The Amazing Spider-Man 2
While Marc Webb’s 2012 reboot managed to neatly sidestep those disbelievers in the ranks with a tale of teenage angst set against a superhero backdrop, expectation and anticipation for the sequel (two more have been announced) meant that this time Spidey would really have to live up to that ‘amazing’ tag. Has he dragged us further into Webb’s web then?
With issues surrounding his involvement with Gwen (Emma Stone), Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield) has new foes to worry about in the form of Jamie Foxx’s charged Electro and Dane DeHaan’s Harry Osborn. Can he honour her dad’s dying wish and keep her, and indeed his beloved NYC, safe from a new deadly duo.
In a rather saturated superhero market – we’ve just had Captain America 2 and The Avengers sequel is on the way soon – there’s a sense you have to do something really different to stand out. Sadly, Spidey Mark II’s second outing, though perfectly fun popcorn fodder, does little to separate itself in crowd of champions.
Never sure of its tone, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 darts from early comedy (Peter racing from battle to his graduation for one) to romance to dark superhero stuff via another quick origin detour, involving his deceased parents, which adds little in terms of plot but feels as if it should have done.
Thankfully Garfield and Stone share the same warm chemistry that made the first film just as enjoyable, while DeHaan, so good in Chronicle, does his best as the petulant but powerful heir to the Oscorp throne. Foxx however, for all his turbo-charged and sparky power, is given little to do but blast a few suits before being doused in either water or too much of his own juice to really make an impact as a potentially worthy foe.
Which means it all falls on the (fairly) young trio of stars to make both the action and drama work, which for the most part they do, leaving the likes of Felicity Jones and Paul Giamatti free to set up small but potentially crucial roles in future sequels.
When the film finally casts off its jokey tone and Parker’s quips – something akin to a young James Bond but without the legal ability to down a Martini while doing so – the almost obligatory darker final third (and controversial but hugely signposted climactic sucker-punch) serves the film well.
What’s certain is that, with Garfield and Stone holding the film together so well, amidst the odd bit of cheddar, The Amazing Spider-Man 3 should hopefully make for a genuinely interesting continuum of Spidey’s crime and love-fighting lives. This instalment may be all over the place tonally, but there’s enough chemistry, action and intrigue in this particular web to make it stick.
