There are two types of superhero movies: the ones that brood and the ones that swing.
"The Amazing Spider-Man 2" is proudly the latter, filled with high-energy action. But this fleshed-out sequel also tackles an iconic grown-up moment in comic-book history with nary a hitch.
It helps that star Andrew Garfield is possibly the best actor to ever star in any Marvel Comics-based flick. As anyone who saw him on Broadway in "Death of a Salesman" can attest, the young British actor can effortlessly turn a cocky smirk to a queasy grimace. His great depth hoisted 2012's "The Amazing Spider-Man" to levels it almost didn't deserve.
This time, Garfield has some serious plot to chew on — and, with Emma Stone and Dane DeHaan, creates a web of a strong performance in a spectacularly entertaining adventure.
Niko Tavernise/Columbia Pictures Peter Parker (Garfield) and Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone) share a quiet moment in 'The Amazing Spider-Man 2.' A recap shows the fate of Queens kid Peter Parker's parents after they left him with his Aunt May (Sally Field).
Now graduating from high school, Peter (Garfield) has a handle on his double life, though his love Gwen Stacy (Stone), who knows Peter's secret, is tired of it.
They break up just as Spider-Man faces a new foe. Max Dillon (Jaime Foxx) is a dorky technician with the ominous Oscorp Industries. Zapped with electricity, he becomes power-eating Electro.
Meanwhile, Oscorp founder Norman Osborn (Chris Cooper) is dying. He tells his sullen son Harry (DeHaan), Peter's former classmate, more bad news — the disease killing the billionaire is in his heir.
Harry and Peter reconnect as each arrive separately at the same truth — the experiments Peter's dad was doing for Oscorp involved amped-up animal-human DNA. Harry needs the blood of Spider-Man to save himself, not knowing the web-slinger and his pal are the same person.
As Peter and Gwen reunite, Harry enlists Electro to help him steal spider-related serum that turns Harry into a greenish, goblin-like madman who goes after both Spider-Man and Gwen.
Courtesy of Columbia Pictures Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan) turns into a greenish, goblin-like madman after getting his hands on spider-related serum. Despite its many story threads, "ASM 2" doesn't suffer from the too-many-villains curse that afflicted the previous series' 2007 "Spider-Man 3." Electro and Harry's Green Goblin cross over only briefly. (Paul Giamatti's exoskeleton-suited Rhino is in just one late scene, and isn't a distraction.)
Crucially, this movie could, to its credit, have been titled "The Semi-Normal Peter Parker." Garfield and Stone — a couple in real life — have a palpable connection that director Marc Webb uses to bolster Peter and Gwen's love story to full effect. Given the movie's serious third act, it all works.
Less crucial is Electro, though Foxx is always magnetic and Electro and his sparky attacks provide some eye-popping CGI.
Webb has succeeded in separating his tone and mythos from Sam Raimi's earlier Spidey films. This franchise's animal-man baddies begat from weird science done in secret labs is fun, but kids under 7 may find Electro, and the movie's human toll, a bit scary. (Let's hope they mimic Peter and Gwen's love of science, though.)
The cast meets every challenge. DeHaan continues a grand upward trajectory, and Stone is both glamour-girl gorgeous and heartbreakingly normal. Along with Garfield, they're all as gripping as the epic battles and furious faceoffs that make the movie pop.
Source : http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/amazing-spider-man-2-movie-review-article-1.1770206
