The Amazing Spider-Man 2 REVIEW

“That must be pretty cool, huh? To have the world see you like this – the amazing Spider-Man! I wish I was like him.”

The latest entry in the rebooted Spidey franchise follows Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield) as he unveils secrets about his families past, battles multiple villains and desperately tries to continue his relationship with the love of his life, Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone). It introduces classic Spider-Man villains, like Electro, Rhino, and the Green Goblin, making his first appearance in a Spider-Man film since Sam Raimi’s original adaptation.

I saw the first Amazing Spider-Man film when it was released in Cinemas a couple of years ago, and at the time i absolutely hated it. But i recently re-watched it, and i was surprised at how much i enjoyed it. It was a good re-interpretation which, although not entirely necessary, did add interesting elements to the mythos, including Oscorp’s involvement in animal genetics. It had a wonderful love story, between Peter and Gwen, and made Spider-Man once again very relateable, which is the main appeal of the tale. It, in my opinion, is a great superhero origin story. And this sequel does not in any way disappoint.

The film is surprisingly well-paced, even though there is a lot going on. It manages to tackle each plot thread seamlessly, without seeming like too much is going on. Each villain gets enough screen time, which is a common criticism of Spider-Man 3, and they all seem like fairly fleshed out characters. Except from Rhino, who has very little screen time. He is mainly used as set up for future films, which isn’t a criticism. Electro (Jamie Foxx) starts out as a scrawny, nerdy engineer named Max Dillion, who thinks he is a no-body, and as Spider-Man saves him, calling him his “eyes and ears”, Dillion develops an obsession with him. This leads to a particularly funny and at the same time slightly disturbing scene of Dillion talking to an imaginary Spidey. Foxx is very good in the role, managing to transform his performance as the film goes on. Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan) is also the pivotal villain Green Goblin, continuing his father Norman Osborn’s search for human advancement. DeHaan is great as being a friend to Peter and also as a crazed, but sympathetic villain.

Andrew Garfield really comes into his own in this movie, as Peter is tested like never before, with emotional turmoil, teenage angst and of course, big scary bad guys. As Spider-Man he brings hope to NYC, and as Peter he struggles to find out the truth about his parents deaths, and keep Gwen. I adore Toby Maguire’s portrayal of the eponymous character, but Garfield here provides the most relateable Peter yet. I would imagine that most teenage boys imagine themselves as Peter Parker, that is if you’re an awkward nerd, like myself. Emma Stone was, as usual, absolutely adorable and utterly fantastic as Gwen Stacy. She is every bit as interesting as Peter. Their relationship, therefore, is so incredible that it becomes possibly the strongest element of the film. It’s relateable, poignant, and better than half of the relationships that I’ve seen in romance films.

The dialogue is great, mainly because it sounds like comic-book dialogue. It’s often cheesy, hokey and silly, and i love that. The script in the first was similar, but not half as inventive or funny as this one. The cinematography was very well done, which is not something that comic book films are known for, but it had many beautiful shots throughout. Furthermore, the overall design was a treat for the eyes, with good use of CGI and surprisingly enjoyable slow motion. Marc Webb’s direction was pretty much great, as he was allowed to do his own thing, where as in the first he often had to stick to a structure, as it was an origin story.

The minor complaints of the film are that some elements don’t quite add up, like Electro being able to tele-port and fly. Also Norman Osborn (Chris Cooper) is given a very sort amount of screen time.

Apart from that, it worked. It added information to the Oscorp experiments mystery, which made the film feel like a cohesive continuation from the first. It had the best on screen relationship that i have seen in ages, and it was overall very enjoyable. It even left me with multiple tears rolling down my face, as seasons pass in a certain incredibly sad sequence. It has become my joint favourite Spider-Man film with the original Spider-Man 2.

9/10

Captain America: The Winter Soldier REVIEW

 

“Captain, in Order to build a better world, sometimes means turning the old one down… And that makes enemies.”

This Marvel sequel tells the story of Steve Rogers A.K.A. Captain America coming to terms with modern life, as he struggles to agree with S.H.E.I.L.D’s methods of national security. He is also introduced to the mysterious and truly vicious Winter Soldier who is tasked with eliminating certain Shield operatives.

It pleases me to say that it was certainly more impressive than most of the other Marvel Cinematic Universe films (the movies made by Disney), as instead of going for a outright comedic stance like the disastrous Iron Man 3, it blends action, drama and comedy seamlessly into one nice package.

The plot is extremely intricate, and at sometimes seems slightly convoluted, even for a comic book veteran like myself. That said, it’s possibly the best story in any MCU movie to date. It’s an spy/espionage /thriller type of film, which lets the many twists and turns seem plausible. Speaking of twists, i won’t spoil any here, but there are a ton of excellent ones, including a few characters unexpectedly showing up. Although, if you have read the graphic novel, which i have, you will obviously expect some of the exciting developments. This shouldn’t detract readers of the novel though, as it is very loosely based on it, and there are copious added twists which, in my opinion, make the film even better than the treasured novel.

The acting is pretty solid, with Scarlett Johansson and the excellent Robert Redford giving very strong performances. Chris Evans’s Captain America becomes a more interesting character, as a result of the performance and writing. He really gives some great scenes as he wonders about the modern world, and questions Shield’s actions. Anthony Mackie’s Falcon is also a welcomed addition to the franchise.

There is nothing particularly striking about the cinematography, but there doesn’t need to be because it’s a fun action film, which doesn’t need to rely on nice visuals. Although the visuals, in terms of CGI, are great.

The whole direction of the film was spot on, since the Russo brothers seemed to understand what makes most comic book movies great – fun action, good story lines with lots of intense and exciting twists, and a strangely relatable hero. I’m not obviously saying that people will be able to relate to Cap’s abs, but his naivety and integrity are things which most people try to have.

8/10