Film 2 - The Amazing Spiderman

This epic reinvented tale of Spiderman tells the story of how Peter Parker was bitten by a radioactive spider, after visiting Dr Connors who he goes for answers after finding on of his fathers old pieces of work. Upon discovering his new found powers, Peter witnesses the shocking murder of his uncle and begins tracking down his killer. However in the process Dr Connors has made what he thinks is the cure to regrowing his missing arms. But instead he mutates into a massive rampaging lizard which Peter (aka Spiderman) has to stop once and for all.

In this film, it clearly defines the classic superhero conventions including:

• Having special powers - after being bitten by a radioactive spider, Peter suddenly finds he can shoot ultrastrong webs from his wrists, climb buildings as easily as blinking and having highly developed senses.
• A moral code - at first Peter seeks vengeance on the man who murdered his uncle but after his first fight with the Lizard on the bridge, he realises that there is more to just getting revenge.
• A secret identity - Peter hides his powers from the world at first but then tells Gwen and is accidently revealed to both her dad and Dr Connors. It is also implied at the end of the movie that his Aunt May knows that he is Spiderman too.
• Motif - Peter uses the spider as he motif to clearly define who he is.

• Backstory - in the Amazing Spiderman, the backstory is very important to future event that unravel in the main plot. We learn that Peter's parents were fleeing from something when Peter was only a young boy, but Peter still has no idea where they were going.
• Archilles Heel - Peter feels very strongly for his family and becomes temporary unhinged upon witnessing the death of his uncle. Further on in the film, Peter then becomes worried about the Lizard attacking Gwen while she is making the antidote.
• Costume features - In this film, we see Peter at first inspired to make a mask so his enemies couldn't recognise who he was, however it became impractical so Peter is forced to re-adapt his designs to the signature blue and red look, which has become the most defining feature about Spiderman.

The film is rated a 12a, which shows that the film is targeted at mainly teenagers of both the male and female gender due to the fast paced action and the social awkwardness which many teenagers can relate too. It is slightly dark in content and the fact the Marvel have casted Andrew Garfield to play Spiderman and he has become a teen sensation suggest that it is for a teenage audience.

The binary oppositions which are present is the animal imagery of the lizard vs the spider (lizards are known to eat insects) where you can see the stealth and agility of Spiderman  compared to the strength and stamina of the Lizard. Another binary opposition is the superhero/police as although both try to fight the Lizard, neither of them are successful by themselves. The police are under the impression that Spiderman is out to spite them, where as Spiderman believes that they are more of a hinderage than help. 

However in this film, it does reinforce gender stereotypes; as you have the handsome male superhero who is the lead character and develops a love interest for a beautiful young woman. Also the antagonist is impaired in some way in which is one of his main focuses to try and change for what he thinks is the greater good. The gender stereotype is reinforced further as we see Spiderman rushing to the rescue once he realises that Gwen is in danger from being killed by the Lizard and when she is saved, she is forced out of the action making it an all male showdown.

Even though the Amazing Spiderman does greatly reinforce gender stereotypes, it is still a thrilling film which leaves the audience on the edge of their seats due to firstly the vast scale on which it is film. It takes place in New York City and although a lot of CGI is used to make up for the majority of shots (such as the ones that take place on top of buildings), when following Spiderman's journey through the city, it leaves the audience wanting to see more of the city through Spiderman's eyes. Another way in which the Amazing Spiderman seeks to entertain it's audience is the fantastic chemistry between Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy. The most riveting scene between the two is when Peter reveals his secret identity to her on the top of their apartment which Gwen remarks "I'm in trouble". Finally Peter's humour is often very amusing, especially with the audience as they see him play Bubble Pop whilst waiting for the Lizard to appear. Another instance is when the car robber bares his knife out at Spiderman, which he sarcastically remarks "You've found my weakness, it's small knives", before shooting the car robber with web.  

What are the conventions of the Superhero genre?

The word "Superhero" dates back to 1916 but it wasn't until 2009 where both Marvel and DC comics jointly registered "SUPER HEROES" as a trademark. 

A superhero is a person who is dedicated in order to protect the public from harm. They usually have a secret identity so the public cannot guess who they are, but whilst saving people from harm, they usually wear a costume and mask and have a signature trademark (such as a bat for Batman).

The Superhero genre itself does have several conventions including:

• Having either extraordinary powers, equipment or skills - a wide selection of superpowers including flying, super strength, x-ray vision or even the unnatural animal powers (such as Spiderman's uncanny ability to climb walls and shoot webs out of the palms of his hands). However a person does not need superpowers to become a superhero. Instead they could have special items (such as Wolverine's claw or Capetian America's sheild). Or a superhero might not even have a special item, but may just be incredibly skilled (like the Black Widow for instance).
• A Moral Code - when a superhero has a willingness to risk their safety for another person/group of people without having a reward. The code often means they won't kill or use lethal weapons against another person.
• A Secret Identity - a superhero will almost always have a secret identity (like Superman's alias is Clark Kent) to help protect their close friends and family. The superhero will often have a confidant who they will have sworn them to secrecy.
• Supporting Characters - a superhero may have a sidekick (for instance Batman and Robin) but this may become a complicated relationship due to the superhero's dual lifestyle.
• Motif - A motif will be individual to a superhero and this will distinguish them from a different superhero. It can become their signature trademark and will often affect their lifestyle in some shape or form. 
• Financial Support - often independent wealth (Batman or Iron Man) or having an occupation that requires minimal supervision (Clark Kent who is a reporter)
• Headquarters - this is a place where a superhero (or sometimes the supervillian) can have their base of operations. Their headquarters are often disguised so they can avoid detection from the general public or even their enemies! The superheros will often deck out their headquarters with top of range/alien technology however for some superheros, they will not have a permanent headquarters but rather a mobile base of operations where they can store their costume, information etc.
• Backstory - a backstory will often add depth to a superhero's personality and usually explains how the superhero got their powers (usually in a tragic/freak accident) or how they got spurred onto wanted to become a superhero.
• Achilles Heel - this is also known as the superhero's specific weakness which is an important plot device which the supervillians use to unhinge the superhero.
•  Rogues Gallery - the superhero has to normally fight a set of villians (known as rogues) on a regular basis. Often a superhero has an arch enemy who is more troublesome than the other criminals and will often be the doppelganger to the superhero's personality (e.g Batman is silent and dark whereas the Joker is flamboyant and garrulous).
• Costume features - a superhero's costume automatically makes them more recognisable to the reader, and often the costumes are a specific colour set to make them more iconic. They also normally wear the following items:

1. Masks to protect their secret identity.
2. A symbol to make a superhero more distinguishable. 
3. Form fitting clothing (often referred as spandex).
4. Even pants over their tights.
5. Interestingly enough, although capes are often associated with superheros, very few actually wear. As both Batman and Superman wear them, they were the most popular of the superheros and as a result, the cape quickly become associated with superheroes.

• Role Playing Games (RPG's) - in RPG's, players often organised superheros into categories based  upon their skills and assets.