FW: Spider-Man 5 Fwd: Amazing Spider-Man 2 script

Michael,

I enjoyed speaking with you today. Thanks for being so open-minded and receptive. I know it’s not easy to get the type of feedback I gave and it will probably be even more difficult to read more of it in print. However, I promised to send you whatever I could locate of my notes. I am still searching for my notes on ASM but did find the notes on ASM2 (below). There are also a couple of back-n-forth notes between Kevin and I that help to illustrate my concerns on the ASM2 draft that I read.

Best,

Alan

From: "Feige, Kevin" <KFeige@marvel.com>

Date: September 18, 2012 6:19:42 PM EDT

To: "Fine, Alan" <afine@marvel.com>, "Cohen, Tom" <tcohen@marvel.com>

Subject: Re: Amazing Spider-Man 2 script

They are definatley setting up an alternate universe to the first trilogy. No doubt about it – I saw the spider bite in Sam Raimi's movie and it was totally different than the Spider bite in ASM. They have rebooted.

In a million years I would not advocate rebooting the Iron Man MCU. To me it's James Bond and we can keep telling new stories for decades even with different actors.

From: <Fine>, Alan Fine <afine@marvel.com>

Date: Tuesday, September 18, 2012 2:50 PM

To: Tom Cohen <tcohen@marvel.com>

Cc: "Feige, Kevin" <kfeige@marvel.com>

Subject: RE: Amazing Spider-Man 2 script

Yes, and I think that is very dangerous. They are, in effect, obsoleting the first trilogy. They can call it whatever they like, e.g. telling a new saga from the same core elements…..the end result is that they’re making a mess of the first trilogy….exiling it from the cinematic universe. I think that is very risky thing to do with a movie audience following. Okay for comic books but I wouldn’t even do it with cartoon animation. Had I known, I would never have approved that strategy. Avi is totally nuts. More confirmation to me that he never knew what he was doing. Question for you both: One day soon we will be rebooting the Iron Man franchise with new actors. In that reboot would you change the events of the first trilogy? E.g. Obadiah becomes a true father figure to Tony, Pepper gets jealous and she becomes the one that gets him thrown out of the company and tries to kill him for walking away from defense contracts? Pepper Potts falls in love with a caucasian Rhodey instead of Tony? It’s almost like setting up an alternate universe to the first trilogy. You guys are not seeing this?

From: Fine, Alan

Sent: Monday, September 17, 2012 5:00 PM

To: Cohen, Tom

Subject: RE: Amazing Spider-Man 2 script

Tom,

First of all, your notes are excellent. In many areas you actually take the works right out of my mouth exactly as I would say them. Well done! Therefore, I am only going to focus on a few over-arching issues, several of which you already mention but deserve further emphasis because I agree that they are so important:

. This story is way too dark, way too depressing. I wanted to burn the draft after I read it never mind thinking about buying the DVD.

. I have a major issue with the overall strategic direction they are taking with the Spider-Man franchise. I think it is, potentially, very dangerous to undermine the significant events of the first Spider-Man trilogy. This new trilogy is, in essence, a prequel to the original trilogy. However, many of the events of this draft attempt to tell a completely different story, e.g., in the original trilogy Norman became the Green Goblin and lost his life in a battle with Peter. He did not die in his bed from a genetic disease. Harry did not become the Green Goblin. He became the Black Goblin and hated Peter for supposedly killing his father. Harry and Peter went to school together, Harry did not go away to Boarding School. In the original trilogy, MJ lived next door to Peter for as long as he could remember. They went to school together. She did not just show up after Peter graduated from High School. Uncle Ben articulated the famous words “With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility”, not Peter’s father. Etc., Etc., I think that it is a mistake to deny the original trilogy it’s place in the canon of the Spider-Man cinematic universe. What are you telling the audience? That the original trilogy is a mistake, a total false-hood? We lied to you? Just made it up? Why should the audience buy into the world we create now? Will we deny it’s place in the Spider-Man cinematic universe at the next reboot?

. I was under the impression that one major reason for the reboot was to be able to put Peter back in High School because we could tell better stories in that environment. So, Why do we begin this story with a graduation?

. The chemistry between Emma and Andrew is so good and such a positive that I wonder why it’s so necessary to kill her off in this movie? Let the relationship flourish and commit the deed in the next movie. Why rush? Their relationship was the best part of the first movie and it’s the best part of this story. This draft needs to shed some depressing weight any way.

. This story, as did the first movie, feels so formulaic. Everything feels like it’s been done before, with the exception of the “girlfriend’s” death which I feel is unnecessary and premature anyway. The unsuspecting, innocent, means to do well villain victim who turns into the hunted and hated monster. The girlfriend he desperately wants but can’t have. Aunt May in financial trouble. Misunderstood and hated by his best friend. The only thing we are really attempting to change is the history of the Spider-Man Cinematic Movie Canon of the original trilogy in order to make this story seem new and interesting. However, I don’t think it works. I found this draft tedious, boring, and had to force myself to read it through. Just felt like every other Spider-Man movie, cartoon show, comic book story. Same old same old.

. I don’t buy Electro’s hate of Spider-Man. Feels manufactured, convenient, undeserved. It’s part of the whole formulaic issue I mention above. Why do we always have to witness the Spider-Man movie villain be created from scratch and imbue him with all the reasons why he should hate the world and especially Spider-Man? Why can’t there just be some evil out there already and Spidey is the first and last line of defense? Use some flash backs to prove out the ruthless, blood-lusting, darkness of the beast but don’t bog down every Spider-Man movie with the complete creation and backstory of the innocent victim that we can’t even come to fully despise because his evilness ain’t his fault. In any case, we need to develop some rules around the scope of Electro’s powers. He seems to be able to do whatever he needs to do when he needs to do it.

. Of course, the overall story is w-a-y too l-o-n-g!

. 3 villains? Give me a break

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