My friends asked for it, so here it is: my first movie review.

What’s It About? Peter Parker must balance his relationship with Gwen Stacy with his responsibilities as Spider-Man: defending New York from the supervillains Electro and Green Goblin!

STRAIGHT UP: I really liked it. Flawed but lots of fun. 7.5/10

What I Liked

Peter Parker being 1000x more awkward – I’ve always strongly identified with Peter Parker, so I was disappointed when Andrew Garfield, in his first turn as the character, made him come across as a smug, petulant hipster. This time, I think Garfield hits all the right notes.

Jamie Foxx as Max Dillon – The best part of the movie.

Jamie Foxx as Electro – Manages to be cool and menacing even after the ridiculous “eel scene”. I loved how dangerous they made his powers seem. I might also be the only person who likes his new look in this film.

The web-slinging – ASM 2 looks great in motion. The brighter colors and better-looking costumes make the action stand out even more.

No idiot plots this time – Parts of the previous movie didn’t make sense given what was known about the characters. This time, I think everyone’s motivations are clearer and the action comes together more logically and completely.

Felicia – As in, Hardy? As in, we might see Black Cat sometime in the future? Yes, please.

What I Disliked

Shoehorned villain plots – Electro goes from “confused” to “murderous” in about 5 minutes. Harry Osborne gets one scene to establish his friendship with Peter before he starts to lose it. Really should have found a way to give these guys more screen time.

Gwen Stacy – More of a MacGuffin than a character here. Emma Stone is alright but come on, anyone could have played this role as it was written.

The idea that Peter was chosen to become Spider-Man – which kind of misses the point of the character. I’d be madder about this, but it was such a throwaway plot point that I don’t expect anyone else to remember it or care.

The entire last scene with Rhino – Too campy for me by half. Into the trash it goes!

Assorted other cheese – ASM 2 leaned on some heavy-handed visual metaphors a little too hard at times.

CLOSING THOUGHT: Amazing Spider-Man 2 probably gets a better score in my book for being much better than the previous film (which I did not enjoy) and for being about my favorite superhero. I can see why people might dislike it, though. It doesn’t do anything new with the character or the mythos, and it’s merely “good” in a world where great superhero films like Captain America: The Winter Soldier exist. That might mean that ASM 2 won’t be good enough for some people, but I’d happily watch it again.