With "The Phantom Menace" 3D Looming, A New Hope Swings In

The backlash was instant.

Last November I posed on Facebook that I was considering taking my kids to theater to see  “Phantom Menace 3D” and  “millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror.”  In their defense my diatribes on the subject are numerous, verbose and really don’t warrant going over again.  The film is a huge disappointment and was certainly not helped by 16 years of built up expectations.

In the time since the “post heard around my Facebook page” common sense and economics came into play.  My kids would not sit still for the first 20 minutes at home, what are the chances they make it through the whole thing on the silver screen?

Also working against my support of the “Lucas Fund”: there are at least ten other films releasing  this year I would rather see on the big screen.  Those millions of voices filled with terror suddenly fell silent.  There would be no trip to the Regal for “The Phantom Menace”

Though the Big Game was a largely a Big Dud there was still good in it: the annual marketing campaign for tent-pole pictures started in earnest.  Let the deluge of imagery and information begin!

“The Avengers” and “GI Joe 2″ both look like slam dunks.  “The Lorax” is one of my daughter’s favorite Seuss books. While I am not thrilled with some of the license they seem to have taken with the story, it is going to be seen in a theater.  Another Veruca Salt moment: “I want more!”

Today the online marketing arm answered my bratty call. The response to Super Bowl marketed films began with the release of new “The Amazing Spider-man” trailer.

Though hopelessly biased*, I really like the direction the film seems to take with the character.  I love the return of the web-shooters, they nailed the “thwip” sound.   Garfield’s wise ass delivery in his exchange with the car thief is how I always pictured how he sounded while reading issue after issue.

A complaint: again with the numerous scenes with a maskless Spider-man?  I know you want the lead to be seen, but he signed up for Spider-man…keep the mask on.

Overall there is a sense of relief.  The first trailer left me looking for reasons to be optimistic.  This one has me looking to the calendar to see how long I have to wait.

Feeling Veruca again: “Is it too much to ask for a longer ‘Prometheus’ trailer?”

* I convinced myself for a moment that “Spider-man 3″ was not complete shit…for a moment.