Not the Worst Spider-Man

Rating: 7/10 (24 June 2014)

This film, like Spider-Man 3, is trying to hard. It has so many plot threads and so many characters and some of them get the shaft. This to me though, feels like a great romantic comedy with superheroes. The love between Emma and Andrew is so real. I mean, it is obvious real, but their connection in the film feels genuine and you can completely tell why they can't see a world without the other. Their dialogue is so good and you can clearly tell that some it is ad libed. Andrew Garfield, to me at least, is the quintessential Peter Parker and Spider-Man. He is a character who not only enjoys Spider-Man, but also who is saying fun quips at the same time. Andrew is such a good performer and just owns the role without ever trying to hard. It is a great performance. Emma also doesn't overplay Gwen at all. She could just be the silly girlfriend following him around thinking she is better than she is, but she also feels like a real person. She is just so good in her role. Dane DeHaan is also amazing, no pun intended, in his role as Harry Osborn. He has these great nuances of a villain character that just work for me and he is my favorite villain in this film because I don't believe his character gets over played as much as the other two. You can feel his true anger and sadness and you really see how he was a perfect fit for this character. The dialogue between him and Peter is so good that you can see that they actually were friends and it really could have been done so badly if not for someone like Marc Webb behind the camera. You also have this great relationship between Aunt May and Peter that is so good that you feel touched. You can tell that they are family and that they truly do love each other and each scene they have on screen together is so well done. Sally Field is so talented and she takes every scene she gets and really gives a really heartwarming performance.
I do believe that some of the performances are dull. Jamie Foxx as Max Dillon or Electro is just to hammy. He doesn't come off real enough to be an actual character and being the one that is technically the main villain seems like a waste. You also have Paul Giamatti as The Rhino who is so much more hammier than Electro. He has this very thick Russian accent and his dialogue is so bad that you can't take anything he does seriously. His scenes are played up for comedy, but I don't find them funny at all. Chris Cooper also has a minor part in this film and his scene with Harry is so well done that I did enjoy it. It isn't just I hate you. You hate me. We are a unhappy family. You really see the depths of this relationship and it really can tell you something about Norman and Harry's relationship. Campbell Scott plays Richard Parker and definitely is the parent that has the most inspiration towards Peter in this film. You can really tell the love he has for Parker in his few moments that it is so sad when we find out his inevitable end in this film. What this film does though to his character is really so real and I love it to the end.
With a Superhero film, you obviously want some spectacular, no pun intended, action scenes and I believe this film delivers. While the first didn't have any action scenes that really stood out, this film does have some really good action scenes that stick with you. Electro has such a cool power set and they use that to their advantage. You get some really amazing, no pun intended, effects that showcase the powers of both Spider-Man and Electro. I think that the fight with Harry is very lack luster, but has its effect on you. The special effects are top notch. Spider-Man has a weight to him in this film and you feel like Andrew Garfield might actually be in the suit while he is swinging around in New York. I do think that it feels like Electro sometimes feels like Dr. Manhattan from Watchmen, but it didn't bother me that much. Even with lackluster characters from the villains, you still had some great actions scenes come about. And another conflicting point is the music. Some of it is really well integrated into the film and sounds very good while other pieces of music aren't integrated well and threw me off. I thought that the Electro theme sounded very good, but sometimes it became a forefront to the scene and I didn't enjoy then. I feel that it is groundbreaking like Hans Zimmer likes to do, but sometimes it sounds awkward and takes me out of the film.
The problems do arise from this film's jumbled plot. This film really is a great romantic comedy at its center. But then it moves to a new development for the villains and it doesn't give them really any time to develop a character so they just really become cardboard cut outs. The film does have some really good connections and, at its center, a really good love story, but all that levity is wasted with some very undeveloped villains that boil down to CGI tricks and some awkward music. This isn't a bad film. Just a disappointing film for someone who wanted it to be just as good and if not better than the first film. I give this film 2.75 out of 4 stars.