James Franco Trashes 'The Amazing Spider-Man' While Reviewing 'Man of Steel'

James Franco fancies himself an artiste, and artistes are known to go on segues when they take academic approaches to things like movie reviews. This happened when Franco took a stab at reviewing "Man of Steel" for VICE magazine. 

Actually, the actual film review seems to be the segue in the article. Franco briefly mentions that he was asked to attend the London premier of the film before launching into a commentary on his own experiences in comic book films. 

Franco played Harry Osborn in the earlier "Spider-Man" film trilogy, but he totally denies that he has any attachment to the subject matter. But he takes it upon himself to write several long paragraphs describing why the decision to resurrect the franchise "before there was time to bury the corpse of the old one" is questionable. He then explains that the film industry is a business and studios are trying to make money while making art. He could have pointed out that a different Superman film came out in 2006 while he was on the subject. 

Regardless, it ends up that Franco really enjoyed "Man of Steel." A writer obviously obsessed with context, Franco explains to the readers that he worked with star Henry Cavill in "Tristan and Isolde," but noted that he didn't think Cavill liked him. He discussed that even then Cavill spoke of a fascination with Superman, and thus Franco was glad to see him living the dream. 

Other highlights: Franco was pleased the the "S" on the superhero's chest didn't stand for "Superman," but rather represented a symbol of hope on the planet Krypton. He also praises the film for making money, so apparently his seeming criticism of Spiderman was actually a compliment? We don't know. Ask Franco when the film comes out in 2014.