates like Peter now being a skateboarder, but to me, there was no doubt that this was the Peter Parker we've known and loved. In particular, the way that Garfield's Parker seemed to revel in the web-slinging and wise-cracking ... that to me was more OG Peter Parker than the version we often glimpsed in the old trilogy.

The biggest problem with the movie? It feels like it's in too much of a hurry. It almost seems like the movie is on the same page as us going in: "yes, we realize you want to skip past the origin and get to the good stuff." That's fine, but the movie is very much structured as a full-on origin story, and so it jumps between all the usual origin-story beats (Peter is bitten, he's horrified by his new and uncontrollable abilities, he goes off and tests his abilities, he puts on a ski-cap and all-black and foils a crime or two, he dons a prototype version of his costume, he constructs the actual costume, etc., etc., etc.). It can all feel very by-the-numbers - and so you have to ask ... did we need it all? I always think back to the beginning of Grant Morrison's All-Star Superman, where he brilliantly lays out the classic Superman origin story in one page, and then gets right to the good stuff. I'm not sure why that couldn't have been done here. Because the side-effect of spending so much time on the by-now tired origin story tropes is that we miss out on some potentially cool moments that are only briefly touched on. For example, it feels like we really only see about 3/4 of the full Lizard story. We never find out how he lost his arm, we never learn exactly how and when Dr. Connors is able to transform back-and-forth into a reptilian monster. We never get the full explanation of his sinister plan for the citizens of New York. And we never see much of the hinted-at inner conflict he has, where part of him has affection for Peter and Gwen, and part of him - the monster part - wants to destroy them. Some similar jumpiness exists in the Peter/Gwen relationship arc. There are tons of great little moments between them, but there's also a slight sense that we've skipped over some key beats in their story. Of course, a lot of these sorts of problems are just inherent to translating serialized comics to two-hour movies ... these stories were designed to be multi-part soap operas, and so you inevitably miss out when cramming everything into one film - particularly an origin film.

And yes, some random other moments in the film bothered me. Ironically, many were similar pet peeves I had with the Raimi films. For one, I get that you're paying your star a lot of money, and thus don't want him behind a mask the whole time, but DAMMIT ... Spider-Man needs to keep his mask on when in costume. For one thing, he's got a secret ID to protect, and for another, Spider-Man looks cool with the mask on, but without it, he's just a nerd in tights. But similarly to the previous flicks, The Amazing Spider-Man finds every contrived way in the book to get Garfield to lose the mask. Lame. Also, few superhero flicks have ever done a good job of having heroes interact with kids (Captain America is one of the only ones that had a great hero-meets-kid scene). And this movie has a very groan-inducing Spidey-saves-annoying-kid moment that grated on me (even more so because Spider-Man took his mask off in the process of saving him for no good reason). Finally - and this has been a problem with most Marvel movies to date - the score is ultimately pretty forgettable and not iconic like it should be. Spider-Man deserves an awesome theme, dammit. Get Hans Zimmer or John Williams on the phone, Marvel, and stat.

Ultimately, The Amazing Spider-Man didn't necessarily 100% wow me as a standalone movie, but at the same time ... I thoroughly enjoyed it and liked a lot of the creative choices it made. It did give me a lot of hope for the franchise going forward, and I could see a sequel really blossoming once more distance has been achieved from the Raimi movies, and now that the origin is out of the way. Certainly, this is a huge step up from the abysmal Spiderman 3, and certainly, this is one of the better big blockbuster films we've gotten so far this summer. Those who say this is one of the worst Marvel movies are, quite frankly, on crack. No, this isn't The Avengers ... but this to me is a crowd-pleaser - a fun and charming superhero flick that's true to the spirit of Spider-Man.

My Grade: B+