A top grade superhero movie that works on many levels, The Amazing Spider-Man is an impeccably cast and directed reboot sure to make a superstar out of its leading man.

Ah, the reboot. When the sequel, prequel or remake won’t suffice, the reboot comes to the rescue of Hollywood studios looking to milk more money from their franchise films.

In the case of The Amazing Spider-Man an overhaul was needed due to two factors: First Spider-Man 3 saw it’s director Sam Raimi push his blockbuster franchise to camp territory (ala the Batman movies), and second Columbia Pictures needed to hold on to those exclusive movie rights lest they be reverted back to Marvel Studios and their partners at Disney.

Yet while the existence of The Amazing Spider-Man is all business, its end result is so much more. This is a blockbuster with heart, humour and brilliantly staged scenes both dramatic and action packed. In other words, this is a reboot that’s up there in quality to Batman Begins and Casino Royale.

The new face of the Spider-Man franchise is Andrew Garfield an American born, British raised actor who since his 2007 breakout in Boy A has formed quite the career including a lauded (and Oscar snubbed) performance in The Social Network.

Garfield (of course) plays Peter Parker, a sweet hearted outcast egghead who is picked on at school, and holds a major crush on fellow science nut Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone). When following the clues to his parents’ disappearance leads him to genetic scientist Dr. Curt Connors (Rhys Ifans), Peter is bitten by a radioactive spider and…well, you know the rest.

Casting plays a big role in superhero movies, and The Amazing Spider-Man features an impressive ensemble who play characters that are fleshed out and made real (courtesy of a script from acclaimed scribes James Vanderbilt, Alvin Sargent and Steve Kloves), despite the fantasy comic book world they live in.

Garfield hits all of the right notes – the endearing awkwardness, the guilt, the cockiness, the sincere belief in right and wrong – to own the role of Peter Parker/Spider-Man, thrusting himself into deserved A-list status. Good too is Stone as Garfield’s love interest, bringing that sexy quirky vibe of hers while sharing palpable chemistry with her leading man.

Then there is Martin Sheen, who provides the right amount of gravitas and wisdom as Parker’s Uncle Ben, a vital character in the Spider-Man universe who instils the moral grounding framework in the web-slinging hero. While he does not utter those iconic words “with great power with great responsibility”, Sheen espouses those ideals with a moral firmness that is simply inherent in his soul.  

Directing The Amazing Spider-Man is (the aptly named) Mark Webb, who made a name for himself with the visually zany rom-com 500 Days of Summer.  Webb successfully establishes a great sense of character (key to the best superhero movies) before moving on to well-staged action sequences that while dizzingly thrilling with its web slinging exploits and athletic fight sequences, are not as strong as the superbly paced character development and dialogue exchanges between the characters.

Don’t fear action fans, for this is a good thing. Instead of the usual superhero suit ‘em up and punch ‘em out, Webb strives for and achieves in creating a superhero movie of many facets: Adolescent love story, coming of age drama, superhero soap opera, visually impressive action thriller. Webb weaves it all to make for a total package blockbuster and quite the new beginning for an old favourite.