(SPOILER WARNING!!! This article does contain spoilers, if you haven’t seen the movie, just see the first paragraph to be informed without spoilers!!!)

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is a good popcorn summer movie watch, even though the story was choppy and maybe a little too campy, this is definitely the movie that true Spider-Man fans will enjoy. Rating 4 out of 5 Stars.

Spider-Man has been one of my favorite superheroes since I was kid, and him and Batman were the real reasons why I’m a comic book nerd especially when it comes to movies. What i love most about Spider-Man is how well grounded he is. He is a person, at times a high school kid, that is struggling with his life but also saving people from dangers, bad guys, and super villains. He’s always cracking a lot of jokes and corny but funny insults which really increases his likability as a hero, and he does show a lot of true emotion as a hero or as Peter Parker. Showing vulnerability is a big key in making a lot of superheroes show their human nature (or some heroes, their alien nature). Spider-Man has everything I love in a superhero, he does show his true emotion, his intelligence, and most of all his love for being a crime fighting hero (at least in most his stories). The first movie of this version of Spider-Man I did enjoy, but I wasn’t 100% sold that this will be a great Spider-Man series. This second movie now really showed the true character of Spider-man from the comics, and as a fan i was satisfied with this incantation of Spider-Man. I will start with what I love, to the so-so, to what I didn’t like.

What I like, this movie is probably the closest to the Spider-man comics than the other movie that was made. The reason for that is Andrew Garfield really did his homework and played the role of Spider-Man/Peter Parker right. Unlike Tobey McGuire’s Spider-Man where he showed too much emotion. Garfield had the perfect balance of emotion, and he showed how much he really does enjoy being Spider-Man and being a hero. Garfield has said when he auditioned for the role, all he did was have fun with the character in audition. That boded well for Garfield in this movie. I wasn’t quite sold in the first The Amazing Spider-Man and Garfield’s character, and the dark tone of the movie, but this one really proved that Sony Productions know what they are doing. Marc Webb’s direction was great. The special effects (especially when you see it in IMAX 3D) were beyond amazing. What I liked most is that Webb really did try to make it close to a comic book movie as possible, and it really showed the authenticity of it for Spider-Man. Jaime Foxx played the role of Electro really well. The movie really developed his character well as a nobody who adored Spider-Man to a powerful somebody that felt betrayed by Spider-Man and try to go at him. When he was imprisoned, the movie really caught his creepiness and how dark his character really is. I’m also glad that they made his costume a lot more cooler, than his old school costume in the comics. The little we saw in Paul Giamatti’s character as the Rhino, showed the potential of him in the future movie. It showed an appetizer of how crazy this guy really is and look forward to seeing him in future movies. What really impressed me was Dane Dehaan’s acting as Harry Osbourne/The Green Goblin. His acting was golden, showing how much he is an emotional wreck. Harry didn’t have a great relationship with his father Norman Osbourne, played by Chris Cooper showed why he is emotionally unstable. It also showed how his relationship with Peter Parker made him to become a normal kid, but when he really wants something, he will do whatever it at any costs. When he turned to The Green Goblin, I liked that his suit and face is much better than Willem Defoe’s incantation of The Green Goblin. It did show spurts of his maniacal laugh and personality, but most of all, it shows that he will be the leader of The Sinister Six and that will be great. The relationship with Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy, played by Emma Stone showed how much great chemistry they had. I believe Stacy was a great set up for Parker to move on to Mary Jane Watson in the future movies. It was a little corny when Spider-Man tried to catch up with her before she goes to England, and put “I Love You” on the Brooklyn Bridge, but it did set up for the inevitable. As a comic fan i knew Gwen Stacy was going to die, and at times, I thought it was not going to happen, but when she came in the middle of the fight between Spider-Man and Electro, I knew it was going to happen. When it did happen, man they couldn’t made it any more epic. To show how close Spider-Man was in saving her, yet just a second too late that ended up her falling to her death snapping her neck and back in the process. This was a very emotional moment in the movie, and showed some genuine emotion from Garfield as Spider-Man. i liked the fact that he didn’t want to be Spider-Man anymore after that, but her valedictorian speech inspired him to come back to fight crime and super villains once again.

The so-so, early in the movie I felt that the story was too choppy and campy, I’m always willing to forgive the campyness of any comic book movie, but this time it didn’t help with the flow of the story. What I mean by choppy is that they rushed from scene to scene, and when your mind is trying to develop what just happened something extraordinary happens again which can be exhausting. For a comic book movie that is fine, but for a movie in general, you don’t want to exhaust the audience with a lot of emotion. The movie started to flow better at the end which really made it better. If the story flowed better in the beginning, this would’ve turned from a good movie to a great movie.  There were some slow parts in the beginning as well, but essential in the story telling, just wish they were more creative. I was also a little disappointed that they didn’t show J. Jonah Jameson, they mentioned him where Peter Parker was sending him pictures and showed a little of his personality through the e-mail, but I wished I could get a glimpse of him, but ah well, maybe the next movie. The ending with the Rhino was not necessary, but needed to show that they are planning something big for Spider-Man in the future and a goodway to show Spider-Man making a triumphant return.

What I didn’t like, this movie did suffer from showing to much in the trailers and sneak peeks which really ruined some element of surprise for me. It’s almost I knew what’s going to happen. I blame the internet for that, but we just have to learn how to avoid it to really enjoy the movie, cuz the media demands big movies to show a lot. The ending with the Rhino pretty much was shown in the trailers, and that didn’t sit well with me. They shouldn’t have promoted and marketed the Rhino and keep it as a surprise in my opinion. Promoting Electro was good enough, and maybe Sony needs to learn a little from the Marvel Cinematic Universe in marketing their superhero movies without showing too much. Also what is up with the mid-credit scene promoting X-men Days of Future Past? That really confused me, and I found out that Marc Webb owed Fox Studios a favor and did that for them. Really now? (Shaking my head)

Overall, what was great in this movie really overcame what was wrong with this movie. Maybe if Sam Raimi was a consultant of some sort, this series will really get over the hump to greatness. Until then I’m happy that these movies are enjoyable and really reaching out to their main crowd of the comic book culture. I believe Andrew Garfield has now set the tone as the best Spider-Man/Peter Parker, and I’m looking forward to seeing The Sinister Six, and hopefully a Venom/Carnage movie as well!!! Final Rating 4 out of 5 Stars.