Amazing!!!!!

Rating: 9/10 (26 June 2009)

It's two years since the events of the first film and Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) is struggling to juggle his commitments to his family, friends and his job whilst trying to fight crime as the friendly neighbourhood Web Slinger.
Sam Raimi, back in the directing chair, builds on the successes of the first film to produce a polished, well paced and finely crafted sequel that improves leaps and bounds on its predecessor. One of the major keys to the films success is the villain, Doctor Octopus (a brilliant turn from Alfred Molina). Whereas the Green Goblin plot line came across as under written and nonsensical in the first film, here we have a character who is fully developed, well written and wonderfully executed (no Power Ranger costumes here for Doc Ock) It's a credit to all concerned that they truly make Otto Octavius both sympathetic and frightening at the same time (Ock's "birth" scene is a wonderful homage from Raimi to his own Evil Dead movies) Now that the first movie is out of the way, you get a sense that the filmmakers have been liberated from the shackles an origin tale provides and have allowed that freedom to really let loose with the characters.
The film takes its main inspiration from Amazing Spider-Man issue 50 "Spider-Man No More!" as Peter decides to quit being Spider-Man as it's getting in the way of him leading a normal life. Several plot lines are also developed, the most interesting concerning Peter's friend Harry Osborn, an excellent James Franco, whose growing resentment of Spider-Man, who he blames for his fathers death, fuels his desire for revenge.
Featuring a captivating storyline, excellent Special FX and edge of the seat action scenes (all the Spidey-Doc Ock fight scenes are sensational with the standout being the subway sequence), this is one of those few sequels that is better than the first film and just gets better the more you watch it. 9/10