Amazing Spiderman 2 - The Shuffling of Electro

Rating: 7/10 (16 April 2014)

Well it's here, after about fifty trailers online leading up to it's release, The Amazing Spiderman 2 has hit the big screen and it's..just good. Had to the potential to be very good but some things get lost in the shuffle of the juggling stories in my opinion. So on with the negatives first.
Well, I could say Paul Giamatti as the would be Rhino was a waste but he's lucky to be even in this film for ten minutes and was obviously written in for the extent of the future Sinister Six storyline/film in the pipeline so really unsure I suppose to call it a waste as it's essentially establishing the character's there and exists to come back in the future. Also the use of music sometimes in this film put me off a bit during some scenes, think there was even a Kid Cudi's 'Pursuit of Happiness Remix' in there somewhere and then there was Electro's Incy Whincy Spider dub step whoosh noise that he made (though Pete does quip about hating that song in the middle of a fight with him).
ANOTHER problem I had was primarily juggling the on/off Pete and Gwen relationship, though you figured by the end of the first one things worked out, we arrive back to square one with Pete looking to end it and then you are literally head on the head along the way of how good of a couple they are, even though their chemistry and exchanges are more hit than miss. One final problem was that for a running time of almost two and a half hours, I still felt slightly short handed as the overall arc and the payoff of his father's disappearance is quite anti-climatic that for the amount of time given from the first film and the amount of time it takes up this film, you would've expected something a bit more.
I sure I actually enjoyed most of this film, especially when it got certain parts right. The character of Electro was almost right. Almost. Jamie Foxx does a very good portrayal of the character, from being the loner and slightly unhinged obsession with Spiderman after the save, to the transformation to Electro and up till the end of the Times Square sequence, I was really looking forward to see where he goes next then he just sort of takes a backseat for a while for Harry Osborn time. Again I have no problem at all with Jamie Foxx's performance, just found the character underwhelming considering the potential and with a few rubbish lines to deal with.
The great performances in this film come from Andrew Garfield, with a Spidey version that I enjoy a lot more than the Maguire one and I think he fits perfectly in the Peter Parker/Spiderman mold for me and Emma Stone's Gwen is as funny and intelligent as ever. The show stealer for me was Dane DeHaan's unnerving performance as Harry Osborn. I liked he tweak in the story this time round of him and his father and that some of the most innocent of lines that he has in parts of the film when talking with a character always comes across as a threat and whereas you are meant to feel sympathy for Max/Electro throughout the film, you kind of give it instead to Harry and what he goes through. Unfortunately the Green Goblin transformation feels rushed and shoehorned in at the last minute but going forward, I look forward to seeing where they go with DeHaan as Harry.
The special effects sequences are in overload in this film and for me in the Times Square sequence it worked while in the final act it just a bit too much into it.
Good film but felt more interested in dealing with the parents plot and setting up for future films rather than dealing with the Electro character at hand, which is a shame for the performance that Foxx puts in. Garfield and Stone more reliable than before but DeHaan is the show stealer. Doesn't top Spiderman 2 in terms of Best Spiderman Film list.