A Worthy Sequel

Rating: 8/10 (23 June 2013)

Spidey is back, and this time he's battling Dr. Octopus (aka Dr. Otto Octavius, played by Alfred Molina). Doc Ock is transformed via a nuclear fusion experiment that goes horribly wrong, fusing 4 virtually indestructible mechanical arms to his nervous system via his spinal cord..and destroying the inhibitor chip which prevents them from controlling his mind.
You see Peter Parker back once again as a hard-on-his luck geek, when he's not chasing bad guys. The problem is that all that time chasing crooks has left him exhausted..to the point where he's failing in college and can't hold a job (and as such can't keep up on his rent at the dive where he lives). He's still hung up on Mary Jane, who, much to Parker's chagrin, is now dating J. Jonah Jameson's astronaut son. His buddy Harry Osbourne is still obsessed with getting back at Spider-man for the death of his father. And Aunt May's home is in foreclosure. All these distractions get to Peter, and he finds that his spider powers aren't always working (and they pick some really bad moments to go out on him).
Spider-man 2 has generally been reviewed more favorably than the first installment. I disagree. It's got great visual effects, but it's a bit tedious in places. When the action does get going, it's great, but there's a LOT of talking in this movie..too much (except for the parts featuring the insufferable Jameson, once again played perfectly by J.K. Simmons). And Spidey 2 doubles down on the "Peter Parker's a hard-luck nerd" angle. OK, first off, he wasn't that nerdy in the comic (I know, I'm being picky here, but nonetheless), but even assuming he was, it gets to the point where it's enough already..we get it. There's one scene in particular where Peter's heading for class (late, as usual) and is constantly getting knocked over and walked on by the other students. Part of that was to emphasize how exhausted he was from chasing bad guys, but still, it was too much.
All criticisms aside, this is still definitely a superior effort as super hero movies go. All the performances are good. Alfred Molina does a fine job as the doomed Dr. Octavius. The effects are VERY good. There's a lot of CGI, but it actually isn't done to the point where it looks like a video game. Doc Ock's mechanical arms in particular look frighteningly real.
Overall, a fine follow-up to my favorite comic super-hero movie. 8.5