Why Gwen Stacy’s Death In The AMAZING SPI...

Why Gwen Stacy’s Death In The AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2 Is So Impactful | The Perfect Scene

The Amazing Spider-man 2 is a film where the things surrounding it are just as interesting as the film itself is. Released at a time when the MCU was really taking off it was critically panned for having too many villains, subplots and a weird score that has the singer basically giving Electro’s inner monologue.

Garfield’s webhead had a tough time from the beginning and his version of Peter Parker was released just 5 years after the Tobey Maguire incarnation before he himself was replaced by Holland’s Spider-man less than 4 years after.

Because of this, The Amazing Spider-man franchise is often overlooked but it has picked up a strong following online who absolutely love the film. When you watch it you can kinda see why too and though it has its low points there’s also a scene in it that I think is absolutely perfect.

No not that one…not the one with Jamie Foxx making himself a birthday cake from Spider-man.

Gwen Stacy’s Death

Ever since it was announced that Emma Stone would be playing the role in the Amazing Spider-man we knew that the character was truly doomed and this franchise very much built up to that moment coming to fruition.

For many years Gwen’s death was viewed as a defining moment for the character and though she has been brought back to life in recent times, for many decades it was said that she should be a character that remained dead like Uncle Ben and The Waynes.

Gwen Stacy’s death represents a number of things in Peter’s life and to me, The Amazing Spider-man 2 absolutely nailed all these aspects.

Becoming Spider-Man

Peter Parker is someone who was plucked out of Queens and given incredible abilities that transformed him into a superhuman. Initially, he wanted to use these gifts for personal gain but after they inadvertently led to the death of his Uncle Ben he decided that he would instead use them to help others.

Peter donned his Spider-man costume to keep those around him safe and he tried to have a normal life. Being a vigilante caused several run-ins with the law including Captain Stacy. Stacy was killed in the comics and the source material had him saying in his final breath that he should take care of Gwen.

This somewhat is the opposite of The Amazing Spider-man franchise as Cap was very much like stay away from my daughter but either way you look at it Peter broke his promise.

Though he tried to keep Gwen safe and protect her, wanting things for his own personal gain and happiness ultimately led to him losing once more.

Death in the Comics 

In the comics, Green Goblin took Gwen to the top of the Brooklyn Bridge and clocked her with his glider which sent her hurtling over the edge. Reacting quickly, Peter to fired a web around her ankles in order to catch her but upon climbing down he realised that she was dead.

For many years Peter didn’t know whether it was the impact of the Goblin or the whiplash from the webbing that ended her life and he spent several years dealing with the guilt over this. It was revealed in later comics that it was indeed the webbing that broke her neck but I’ve always been someone who viewed Peter as doing the best he could in the situation and to me, the fault lay with Norman Osborn for putting her in that position.

Peter’s Character

Peter being Peter though, he blamed himself and believed that because he chose to be Spider-man that he was the one who put the woman he loved in danger.

There’s definitely a debate to be had there and that’s what makes the character so interesting. He’s someone who will try and do the best he can but even doing his best can often mean that those he loves could die because of it.

Peter Parker is an extremely flawed character that fails like the rest of us and that’s what makes him so relatable. Now whatever you think of the Amazing Spider-man movies I think most people agree that Peter and Gwen’s relationship was the strongest part of those films. Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone dated in real life and that chemistry definitely comes across in the characters who go back and forth throughout the two movies.

Peter wrestles with whether to keep his promise to Captain Stacy or to follow his heart and be with the woman that he loves. In the film, Gwen gets a chance at another life in London and Peter in the end decides to go with her to England. However, the happy moment is ruined by Electro who starts to drain power from the city. Gwen’s death is even foreshadowed here as the two stand on top of a bridge.

Peter webs Gwen to a car in order to keep her safe but she ends up joining him in stopping the electrical enemy. Gwen is just as much of a genius as Peter…well probably even smarter and she knows the grid specs in and out making her a valuable asset in trying to stop Max from playing the incy wincy spider on Peter’s head.

Green Goblin

They manage to stop him and send him to the MCU which is when the Green Goblin swoops in cackling. I absolutely love the screeching of the glider and though Dane Dehaan’s Goblin gets a lot of crap I think using the actor’s face instead of having a mask works really well.

Throughout the movie, Harry was someone who learned his father was dying from a debilitating disease and tried to reach out to Spider-man to help find a cure.

However, finally getting a blood sample from Oscorps labs led him into mutating even further and thus he sort revenge.

Gwen was caught in the crossfire and as the two battled in the clocktower she was left dangling by a thread as the pair battled it out.

As all the gears come crashing down we get a brilliant moment in which her literal lifeline is cut and this leads to her arms dropping before the rest of her body does. I’m not sure if the physics behind this is right but it’s such a cool shot that made me get butterflies in my stomach the first time I watched it.

Falling 

You really get that sinking feeling as Gwen starts to fall and Peter leaps down the tower after her.

Throughout the Spider-verse films, we’ve often seen the usage of a reflection in the eyes of either Spider-man or Venom in which they’re trying to stop someone from falling to their death.

We really get the desperation Peter faces here and seeing her reflected in his eye very much reflects how much she means to him.

There are lots of subtle iconographies here too such as the web Peter shoots out to her itself resembling a hand reaching out to save her and we watch as it fires through the gears barely managing to catch her.

Now her death is of course one of the most famous in all of comic book history so we know what’s coming but when analysing the scene the creative team do an incredible job of using the score and setting to make us think there’s a chance that Peter and Gwen will escape their fate.

Just as Gwen falls they tune everything out and leave a solitary piano so that we can truly see how focused Peter is on saving her. Though he was just attempting to stop the Goblin, this sole instrument blocks out everything else and makes it so that we too focus just on her.

The gears also cover her at one point so that we cant see Gwen but these open up as the web shoots down, giving us the idea that all the obstacles have cleared out the way and that he’s actually gonna save her.

Unfortunately though as the web hits her, he grabs a pipe and this caused the web to tighten which whips her head backwards. This cracks off the ground and the snap from it is even more impactful than the one carried out by Thanos. They completely cut the music and all the other effects so that all you hear is this noise and I remember it shaking through the cinema when I saw it for the first time.

Add to this the clock which too breaks symbolising that Gwen’s time is up and you have a lot of things laced throughout the subtext that make this moment hit ten times harder.

In the aftermath of it, you could hear a pin drop and though we knew this was coming it was completely devastating to see it play out. Hammering this moment home is Andrew Garfield who drops down and gives a performance that reminded me of Bambi finding his mother dead. There’s just something so innocent to it that makes it even more devastating.

Gwen’s Funeral

As with a lot of Spider-man movies we end with a funeral but something about this one feels ever more personal. We’ve dealt with a lot of characters dying around Peter but watching the montage of him at her grave as the seasons pass makes it hit home even harder. This truly captures the grief that he’s going through and lets us know just how impactful this was. Spider-man is someone who’s often seen as a kiddie character who’s somewhat cartoonish because of his big eyes and brightly coloured costume. However, he can really have moments like this that are real gut punches that make you realise the kinds of battles that Peter is truly fighting.

Not only does he have to tackle super criminals he also has to deal with losing those around him. He’s not a billionaire. He’s not invincible and he’s not someone who ever has it easy.

Leaving Spider-man Behind 

Add to this he broke Captain Stacy’s promise and the guy is just taking constant L’s. Peter even quits being Spider-man but in the end, it’s the memory of Gwen that brings him back around. In the final few scenes, he speaks to Aunt May who is putting Ben’s stuff in a box. She says the heavier the box is the lighter she feels which very much speaks to the acceptance part of grief and learning to let go. Though she isn’t chucking it out because it’s part of her, she’s finding a better place for it.

Peter plays Gwen’s Graduation speech in which he’s told to hold on to hope and to become that. She says even if we fail to try and become that which very much summarises her death and Peter’s next step. Much like May he puts Gwen’s possessions in a box but leaves one photo behind as a reminder and he returns as Spider-man.

Say what you want about the film but I feel like this rise and fall of the character represents why we as audiences love him so much. He is a person who’s been through some of the worst things imaginable and though he’s lost people close to him he will still come back every time.

Gwen’s death is obviously a tragedy but it’s such an intrinsic part of the character that shows his greatest strength is dealing with his own failures and coming back from them.

Though I do have some issues with the film, I think Gwen’s death is one of the most impactful scenes in a comic book movie ever.

 

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