Review - The Amazing Spider-Man 2!

Last weekend Spider-Man swung back into theaters in the all new film The Amazing Spider-Man 2! Would our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man capture the attention of movie goers or would people turn on him fast than J. Jonah Jameson?

There has been a lot of back and forth about this film but I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed it! From start to finish I really liked this film. There may be one or two changes that I would have made but it is hard to find a film that you like 100% as it is. I was lucky enough to be an extra in this film as it was filming in New York City so I was extra excited to sit down and finally get to see the finished product.

First off, the cast completely stepped up their game in this film. The cameo role of Paul Giamatti’s Aleksei Sytsevich / Rhino was well done as was Chris Cooper in the role of Norman Osborne. Sally Field brought a great, and emotional, performance to Aunt May. Dane DeHaan shined as Harry Osborne and really brought the character some new life. The scenes between himself and Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker really showed a connection between the characters that seemed to be missing in the Sam Raimi films. The characters really seemed connected as childhood friends rather than two friends who happened to know each other from school. Jamie Foxx truly brought Electro into the spotlight in this film. He did a great job as Max Dillon and was unleashed as Electro with a dark superior feel about him. (I only wish there was a little more attachment to the character. The film tried to build that attachment but it fell just short of the mark.) Emma Stone delivered another great performance to the character of Gwen Stacy just like she did in the original film. This time however, her performance felt smoother. Lastly, Andrew Garfield finally brought both Peter Parker and Spider-Man to new levels. You got the sense that Garfield was more comfortable this time around and the performance soared as a result. This was the wise-cracking Spider-Man that comic readers have come to love. The film also perfectly captured Peter/Spider-Man's moments where the bravado dropped and the sincerity of the character comes out. There are some fantastic emotional moments in this film supporting characters like Aunt May and even Harry Osborne. 

The overall story was well done and fans get a lot of answers last over from the first film. The biggest mystery involved Peter's parents and the answer given, although a feasible answer, was one guessed a long time ago by fans and seemed a little too simple. There were a few sequences that felt a little long but I didn't feel that they overly dragged. The film truly shines in the moments where Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone share the screen as Peter and Gwen. Their chemistry couldn't be stronger and their scenes seemed genuine as a result. Garfield and Stone have a relationship off screen and this is one case where it strongly benefited the film. The emotions looked real and the conversations, whether loving or argumentative, were strong. The second highlight on this film which I absolutely loved was when Spider-Man was web slinging around New York City. The web slinging in this film brought the character of Spider-Man to a whole new level compared to any other Spider-Man film. There is so much to love here. The fact that they showed you where the webs were attaching instead of just attaching to some unknown spot off-screen was great and I loved that Spider-Man was striking iconic poses as he swung through the streets of Manhattan. Swinging low to the streets in between cars and trucks was a nice touch and reminded me of the comics. Also, the way in which Spider-Man handled the webs themselves was brilliant. Climbing the webs mid swing allowed him to adjust his flight pattern and speed around corners and showed that their was more thought to web slinging than just swinging from spot to spot like Tarzan. There are a few wholes in the background story that most fans may overlook like not seeing Peter actually go to college even though we know he is attending and not seeing Peter actually work as a photographer, although his email to The Bugle is supposed to fill that gap. The relationships and stories between Peter/Gwen, Peter/Aunt May, and Peter/Harry are so strong however that the smaller missteps that can be found are overlooked because of the brilliance of the great ones.

There is a lot of great action sequences in this film and the showdown between Spider-Man and Electro in Times Square was great. The scene showcases Electro's abilities, Spider-Man's abilities, and the classic Spider-Man humor from the comics. The fight sequences with Electro are fantastic and are enhanced by an amazing fight sequence theme provided by Hans Zimmer. In the end I feel there could have been a little more of a definitive end for Electro. Instead, he is defeated and put aside in order for the fight scene with Green Goblin. Green Goblin and Rhino are obvious set ups for The Sinister Six spin-off film that is being planned so not much is done with these characters. The end of the film delivers a few more action scenes and delivers a roller coaster of emotions that really packs a punch for the end of this film.

Final Verdict:
This was truly a great film which I loved. There are a few moments that I might change but every movie will have moments like this. Overall, the cast delivered amazing performances, the story flowed nicely, and the action kept me involved in the film. I was thrilled to see Peter Parker/Spider-Man performed so well. Lastly, the film nicely captures a balance between the love story and the action story and because of that the film was a success.

Rating: 9/10