Peter Parker juggles his romantic life with his crime fighting life while being haunted by the memory of his parents. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is the most emotional and most violent of all of the films in the Spider-man franchise.
Director Mark Webb has made only one movie outside of his Spider-Man films, and that movie would be 500 Days of Summer. 500 Days of Summer is a great movie which looks at the idea of love from the male perspective. I bring that up because that is what Mark Webb does best. This film is the most romantic superhero movie ever made. Mark Webb handles this element of the film perfectly. The relationship between Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy is undoubtedly the strongest element of the movie. The chemistry between Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone was terrific. You almost didn't need any action in the film because their story would have been enough. Mark Webb makes you care about these characters and makes you believe that they truly care for each other. The film is also surprisingly funny as well. Every few minutes you find yourself laughing out loud at the one of the movie's many jokes. Webb handles those two elements best but fails when juggling multiple story lines. There are a lot of characters in the movie and a lot of them don't get the appropriate amount of screen time. The screenplay written by Alex Kutzman, Jeff Pinker, and Roberto Orci crams a lot of story lines into one movie. These story lines were too much for Webb to carry and as a result many intimate moments were crammed to make room for the next subplot. This made for a very long winded and convoluted film.
Visually the film is a mixed bag. While all the effects in the film are truly amazing, the cinematography was not. The problem was its inconsistency. Certain action scenes suffered from dreadful shaky cam while others were clear and easy to follow. The film also utilizes just the right amount of slow motion which allows the audience to bask in the glory of being Spider-man, especially in his swinging sequences. The looks of the characters were diverse in quality. The Spider-man suit has never looked better while Electro looked more like an angry cartoon character rather than a terrifying villain.
Andrew Garfield completely outshines Tobey Macguire. Garfield is the superior Spider-Man on screen. He is charismatic, funny, and serious when he needs to be. Andrew Garfield brought a great emotional depth to the character of Peter Parker. His Peter Parker wasn't necessarily a nerd, but he was clearly intelligent. There was more to him than that. He was a friend, a son, a nephew, a lover, and a hero. Emma Stone was great as Gwen Stacy. She was more than a damsel in distress. She added so much to the film as a character that you want to cheer on. Jamie Foxx played the role of Max Dillon/ Electro. He was given a story arc similar to that of Syndrome, the villain from The Incredibles. Foxx is an obsessed fan of Spider-Man who only wants people to notice him. I found that story to be interesting even though Jamie Foxx is given some laughable dialogue. Dane DeHann is in the film and is a better Harry Osborn than James Franco ever was in the original trilogy. Sally Field isn't in the film much but makes the most of her screen time. Paul Giamatti plays the Rhino and has a very annoying Russian accent. Fortunately his appearance here doesn't take up much time and is mostly a set up for future films.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 does suffer from poor pacing but is still an enjoyable film. It is more entertaining than the first film but too many story lines drag down the quality.
3.5/5
That is the rating the it was going to receive and then the final 15 minutes of the film happened. Those final 15 minutes contained an emotional gut punch of a scene. It was shocking and unexpectedly violent for a superhero movie, especially a Spider-Man movie. The movie then holds you in grief before giving you something completely opposite. As the triumphant Spider-Man theme by Hans Zimmer plays, you are given a great moment of hope that closes out the film. If you end a movie strongly then the audience will forgive you for any missteps earlier in the film. Although it is a very flawed movie, it is also a great piece of entertainment with an abundance of heart.
4/5
Visually the film is a mixed bag. While all the effects in the film are truly amazing, the cinematography was not. The problem was its inconsistency. Certain action scenes suffered from dreadful shaky cam while others were clear and easy to follow. The film also utilizes just the right amount of slow motion which allows the audience to bask in the glory of being Spider-man, especially in his swinging sequences. The looks of the characters were diverse in quality. The Spider-man suit has never looked better while Electro looked more like an angry cartoon character rather than a terrifying villain.
Andrew Garfield completely outshines Tobey Macguire. Garfield is the superior Spider-Man on screen. He is charismatic, funny, and serious when he needs to be. Andrew Garfield brought a great emotional depth to the character of Peter Parker. His Peter Parker wasn't necessarily a nerd, but he was clearly intelligent. There was more to him than that. He was a friend, a son, a nephew, a lover, and a hero. Emma Stone was great as Gwen Stacy. She was more than a damsel in distress. She added so much to the film as a character that you want to cheer on. Jamie Foxx played the role of Max Dillon/ Electro. He was given a story arc similar to that of Syndrome, the villain from The Incredibles. Foxx is an obsessed fan of Spider-Man who only wants people to notice him. I found that story to be interesting even though Jamie Foxx is given some laughable dialogue. Dane DeHann is in the film and is a better Harry Osborn than James Franco ever was in the original trilogy. Sally Field isn't in the film much but makes the most of her screen time. Paul Giamatti plays the Rhino and has a very annoying Russian accent. Fortunately his appearance here doesn't take up much time and is mostly a set up for future films.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 does suffer from poor pacing but is still an enjoyable film. It is more entertaining than the first film but too many story lines drag down the quality.
3.5/5
That is the rating the it was going to receive and then the final 15 minutes of the film happened. Those final 15 minutes contained an emotional gut punch of a scene. It was shocking and unexpectedly violent for a superhero movie, especially a Spider-Man movie. The movie then holds you in grief before giving you something completely opposite. As the triumphant Spider-Man theme by Hans Zimmer plays, you are given a great moment of hope that closes out the film. If you end a movie strongly then the audience will forgive you for any missteps earlier in the film. Although it is a very flawed movie, it is also a great piece of entertainment with an abundance of heart.
4/5
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