The Marvelous Spider-Man 3: Empire of Blood

Director Michael Innamorato once again plays to his strengths with a well written story bursting with all the character, heart and feel-good charm that made previous installments so distinctive on the landscape of Spider-man fan films, many of which drawing a lot of inspiration from existing Spider-man films. Empire of Blood delivers a script inspired by characters and genuine human interaction.

The technical aspects are a step up from the previous film and while it still feels like an amateur film, it's certainly a very good amateur film which I'd much rather have than a mediocre professionally made film.

Peter Parker's new roommate Jeremy has been kidnapped and Spider-man is on the case to find him. I can't really say much more than that in regard to the storyline because of the amount of twists and turns but a major theme of the film is that Peter Parker needs to come to terms with the grief of the past and we see how past losses have influenced his decisions, his feelings, how he treats himself.

For an amateur production, performances are great, particularly Michael Innamorato in the lead role as Peter Parker and Spider-man, he carries the role with a good physicality but is charismatic and strikes up a good balance between a mischievous wannabe frat boy and the Peter Parker we know and love. His developments feel natural and relevant to the story and the core of the Peter Parker character is well-realised.

Empire of Blood also does a fantastic job at expanding the greater Marvel universe around it which sounds like a big task for a fan film but it's all done to service the underdog character of Peter Parker.

For Spider-man fans, Empire of Blood is a hidden gem and a real treat.