Here's my take on the new Peter Parker from the "which was best" thread.
Both Parkers are very different, that's for certain. Maguire's Parker comes across as an earnest, noble boy who always has good intentions. He seems to be the kind of kid who was raised in a stable household, listens to his parents, and stays out of trouble. He's the kind of average, shy, quiet boy who would work hard in class, associate with his school teachers, and understand morals.
I knew people like that in high school, and as a result it was easy to sympathize and relate to that version of Parker. He is the type of person who nobody would know very well, but who would prove to be sweet and thoughtful if approached and spoken to. He is respectful of others, and easily deserves such respect to be reciprocated. As the audience, we follow his journey through young adulthood and learn about his character, making it much easier to understand and relate to him as an ordinary kid with a big heart.
I like and respect that version of Peter Parker. He makes sacrifices, and rarely chooses to be selfish; when he does, he is always treading into unknown territory with a guilty conscience, and appears as though he is in doubt of what he is doing. He has morals, understands the benefits and consequences of every action, and shows weakness in his character. Such aspects of his character are what make him human. He is multi-dimensional, and is like any other civilian. He becomes a superhero because he feels he is obligated to, else he would feel guilty and conflicted. He appears to develop his intelligence from a combination of hard work and natural ability, and seems like just a very bright individual without being the arrogant genius of the new film.
Garfield's version of Parker exudes confidence, but also demonstrates a lack of responsibility, a lack of morality, and disobeys nearly everybody he speaks to. He is arrogant. This Parker has trouble communicating, disappears late at night, and appears to have a very rocky relationship with his teachers. He comes across as a troublemaker; he may have the mind of a genius, but he is a juvenile delinquent. This type of character is not likeable, and would be considered the class loser in school based on his sense of self-righteousness. Maguire's Parker was teased because he was a quiet geek and perhaps a pushover; Garfield's Parker is bullied because he is not approachable and does not seem very friendly. His character is somebody who is easy for his classmates to dislike. He does not consider what others tell him, has no courtesy for others, and feels his opinion is superior to everyone else's. He sneaks around, and feels entitled to do whatever he wants.
I've seen people like this as well, and I can see why the character polarizes his audience. He is a punk, a 'bad boy,' and can perhaps be seen as the new "cool" face of Peter Parker. He may be an intriguing character to watch on screen, but as an individual, he is very difficult to respect; consequently, he is somebody many viewers can not relate to or sympathize with. He is a child delinquent, the sort of boy many would try to avoid in reality. He is witty and can say some of the most incredibly insulting things while wearing a mask, but as a person he is not very likeable. He saves people because he wants to be a hero, and unlike Maguire's Parker, is very happy to be New York City's savior.
Perhaps Garfield's Parker will be further developed in the second film, but as of now I miss the humility and good-natured Peter Parker from the previous trilogy. Perhaps not all will agree with me, but by comparing both characters, we are simply comparing a "good boy" with a "bad boy," both of whom are very smart, but also whom share few personality traits. One would be a gentleman and help the elderly or disabled on the street, the other would walk right by.
If Peter has no morality, then why does he stand up to Flash in the beginning? If he had no morality, why is he spending time on being a hero for NO pay?
Sure, he may be doing it because he wants to be a hero, but don't we all, down deep inside, want to be a hero? He's also doing it because it's within his power to do so, and because of that, it's his responsibility.
Disobeys people he speaks to? I can see that with some things, like skateboarding in school. But for other moments, I feel his disobeyment can be excused.
1. Disobeying Gwen by not staying in the tour group: He wants to find out more about his father and his research. He knows that there's something secretive going on involving his father and his research.
2. Disobeying Uncle Ben by not picking up Aunt May: he forgot.
3. Disobeying Aunt May by not picking up eggs: he forgot.
4. Breaking his promise to Captain Stacy: You can't keep two people who love each other away for that long.
He learned in the bridge sequence his true responsibility to the city, and it's something that he was working on in the film. He felt the need to take down the Lizard, because he was responsible for it, because he gave Connors the algorithm needed to make the serum.
He may be arrogant, but Spider-Man WAS arrogant in the comics. Just wait until Gwen's ultimate demise.
His 'rocky relationship with his teachers' was only established at the end of the movie, and it seems like it's because of the fact that he's Spider-Man. He doesn't consider what others tell him? Yea, I guess that's why he ultimately brought eggs home for Aunt May.
If he's a punk or bad boy then I'm surprised. I wouldn't try to avoid him, I would try to be friends with him. It's clear that he was suffering emotionally even before Uncle Ben died. He needs friends, but he's a loner. I wouldn't be surprised to see if he would push me off as a friend in real life, but it's understandable. He's an orphan who feels like his parents just up and left.
I guess opinions just differ about the character...
Yes, I believe his primary reason for being Spider-Man is because he has been looked down upon and belittled his entire life and wants to prove his importance to the city. He wants to finally be bigger than everybody else, which affirms his ego. The way he acts towards everybody
as Peter Parker tells me much of his attitude can be attributed to poor parenting.
Uncle Ben and Aunt May have differing opinions about how Peter should be raised, with May being too gentle and Ben being harsh. There is little coordination or compromise between the two, which perhaps explains why Peter feels disconnected and
does, in fact, act like a punk.
He ignores them for much of the film, disregards promises, and has a poor relationship with nearly everybody at school. When visiting Connors after school, he ignored Ben's phone call -- if anything, that should have jogged Peter's mind about picking up May later that night. Instead, he ignores the call. As Peter Parker, he shows little responsibility and seems incapable of doing anything right as a regular civilian.
Those four points you made are excuses for his incompetent behavior; they are likely the same ones he would have made to cover up his mistakes and his own ignorance. When he finally picks up May's eggs at the film's conclusion, the eggs should no longer matter anymore to May; this is just a half-baked apology by Peter. Any sensible kid would prioritize his parents' wishes ahead of anything else, unless he had a poor relationship with them. To make excuses for everything he does, and then to receive no punishment from his parents, explains his main problem -- he has no accountability for anything. Furthermore, May shows no concern at all for where Peter has been and why he has been beaten up; if it's really just about the eggs, she really should be considered a horrible parent. She has no strength or voice as a parent, and is easily taken advantage of; if Peter bringing home eggs is enough to win over May's heart, this explains why he acts the way he does in his regular life. He even rejects Ben's request that he fix the basement leak, even before he discovers his father's briefcase. Ben's response: "oh, okay. Just bring everything upstairs." That's just stupid parenting.
Peter Parker is an irresponsible young man. As Spider-Man, he may feel somewhat obligated to stop a giant lizard creature from turning everybody in the city into lizards, but who wouldn't.
Anybody, in their right mind, would feel obligated to stop a raging beast like that if they could. The fact that he became Spider-Man as a vigilante shows he is completely fixated on his own self-interests rather than anybody else's. Aunt May is worried sick for much of the film, and Peter constantly disappears so he can hunt down and kill one man. He has no regard for her feelings until he brings home the eggs, and even that is just a sorry excuse for disappearing night after night for much of the film.
The only truly heroic, selfless feat by Spider-Man was to stop the Lizard -- as I've pointed already, though, it's plainly obvious that the Lizard has to be stopped or everybody he knows is 'virtually' dead/replaced by evil lizards. It would be common sense to go after somebody who schemes to destroy all of New York.
I blame the parenting of Uncle Ben and Aunt May for the troubled person Garfield's Parker has become. He has wit, but he isn't likeable as a character at all, and shows no competence as a human being. It's as if he dons the Spider-Man mask because that's the only thing he knows how to do properly. His life as Spider-Man is an escape from his sorry, pathetic life as Peter Parker.
This is definitely a different take on Peter Parker, and the equivalent of a troubled boy becoming a superhero. He isn't as much a geek as he is a loser. It's very difficult to relate to or sympathize with the new Parker.