The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Review

     The other day someone asked me why they decided to make another Spider-Man trilogy, it's all because of legal reasons. Essentially, when Sony acquired the rights to Spider-Man there was a stipulation that they had to use it within a certain time frame; so that's why they are making a new trilogy, if Sony didn't make more movies they would have lost the rights to Spider-Man. A lot of people were surprisingly upset that there were going to be more Spider-Man movies, the first two received critical acclaim but the third was just a disaster. Many had lost faith and just wanted to let the series lie. But when the new iteration "The Amazing Spider-Man" came around, it shocked many with its new approach and was actually preferred over the originals by a lot of people. Met with positive reviews and an outstanding box office smash, a lot of people were extremely excited for a sequel. But with so much hype built up, can "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" be everything we wanted it to be?

     Taking place not long after the events of the previous movie, Peter Parker has really stepped into the role of Spider-Man. While he manages to do a lot of good and stop crime left and right, he is villainized by many saying that his presence is unneeded and that he does more harm than good. While this is going on, his personal life is in disarray; he decides to break up with his girlfriend Gwen for her own safety, and is torn about keeping his secret from his aunt. Peter learns that Norman Osborn, the head of Oscorp, has died and he decides to go see his son Harry who he was friends with many years ago. Harry eventually tells Peter that he is dying from the same disease that killed his father and that he needs Spider-Man's blood in the hopes for a cure; obviously, Peter is apprehensive. Balancing his personal life and his super hero duties starts to take a toll on Peter; plus a new, seemingly unstoppable villain, who calls himself Electro has just showed up and is determined to kill Spider-Man. All Peter really wants is to get his life to a normal place, but he knows with great power comes great responsibility.

     To be honest, I really didn't like the original Spider-Man trilogy. I'm not sure exactly what it was, but they never did it for me. So "The Amazing Spider-Man" coming around in 2012 actually surprised me, I really enjoyed it; I don't think it's the best super hero movie ever, but I certainly liked it more than the original movies. So when I first saw the trailer for the sequel I was immediately interested, unfortunately the end result did not live up to my expectations. The thing that the new movies really have working for them is the casting, it's been great. Andrew Garfield was the perfect actor for the part in my opinion, his approach to the character and sense of humor make him great as Peter Parker and Spider-Man; and Emma Stone is fantastic as his leading lady. Dane Dehaan is also in this movie as Harry Osborn, I'm been a fan of him ever since I saw "chronicle" and he does a great job again. Jamie Fox plays Electro in the movie and he's pretty awesome; he plays a menacing and interesting villain, and is also helped by much improved CGI over the original. The fight scenes between him and Spider-Man are the highlights of the movie, along with several other great action sequences. While "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" has a lot of things going for it, for everything it does right it manages to do something wrong as well. On more than one occasion, the movie comes off as rather cartoonish with some jokes that just fall flat; but then shortly after they'll have scenes that are significantly darker. It makes the tone seem all over the place. Another problem that a number of people have pointed out is the ending; it comes off as just a promo for the sequel. It's alright if a movie alludes to or sets up a sequel, but in this movie it came off as little shameless. The movie also features three villains, but in reality it's only one. Electro is the main bad guy for almost the entire movie, but in the last half an hour they throw in the Green Goblin and the Rhino; it just feels really unnecessary. But the biggest problem that I have with the film would be the story, I really just didn't care. The plot is rather uninteresting and all over the place. A lot of stuff happens at once and it tries to be too much. "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" had a lot of promise, its predecessor brought a great cast and a new approach that breathed life into a series many had given up on; but with this new movie some may have lost hope once again. While visually beautiful with great performances, a jumbled plot an unachievable ambition held this movie down. We know for a fact that there will be another movie in a few years; I just hope that it manages to be better than this one. 

Pros: Perfect casting, some cool action sequences, great CGI, good performances by the whole cast, good sense of humor, Electro is a cool villain.

Cons: Comes off a little too cartoonish, some jokes fall flat, two unnecessary villains, tries to be too much, rather uninteresting story, jumbled plot, ending just comes off as a promo for the sequel.

2.5/5 Stars