10. No More Removing The Mask In Key Action Scenes
In previous Spider-Man movies, the quality of action scenes has generally been high, but one recurring element has marred the fun, particularly for fans: the removal of Spider-Man's mask. In the climactic battle at the close of Raimi's Spider-Man, a well-placed pumpkin bomb tears the mask in half, allowing the director to visualise the conflicting nature of Peter Parker's dual identities. This feels more organic and actually works well in the context of the story. However, by the time we reach that awesome train sequence in Spider-Man 2 and Peter removes his mask again, it starts to feel forced. The trend even followed Andrew Garfield into his reboot. Remember how little he seemed to wear that mask in his first outing? With Spidey's mask covering the entire face, conveying the character's thoughts and feelings without speech is incredibly difficult. By taking the mask away though, the audience are deprived of seeing Spider-Man in full costume at the most dramatic moments which is what they've actually paid for. Tom Holland's suit features animated eyes, but whether these are telescopic shutters or not remains to be confirmed. However it's a potentially brilliant move that will allow future filmmakers to show Spidey's emotions through his eye-movements. Something that comic-book artists have done for decades to great effect. This should allow the character to remain fully masked in all scenes, delivering a more faithful experience and limiting the number of people who have to promise to keep his identity a secret after Spidey saves the day.
Kyle McManus is a freelance writer with a love of Star Wars, comics, books, 2000 AD, and scribbling his own bizarre brand of fiction. He hopes you enjoy reading the words he writes.
