The Amazing Spider-Man 2 The Amazing Spiderman 2 - User Review Thread! - SPOILERS! - Part 3

[GuestStar2004]

As long as it's not random dancing on the street, it's fine.

if that ever happens just blame the to many villains for it :P

 

[UltimateWebhead]

When ASM was released, the people that spoke out against the film were saying they missed the camp feeling of the comic books and didn't like the tone of it being dark and grounded. Now, we have a full-on return to the campiness of the comic books and the movie seems to embrace this with open arms, yet people are now complaining about this aspect.

 

[Joeyjojo72]

I think, based on what ive read, that many take issue with the inconsistent tone. One minute its cartoony and campy and the next its grounded and dark. Sometimes in the same scene. Havent seen it myself, but this seems to be a recurring complaint.

 

[GuestStar2004]

When ASM was released, the people that spoke out against the film were saying they missed the camp feeling of the comic books and didn't like the tone of it being dark and grounded. Now, we have a full-on return to the campiness of the comic books and the movie seems to embrace this with open arms, yet people are now complaining about this aspect.

i worry that marc was forced to put in more camp because the audience seemed to like it with raimis movies and they just wanted to grab that audience back as fast as they could

 

[UltimateWebhead]

i worry that marc was forced to put in more camp because the audience seemed to like it with raimis movies and they just wanted to grab that audience back as fast as they could

Forced?? Not sure about that. Marc even admitted in interviews that he initially felt the 'grounded' route was the way to go but then openly stated that he was wrong and needed to embrace the spectacle and comic book feel.

 

[AnneFan]

Forced?? Not sure about that. Marc even admitted in interviews that he initially felt the 'grounded' route was the way to go but then openly stated that he was wrong and needed to embrace the spectacle and comic book feel.

I'm glad he did, it's the right approach for Spidey.

 

[UltimateWebhead]

I'm glad he did, it's the right approach for Spidey.

I totally agree. Which is why I find the 'campy' complaints a bit weird.

 

[GuestStar2004]

Forced?? Not sure about that. Marc even admitted in interviews that he initially felt the 'grounded' route was the way to go but then openly stated that he was wrong and needed to embrace the spectacle and comic book feel.

maybe so but i did kinda miss some of the grounded feel though, TASM had a dark kinda real life is not pretty feel, while i will say TASM2 was very cartoony with dumb villains appearing to create havok

both have their charm but i wouldn't mind something in the middle really

 

[Nemeres]

I think, based on what ive read, that many take issue with the inconsistent tone. One minute its cartoony and campy and the next its grounded and dark. Sometimes in the same scene. Havent seen it myself, but this seems to be a recurring complaint.

I was expecting much worse from that. In my opinion, it's the kind of thing you notice (especially after so much has been said about it), but not necessarily one of the main bothers. I saw the word "Schumacher" being thrown around non-stop before I saw the film... but no, it doesn't come close. Tone, at least in my experience with the film, was far from being a main issue.

 

[UltimateWebhead]

maybe so but i did kinda miss some of the grounded feel though, TASM had a dark kinda real life is not pretty feel, while i will say TASM2 was very cartoony with dumb villains appearing to create havok

both have their charm but i wouldn't mind something in the middle really

I appreciated the 'grounded' approach that Webb took with ASM, however, I find a more comic book feel is the better way to go with a character like Spider-Man. ASM2 appears to have both grounded and camp moments, so isn't that something in the middle?

 

[HanShotFirst]

My brief thoughts:

- Electro's origin story. I honestly thought it was unnessecary. Just explain his powers and let him wreck ****.
- Not enough Goblin. "Fight" was too short, hopefuly we see more of him in TASM3 or whatever comes next.
- Not enough Spider-man. Seriously, that one scene with Gwen's Oxford interview could have been replaced with some Spidey goodness.

- Rhino. Lesser villain done right. Beaten and humiliated comes back with better "I hate you" reason
- Electro Power Plant battle. It was very entertaining and Gwen in a car cracked me up :P
- Dat Scene. I honestly didn't expect it to be so brutal. Some people in my theatre were crying with Garfield T__T
- Spider-man. After 4 movies I finally got my definitive Spider-man on big screen.
- DeHaan. He was sooo good and I'm glad he's returning in future Spider-man films.

 

[miltonh]

LIAR

Garfield: “This time we have this very, very good script that makes a lot of sense.”

 

[LizardMan07]

Who is lying? Why is he lying? Should we hang him? Should we just watch Frozen?

 

[spider-neil]

LIAR

Garfield: “This time we have this very, very good script that makes a lot of sense.”

I liked it so to me he isn't lying.

 

[GuestStar2004]

- Spider-man. After 4 movies I finally got my definitive Spider-man on big screen.
.

this ^^

 

[Nemeres]

I thought the power plant fight was pretty small potatoes. Way too cartoonish. And Spider-Man was being hit with about a billion volts, why didn't he get electrocuted? They removed the sense of threat from Electro's powers by making Spidey able to withstand that like it was nothing.

 

[Joe_Kickass]

LIAR

Garfield: “This time we have this very, very good script that makes a lot of sense.”

Did Garfield actually say that? Like word for word? If so, whew, that's irony right there.

 

[Joe_Kickass]

Why did Webb make it sound like this movie was action packed when it sounds like there was hardly any in it? A lot of it sounds really, really squandered. I remember when it was in production how much people here were hyping up the Time Square fight scene, only for it to turn out to not really be a fight at all? It feels like they just straight up lied about a lot of the aspects of this movie. Makes me almost wary of seeing it, I don't want to support something that feels half-a**ed.

 

[GuestStar2004]

I don't want to support something that feels half-a**ed.

then don't, sorted, moving on

 

[Spider-knight]

Did Garfield actually say that? Like word for word? If so, whew, that's irony right there.

Actors lie about movies and you have to remember like the previous film there are scenes that are cut

 

[GuestStar2004]

They didn't lie it's just what they read in a script is not always gonna be the same way seen on screen

Now it's also not at all shocking that you know Andrew... Might actually have liked what he said? No that unbelievable that someone like he may have liked it? Ah ok

I guess it's been officially decided it was a terrible script

 

[GremlinZilla89]

I think, based on what ive read, that many take issue with the inconsistent tone. One minute its cartoony and campy and the next its grounded and dark. Sometimes in the same scene. Havent seen it myself, but this seems to be a recurring complaint.

Don't worry, that accusation is flat out false. It never gets "grounded" and it's only "dark" during the finale.

 

[Pfeiffer-Pfan]

Here's my long-winded, rambling review for The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Read at your own risk:

---------------

I remember leaving my local theatre in July 2012, with a strange feeling. You know that feeling when you're fighting with yourself to like something and no matter what you try and say to convince yourself, your opinion really isn't going to change. I had just seen The Amazing Spider-Man and for all my might (Hey, it was Spider-Man... I wanted to like it.), I just couldn't shake the feeling that I was decidedly under-whelmed by what I had just seen. There was plenty to like in the movie (a scene here or there, a particular actor), but not an awful lot to love. I grew up through my teenage years loving and being hyped for the Raimi/Maguire Spider-Man movies and within the space of a few years, it was all change and certainly not always for the better. Anyway, in the past two years I've watched the film a few more times on Blu-Ray and still had the same feeling... Love Emma/Gwen, lukewarm on Garfield, love the romance, lukewarm on the action, dislike Connors/Lizard, love Aunt May and so on. It still sits at a 5/10 in my eyes... so you can imagine the trepidation I had for The Amazing Spider-Man 2.

I followed the movie to a certain degree but didn't hang about for every detail or leaked set pic the way I did for the Nolan Batman movies... but from what I did see and hear, things were looking pretty good. We were getting to move away from the origin story, have more development on the Peter/Gwen romance, improved action, some interesting villains and a better looking (the best?) Spider-suit. The trailer peaked my interest and when me and my friends had some time this week we went to see the movie. Nobody was bursting with excitement, but we went all the same. The movie promised us that Spider-Man's ''Greatest Battle Begins''. Pretty exciting stuff.

Without too much difficulty, I can state that this is a much better film than it's predecessor, but it still has a lot of flaws and disappointing decisions. In a nutshell, the film deals with Peter's ever evolving and tumultuous life... the people who have left him, those who are thinking of leaving him and those that have come back. All the while, he has some fun and heartache while under the mask. Sounds great right? And for the most part it is. Peter's life has always been a soap opera and his world works best when a writer is weaving multiple threads at the same time. The problem is that while the movie attempts this, it doesn't quite work and what we are left with is a messy and meandering plot that has moments of brilliance but never finds some much needed cohesion. It all feels a little thrown together... and I don't for one moment believe that is is the movie Marc Webb would make if he had full control.

So what works? The most engaging aspects of the movie is Peter's interactions with those he cares for. The romance with Gwen (one of the few saving graces of the first film) is just as strong as ever. It's rare in a comic book movie that you believe the romance so completely, but here it truly works. I was rooting for these two for the entire movie and so desperately wanted them to have a happy ending. Of course, decades of comic mythology told us this was not to be. The climax at the end involving Gwen's demise was both breathtaking and heartbreaking. I knew Gwen was going but it still bought tears to my eyes. I can't commend Webb, Garfield and Stone for how they handled the entire Peter/Gwen arc. Peter's relationship with his aunt is also as captivating as ever, as seen in one other scene that made me tear up... when May expresses dismay that Peter keeps longing for his parents after she raised him and is working her butt off to get him to a good college. Peter has reassure her that she is enough and it is just beautifully handled in every way.

The action is also much improved from the first film. Yes, It's a little cartoony and CGI heavy at times but it always creative. You can see the team, after 5 Spidey movies, trying to come up with something innovative and they do an OK job for the most part. Still haven't quite topped that train sequence from Spider-Man 2 though, have they?

What doesn't work? Well, apart from the messy plot, I'm sad to say that the villains didn't do it for me. The Rhino was just a little cameo with a goofy Paul Giamatii... Nothing special or even anything worth talking about. Jaime Foxx's Electro was a huge disappointment. Not so much Foxx who gives an admirable performance and does his best with the material he's been given, but in the way the character lies flat on the flat. He really is a lesser version of Jim Carrey's Riddler... a poor sap who idolizes Spider-Man and feels rejected by everyone around him. The characterization is paper-thin and to top it all of, he simply turns into Harry Osborn's bodyguard. The Green Goblin was better executed but still feels like a stepping stone to bigger things (AKA Norman Osborn) and not a fully fledged villain in his own right.

The cast manages to wrangle this uneven script into to something emotionally memorable. Andrew Garfield has improved ten fold and I'm now fully behind him as Spider-Man. He nailed every scene whether he was in or out of the mask. He was funny, charming and now has so much presence with the character. Dane DeHaan was a true find as Harry, giving a wonderfully snobbish and almost tragic performance. It's just a shame he didn't have more in depth material. Everyone else performed admirably as well, but I simply have to single out two cast members for specific praise... Emma Stone and Sally Field. What on earth is this franchise going to do without Emma Stone? She was so brilliant in both movies and Gwen has very easily become one of the best superhero love interests ever. I simply cannot say enough good thing about Miss Stone. Sally also shone brightly in the movie and it was a joy to see her out of the house and interacting with more than just Ben or Peter. What more can I say? It's Sally Field.... you KNOW she gave a great performance.

If only I could ignore the villains and forgive the messy plot, this could almost have toppled Spider-Man 2 for the title of the perfect (ish) Spidey movie. That's one heck of an achievement after my reaction to the first film. What really makes this movie is Webb's confident directing (despite being clearly stifled by the producers and studio), an amazing cast, the sheer fun of the Spider-Man character and the emotional weight.

Webb is moving in the right direction... let's just hope Sony doesn't interfere too much in the future.

7/10

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I think that came out sounding more mixed than I intended, but nevertheless, those are my thoughts on the film.

 

[Daywalker89]

Great review Pfeiffer Pfan. Interesting read.

 

[The Joker]

Nice review, Pfeifferfan

Jaaaaeeeesus, what a mess of a movie. 04/10

Elaborate please. What did and didn't work for you?