SYNOPSIS: We’ve always known that Spider-Man’s most important conflict has been within himself: the struggle between the ordinary obligations of Peter Parker and the extraordinary responsibilities of Spider-Man. But in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Peter Parker finds that his greatest battle is about to begin. 

It’s great to be Spider-Man (Andrew Garfield). For Peter Parker, there’s no feeling quite like swinging between skyscrapers, embracing being the hero, and spending time with Gwen (Emma Stone). But being Spider-Man comes at a price: only Spider-Man can protect his fellow New Yorkers from the formidable villains that threaten the city. With the emergence of Electro (Jamie Foxx), Peter must confront a foe far more powerful than he. And as his old friend, Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan), returns, Peter comes to realize that all of his enemies have one thing in common: Oscorp. 

REVIEW: Firstly, consider that Marc Webb‘s 2012 film, The Amazing Spider-Man (an origins story) focused on the relationship between Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield) and his high school sweetheart, Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone). Now consider that The Amazing Spider-Man 2 seems to set out to change the dynamics this time around, where they expand the “Spider-Man” universe. This is a Spidey-world-building-sequel that will potentially create multiple spin-offs in the pipeline of Marvel’s The Avengers. This time around, we begin with Pete’s further exploration of the disappearance of his parents, Richard and Mary Parker (Campbell Scott and Embeth Davidtz). In Raimi’s trilogy, Pete isn’t really affected by the loss of his parents, but here, he is absolutely defined by it. Consequently, when he isn’t saving the citizens of Manhattan, he is consumed with discovering the truth behind why his parents abandoned him. 

With an excellent cast and dazzling special effects, Webb’s iteration is quite impressive, despite revisiting many of the same plot points from Raimi’s trilogy. There are a number of villains in this latest Webb effort that lead to many impressive action sequences that truly capture the agility, movement, speed, and kinetic energy of the web-slinging wall-crawler.. The camera swoops along with our hero as he swings through the skyscraper maze that is New York City, creating a vertiginous effect that is exhilarating in IMAX 3D. Though part one had similar scenes and sequences, I wasn’t impressed then; However, I am very much impressed this time around because they got it right!

I particularly like the way Webb has brought the superhero back to his comic book roots with the wit and comic-relief that is pure and fun… where Spiderman is jokingly dealing with crime in a cute and lighthearted manner rather than muscle-bound dramatics. His exclamations and remarks are much like what one would read in the comic book series. This, along with other nice elements, allows for this latest release to be the closest that any one has gotten to the original essence of the comic book hero.

If I must speak negatively of this latest effort, I would have to say that the revisiting of Raimi’s plot points takes away from greatness of this flick for me. Webb could have been a little more creative in the area of designating one of the villains as just another spoiled rich kid that turns to the dark-side. 

Despite its few little issues though, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 soars high on the performances of both Garfield and Stone, with plenty of spectacle, humor, and heartfelt moments to make Webb’s “second-timer” effort resonate well with fans of Marvel’s Spider-Man character. It deserves four and a half out of five stars and is very much worth the theater visit.

Review By Movi-Man Stan 

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