"Down came the rain . . . "

Rating: 8/10 (12 May 2014)

" . . . and washed this spider up." One pretty much expects Bond Girls to die. Every time Agent 007 gets hitched, his bride catches a bullet almost before the wedding bouquet is tossed. But when a movie's heroes are perky high school kids, movie goers expect more longevity than that enjoyed by Bond Gals. It's depressing enough when teens turn out to have their whole lives BEHIND them on Graduation Day in real life. Film escapism demands that trailers or previews must provide at least a kernel of truth-in-advertising. You expect teens to die in CARRIE, because the previews explicitly show that it's a horror flick. (Even Harry Potter's hapless "Cedric Diggory" character is a pretty minor plot sacrifice, thus no exception to this rule.) Teens are the number one demographic for movie multiplexes, so responsible exhibitors should refrain from biting the hand that feeds them. High schoolers also are the most easily influenced film fans. Ever since the rash of suicides and suicides-by-cop inspired by the 1950s film REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE, Hollywood studios have made an implicit pact with parents NOT to blindside them with another wolf in sheep's clothing like REBEL. However, AMAZING SPIDERMAN 2 is in clear violation of this understanding. Therefore, it can be rated "8" for college kids, but deserves a cautionary 4-out-of-10 for your impressionable high schoolers.