Posted May 1, 2014 by Mikael Angelo Francisco in Movies/TV

(SPIDER) BITE-SIZE MOVIE REVIEW: With great ambition comes a great sequel in “The Amazing Spider-Man 2”

Columbia Pictures, Marvel Enterprises, Avi Arad Productions, Matt Tolmach Productions
Starring Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Jamie Foxx, Dane DeHaan, Paul Giamatti, Sally Field, Chris Cooper, Felicity Jones, B.J. Novak, Colm Feore, and Dennis Leary
Directed by Mark Webb

Philippine Release Date: April 30, 2014
Runtime: 142 minutes (2 hours 22 minutes)
MTRCB Rating: PG

Fans will not be disappointed by “The Amazing Spider-Man 2,” the sequel to the 2012 reboot of the wall-crawling wonder’s cinematic adventures.

Here are a few lines from my relatively spoiler-free review (expect a series of articles devoted to a more detailed analysis of the film soon):

“The Amazing Spider-Man 2” features multiple villains, which was one of the things that worried fans when the film was still in its development stages. A new and dangerous threat shocks the city this time around, as Oscorp employee and social outcast Max Dillon (Jamie Foxx) figures in a freak accident and transforms into the power-mad Electro. Childhood memories come flooding back to Peter as his old friend Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan, who was one of the best actors in the film) comes back to town, triggering a chain of events that soon spell trouble for the webslinger. Yes, Aleksei Sytsevich (Paul Giamatti) a.k.a. the Rhino is in this film, but it’s Electro and Osborn (wearing a familiar and sinister grin) who bedevil the wall-crawler for the majority of the movie.

Be assured, however, that “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” is certainly no “Batman and Robin.” Introductions and motivations are established clearly and handled with care, if not perfectly. The fight scenes are expertly choreographed (an absolute requirement for a character like Spider-Man) and the special effects are electrifying, and while there ARE a few lapses that might be distracting for some viewers, the movie more than makes up for them through its spectacular showcase of Spider-Man’s speed, agility, and sensational spider-powers.

This film is a must-see for any Spider-Man fan or comic book movie enthusiast. This time, however, the secret isn’t in a mid-credits or post-credits scene, because the credits THEMSELVES hold the secret.