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Showing posts with label THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2. Show all posts
Showing posts with label THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2. Show all posts
Sunday, May 4, 2014
Cindy Prascik's Review of The Amazing Spider-Man 2
Dearest Blog, yesterday it was off to the pictures for an afternoon with one of my favorite heroes, the Amazing Spider-Man.
Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn't know from the trailers.
Spidey faces off with a trio of new foes, while Peter Parker deals with the travails of teen love.
In the Amazing Spider-Man 2, Andrew Garfield reprises his role as the titular web-slinger. Whatever problems this movie has--and, trust me, it has 'em--Garfield's enthusiasm for the role really shines and is something special to watch. As a fan, there's nothing quite like knowing the guy in the suit is as excited about it as you are.
The movie doesn't stretch Garfield's talent, but it's better for having him. The cast boasts some pretty big names, but if there's anyone else worth mentioning it's Dane DeHaan, who is terrific as Harry Osborne.
Like its predecessor, the Amazing Spider-Man 2 has inexcusably poor special effects. For all the money the filmmakers have thrown at the screen, it looks no better than a video game. Jamie Foxx' Electro is pretty badass, but the flying sequences and other CGI are terrible.It goes without saying--but I'll say it anyway--the Amazing Spider-Man 2 is far too long.
There's barely enough substance here for a 90-minute popcorn flick, yet the movie drags on for another 50 minutes beyond that...I considered going for popcorn I didn't want or making a bathroom run I didn't need just to shake off the drowsies.
Most of the humor is juvenile and falls flat, though Garfield and co-star (and real-life love) Emma Stone are just charming enough to make some of it work. I disagree with complaints that there are too many villains in the movie, but I don't think the script really gives any of them their due.
As long as the movie is, they definitely could have done much better on that front. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 has its fun moments, but watching it is a little like trying to do a jigsaw puzzle with a cat in the house: just when you think you're getting all the pieces together, they land in a jumble on the floor.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 runs 142 minutes and is rated PG13 for "sequences of sci-fi action/violence."
It's worth seeing for great performances by Andrew Garfield and Dane DeHaan, even if it doesn't live up to its "amazing" billing.
Of a possible nine Weasleys, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 gets five.
Until next time...
Thursday, May 1, 2014
MOVIE REVIEW: THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2
The web-slingin' wall-crawler hits the screens once again in this follow-up to Marc Webb's 2012 reboot of the series. Andrew Garfield returns as Peter Parker, who squares off against the villainous Electro, played by Jamie Foxx. Emma Stone heads up the rest of the starring cast, which includes Paul Giamatti, Dane DeHaan, and Chris Cooper. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi
Director: Marc Webb
Cast: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Jamie Foxx, Dane
DeHaan, Chris Cooper, Paul Giamatti
Release Date: May
02, 2014
Rated PG-13 for seq. of Sci-Fi Action/Violence
Runtime: 2 hr. 21 min.
Genres: Action/Adventure
Review:
I’ll start this review like I’ve probably started the 4
other Spider-man reviews before it. I’ll
never been much a fan of the character, I’m not sure why but he’s just never
grabbed my attention like DC’s Mount Olympus
of heroes or the X-Men for example. I did
enjoy the first two Sam Raimi and despised the third. The first film in the rebooted series didn’t
hit the mark for me even though I liked Garfield and Stone in their roles. The 2nd go around doesn’t fair
much better. The film suffers from some
truly awful writing filled with stale dialogue and plot holes just a tad too
large to ignore. It’s never a good thing
when certain segments of the film remind you of 90’s era Joel Schumacher Batman
films. As a whole the film feels like a
throwback but not in a good way. While
most superhero films are trying to infuse some deeper meaning into their
stories or at the very least some fun, this one seems content to give us a few
CGI heavy set pieces and the most basic of back stories for the villains and
call it a day. In between this all we
get an overdose of Parker and Stacy’s romance which is solid but overdone. It’s propped up by Garfield
and Stone’s chemistry which makes the whole thing more watchable than it should
be but they can’t save this bloated mess of a film. I personally have no problem if a film is 2
and half hours long as long as it earns that runtime, this one doesn’t come
close to deserving its runtime, not by a long shot. It would have been better served with a more
focused storyline and villain instead of trying to lay the groundwork for
future spinoffs and sequels like the planned Sinister Six films. The Amazing Spider-man 2 is purely for
diehards and anybody wanting to see Paul Giamatti scream out intelligible
dialogue in a 2 minute cameo.
D
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