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The Amazing Spider-Man 2

Released on Tuesday, May 13, 2014. This review was written by Austin Lovelace.

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Characters: 3.5/5
  • Lead 5/5
  • Supporting 2/5
       Andrew Garfield portrays Peter Parker/ Spider-Man brilliantly. From his nerdy but cool looks to his sense of humor, I like him as a near perfect fit for the role. I also like Emma Stone as Gwen Stacey. Together, Peter Parker and Gwen Stacey have wonderful and heartfelt chemistry. Max Dillon, portrayed by Jamie Foxx, is a likeable character, but he lacks proper development. Sally Fields is satisfying as Aunt May. Dane DeHaan plays an adequate Harry Osborne, though the casting choice baffled me at first. As for the rest of the characters, they all lack proper character development. There is an overabundance of villains as Electro, the Green Goblin, and Rhino are all mashed together, resulting in a confusing sequence of events that leaves a void in the film’s plot. The writers should have given Max Dillon and his transformation into Electro better character development with more screen time, focusing less on the Green Goblin and cutting Rhino out completely.

Cinematography: 4/5
       The cinematography of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is rather exciting. The film was shot on 35 mm film in the anamorphic format, unlike the preceding film which was filmed digitally. The overall look of the film is pleasing. Unlike the preceding film, which mostly took place at night, resulting in heavy blue lighting, this film is bright and colorful with daylight. However, the film lacks one necessity of Spider-Man films—web slinging through the cityscape. Only one scene features the iconic web slinging, as most every other modern Spider-Man film featured and ended with it. The lack of web slinging is a major disappointment.

Design: 1.5/5
  • Costume/ set 3/5
  • Credits 0.5/5
       Spider-Man’s costume received a makeover from the preceding movie. The new costume resembles the ones found in the comic books and Sam Raimi’s trilogy. The costume is still cool, but the change is mildly disappointing as the one from the preceding movie was unique. The scenes in which Electro sports a hoodie were a good choice of design. The Green Goblin looks tacky and overdone. Just as the film lacks one cinematographic necessity, it also lacks another of design—opening credits. The film not only lacks the iconic multiple minutes of comic-book-resembling opening credits, but it features tacky closing credits that are not relatable to Spider-Man at all.

Directing: 3/5
       It’s hard not to compare Sam Raimi’s trilogy to Marc Webb’s reboot series. With that said, the overall quality of the two series is polar opposites. Marc Webb has failed to not only top Sam Raimi’s trilogy, but has failed to make a solid superhero film, much less a solid Spider-Man film. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is the weakest modern Spider-Man film to date; even one of the weakest superhero films to date. The overall quality of a film falls back on the director. However, I am impressed with the production of the film, as the entire film was shot in New York; the state’s largest film production to date.

Editing: 4.5/5
       Other than a few noticeable continuity errors, the editing of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is spectacular. The visual effects are brilliant—Electro is a captivating creature of electricity that glows and flickers. The lone scene that features Spider-Man slinging webs through the cityscape is breathtaking—you feel as though you are along for the ride beside him. The slow motion web spinning, most notably the web spun to save Gwen from falling to her death, make you forget to breathe. If this movie will be remembered for anything, it will most certainly be its stunning visual effects.

Screenplay: 1/5
       The screenplay of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is what ruined the film. First of all, the opening scene was not appealing at all. It felt as if they were trying to be a different movie. The opening scene to feature Spider-Man was marvelous. The web-slinging and police pursuit through the city was entirely exciting. As for the overall plot, at times, I was unable to tell if I was watching a superhero movie or a love story. The movie spent more time focusing on the indecisiveness of Peter and Gwen’s relationship, breaking up and getting back together, than it did developing the characters, mainly Electro. Most of the scenes featuring a duel between the superhero and villain were weak—most notably the final duel between Spider-Man and Electro. The final scene was weak overall and was only a tactic to draw the audience in to see the next sequel. Overall, the screenplay of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is the worst of any modern Spider-Man movies, including its preceding film—something I thought would be impossible to fall short of. The screenplay is weak, improperly paced, and leaves the audience feeling empty.
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