The Amazing Spiderman 2

Directed by:

Marc Webb

Starring:

Andrew Garfield

Emma Stone

Jamie Foxx

Dane DeHaan

Paul Giamatti

The Amazing Spiderman 2 is unusual in that it is part of a remake of a recent series. And it’s not like the original wasn’t loved because it was, by many, although most fell away by the third and most ridiculous edition but I digress! You have to wonder what is the point of the Garfield series. But there is a point – it is so much better than the Maguire series in almost every conceivable way. Let’s face it, Maguire was terrible as Spiderman. He was probably the least cool superhero in history. I don’t want to say nerd as thanks to the likes of The Big Bang Theory being a nerd is cool now so I’m going to go with…dork! And then there was the love interest. Kirsten Dunst pulls off the girls next door look almost too well. Have you seen her eyes? Her small town eyes that look like they’re weeping buckets even when happy?

The Amazing Spiderman 2 on the other hand is darker – something the original was always afraid to be in case of alienating the younger viewer. Even when his hilariously named Uncle Ben died in the original you never felt sad, you just knew that things would be juuuus fiiiiine! In this movie however, the themes are more grown up. Parental abandonment, regret, international espionage, conspiracy theories, terrorism, even the huskiness of Peter’s dad’s voice is eerie. This is a Spiderman for the mature audience. 

This is where I must applaud the CGI. Spiderman actually looks like a man when doing hid web-slinging thing as opposed to Stretch Armstrong in a weird outfit as he has done. 

Garfield is also great as Spiderman. In fact, he’s so good at the role that he gets away with the comedy and the cheese which are usually about as welcome as a fart during foreplay. However, the level of cool he brings to the role means he gets away with it.

Emma Stone is also good as the love interest. A bit of a no-brainer for casting (she’s the Hollywood dawling of the minute). However, it’s a bit difficult to believe that she’s 20-years-old. I just don’t buy it. I mean, she’s not Saoirse Ronan!!

Alas teenage fans, you are not forgotten. The kind of pointless, angst-filled arguments only teenage couples have appear to restore some balance of silliness to the movie. Once again, this is not the Dark Knight, but what it is is a very good superhero movie. More comic than graphic novel and very entertaining. Filled with comedy, action, quality chase scenes and the usual unmitigated confusion at standard vigilantism, The Amazing Spiderman 2 is as good as superhero movies this side of melancholy can get.

One question: why do the good guys go through a sort of adolescence, the steepest of learning curves, full of hilarious mishaps, when it comes to discovering and learning how to use their powers? Yet the bad guys appear from nowhere with full mastery of their powers. Superman 4 anyone?!

I have just the 2 difficulties with this movie:

1 – The ending: it almost ruins the movie and the months of work these people put into making this movie

2 – Why is Peter Parker’s ringtone the theme tune to the original Spiderman cartoon? That reeeeeeeallly bothered me.

Oh and Jamie Fox is AWESOME!!!!

Rating: UUUU

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbp3Ra3Yp74