Aiming For Big

Rating: 6/10 (2 May 2014)

Apparently, there hasn't been an actual epic Spider-Man movie. The very first one back in 2002 is obviously a humble beginning, the second is more of an existential experiment, the third is basically a series of soap operatic subplots that happens to be a blockbuster, and finally the reboot is a nearly down-to-earth coming-of-age film about an angsty teenager who finds himself as a superhero. In this latest installment, based on the infinite amount of trailers, it is supposed to be the biggest of the bunch. Because sequels are always suppose to be big. But surprisingly, it is not even close to the expected scale. A more appropriate word to describe it is manipulation. The film instead displays itself with serious, challenging conflicts that mostly end up as cliffhangers. They're not bad, it just feels like it cheated the audience for something more.
In spite that it's the longest Spider-Man movie so far, there isn't much big happening on screen. The questions the story asks sure are, but the narrative just juggles off the subplots with contrivance which results as underwhelming. There is no actual straighter point. Stretching it with that runtime just made it kind of exhausting. It also scatters with a lot of potential themes. This is usually the specialty of these movies, no matter how good or weak the movie can be, the central message is always clear, but here the sentiments get a little shakier. The script probably just wants to focus more on the superhero elements, but the plot itself wanted to reserve the bigger action later.
The commitment of director Marc Webb is a huge benefit. Even with all the messy plotting and contrivance, he made those ridiculous turns look pretty natural. The romance between Peter and Gwen is still likable even though it sometimes become more of a priority for Peter than the real threat happening behind Oscorp. The action scenes are also better. The web swinging is a lot breathtaking and the fight scenes are surprisingly compelling. People might be focusing on the special effects and the cool slow-mos, but those aren't the real merits. Instead of long shots of massive explosions, it mostly concerns the normal citizens in danger, making the fights look more than personal. It's no groundbreaker to the genre of course, but at one point when some of them are about to die, it does feel like a big deal.
The acting of the returning actors from the last one didn't change a bit, which is good. The new ones are fine. Jamie Foxx is fair as Electro, but the alter ego is what handicaps. Max Dillon appears to be a sociopath and that should make him terrifying, but instead he acts more like a buffoon. Better is Dane DeHaan, though the script disappointingly rushed the character to the dark side, but the actor balances Harry Osborn's both human and sinister personalities quite well. And in one killer scene of the uncredited appearance of Chris Cooper indicates that the movie should be ashamed for not giving him more screen time as Norman Osborn.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is not yet the most epic Spider-Man ever. It's basically a busy sequel that hardly been anywhere, but even with all the pretentiousness of the story, the film can still provide genuine emotion and fortitude behind the action, the obvious dramas, and even in its most bombastic cliffhanger. The real letdown is it fails to promise the real deal, but even if it has a lot of action, the problems of the story are still too noticeable. The direction and acting are once again competent, the plot just needs consistency.