The Amazing Spider-Man 2 3D Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		4.0

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 3D Blu-ray Movie Review

3piDer-Man.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman August 11, 2014

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 has it all. It's the classic modern Superhero movie through-and-through. It's built on state-of-the-art visual effects. There's web-slinging and swinging aplenty. The action is ferocious and perfectly choreographed. All the major characters are here. Slick editing. Great music. Human interest stories. And just not much of a heart. The film's downfall may very well be its perfection, its glitz and glamour and embodiment of everything everyone expects in a Superhero movie, at least on the (mostly) superficial level. It's mindlessly fun in every way a Superhero movie should be, right until the end, an end in which the filmmakers pull the rug out from underneath the audience and redefine everything before and reshape everything to come. Suddenly, a soulless movie is so filled with soul there's no room for anything else. And then the movie does everything else -- something that should have taken the entire next movie to do -- in about five minutes. It's an uneasy, yea, violent, swing of emotion makes the heart and soul of the "first" ending almost meaningless, as if what happened is something that can be brushed aside in mere moments when in reality a lifetime's worth of pain couldn't cure it. The movie could have been so much more, and its sequel greater still, had this film's final shots been the next movie's final shots, with a whole lot of drama leading up to and through them. Oh well. At least audiences are treated to Spider-Man whipping through skyscrapers. Again.

What the hell is a gigawatt?!?

While Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield) struggles to reconcile his relationship with Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone) -- on one hand, he loves her, and on the other, he made a promise not to involve her in his deadly line of work -- bad things are afoot in New York City. Oscorp CEO Norman Osborn (Chris Cooper) lies on his deathbed and hands control of the company over to his son, Harry (Dane DeHaan), Peter's one-time best friend. Peter's search for the truth behind his parents' disappearance accelerates while his caretaker, Aunt May (Sally Field), struggles to continue in the service as a de facto mother figure. In the meantime, a clumsy, unconfident man with an unhealthy obsession with Spider-Man, a brilliant Oscorp employee named Max (Jamie Foxx), is accidentally infused with a unique power -- the ability to harness and control electricity -- and becomes the villain known as "Electro."

Like most every other Spider-Man movie, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 falls over the map in terms of its action and drama. There's no shortage of stuff going on: flashbacks, Peter's search for his parents, Peter's on-and-off relationship with Gwen, Peter's relationship with Harry, Peter's relationship with his aunt, Peter's relationship with his alter-ego, the emergence of Electro, the slow build towards Green Goblin, backstory and scientific mumbo-jumbo galore, tons of action, a fair bit of comedy, and a mostly linear core story that's criss-crossed by all of the above. It's not that none of it works, its that none of it works in perfect harmony. For example, the Max/Electro character feels thrown in to extend the movie and provide some sparks along the way, a face for Spider-Man to fight while the real villain rises in the shadows. It's not that Foxx isn't good or that his villain is uninteresting, it's that Electro does feel under-developed. The writers have given the character a quality feel -- he's sort of like Gus Gorman from Superman III meets Nuclear Man from Superman IV meets the video game Infamous -- but not much substance (even while serving as something of a foil for Peter Parker), a good foundation for a backstory but one that's not explored to satisfaction. They have further given the villain a jolt of excitement and ensured that his battles with Spider-Man are everything they should be -- these are the most purely enjoyable moments of the movie -- but it's ultimately little more than a slick and stylized regurgitation of the usual Spider-Man battle antics that see him slinging around, shooting webs (with a little science-y help), and ending the battle with a few tears in his costume but otherwise ready for the next challenge.

And that's the problem with the entire thing. It's all a bunch of themes and action scenes that have been done before. It's why the end is so good and almost simultaneously so bad, pushing the story forward and then really pushing it forward, skipping out on all the stuff that should have set the third installment apart but ultimately just ensured that it would (more than likely) be nothing more than another round of the same: more slinging, more city destruction, more cop cars piled up and burned out, and so on and so forth. This series has always been, at its core, about the inward struggle, about balancing life and risking limb, about coping with the reality of heavy burdens and responsibility, about living up to an ideal even if it means falling down towards physical and, seemingly more important, emotional death. There's tons of room for the sort of depth the character deserves, but the filmmakers just can't seem to find that perfect little progression towards something more purposeful, more meaningful, something in which to contextualize all of the action beyond mere repetitious nods to the "struggle." They come close here at the end, and then gloss over all the heavy lifting that should really define the character, both his past progression and his future crime-fighting enterprises. The film needs Spider-Man to have deep-down, drag-out fight with himself that would be so much more satisfying than another fight with the next "villain of the movie." Instead, it's all about stagnation in the guise of motion, about having enough action to show in previews, about having another image of a slinging Spider-Man to plaster all over some fast food bag or beverage container.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 3D Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Amazing Spider-Man 2's Blu-ray 3D release proves largely entertaining. The image presents a solid general depth, sometimes a depth that's not appreciably larger and more spacious than the 2D counterpart but frequently providing at least some sense of spacial distance in closer quarters, such as inside the private jet early in the film and several scenes in Peter's bedroom throughout the film. Larger New York exteriors provide a much more visually gratifying and tangible dimensionality, and those shots of Spider-Man swinging through the city's tallest buildings and well above ground level provide an adrenaline rush of visual excitement that places the viewer up in the sky with the hero about as well as modern 3D technology allows. Various environments that make use of wider, but still more confined, distances are impressive, such as a ground-level Times Square sequence and within the climactic showdown inside the clock tower. There are several moments when visuals appear to extend beyond the screen. Raindrops appear to fall on the 3D glasses in one upward-looking rainy shot early on, and various blasts of electricity later in the film look like they're trying to reach the viewing audience. Debris -- particularly in slowed-down shots -- has the feel of floating in open space. The review equipment displayed only trace amounts of "ghosting" throughout.

The 3D transfer retains the same excellent qualities found on the included 2D-only counterpart Blu-ray disc. The picture retains a strong film-like texturing and features an even and only lightly pronounced grain structure. Details are continuously impressive. Whether the tactile Spider-Man suit, raw city textures, Peter's father's leather satchel, or villain makeup, viewers are treated to more than two hours of gorgeous texturing that's representative of Blu-ray at its finest. Colors are perhaps a touch warmer and a hair darker in 3D, but not appreciably so. Yellow cabs favor a very slight orange push, but the rest of the palette -- particularly blues, such as a bundle of blueprints Max carries in one early scene or the glowing blue Electro skin -- remains impressively vibrant and precise. Black levels are never too deep but retain a beautiful, convincing balance. Likewise, flesh tones remain largely neutral. Overall, this is an impressive 3D transfer from Sony.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 3D Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 swings onto Blu-ray with a brilliant DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. This is a classic new movie audio presentation. Everything performs seamlessly and in total harmony: music, effects, ambience, dialogue, the whole nine yards. Musical notes are smooth and nicely spaced across the front. Speakers seem to melt away in favor of the beautifully harmonious presentation that's aided by the perfect balance of surround support and low end pronouncement, whether light score, heroic trumpets, or heavy electronic-inspired beats. Listeners will frequently become lost in a nice hodgepodge of ambient sound effects, including bustling city din, gently falling rain, and background jet engines. Heavier action effects are unsurprisingly potent and robust, loud and focused, and beautifully balanced. Explosions, jolts of electricity, screaming civilians, crumbling structures, crashing cars, and all variety of sonic mayhem is introduced with the sort of well-defined presence -- including extreme bass and surround support -- that listeners should expect from a new movie soundtrack. Dialogue is nicely produced through the center, including Electro's deeper, scratchier voice. Overall, this is a showstopper of a soundtrack that's everything it should be, and then some.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 3D Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The Amazing Spider-Man 2's Blu-ray 3D releases contains all of the following supplements on the included 2D disc. The audio commentary is also available on the 3D disc, as is a trailer for the first film of the series in 3D (1080p, 2:38). A UV digital copy code is included in the case. Note that some of the supplements may contain spoilers for the film.

• Audio Commentary: Writers Alex Kurtzman and Jeff Pinkner and Producers Matt Tolmach and Avi Arad deliver a fairly sprawling, involved commentary that covers a wide swath of content, from technical making-of to small anecdotes about the series. They discuss the story themes, the technology used to make the movie, making changes in response to fan demands, cast, Stan Lee's cameo, and much more. With optional menu-accessible English and Spanish subtitles.
• Deleted & Alternate Scenes (1080p, 23:01 total runtime): Peter Meets His Father (5:10), Cockpit Discovery (1:31), Flash Forward (1:09), Max's Mother (1:41), Mayhem in the Morgue (1:26), Missing Each Other (2:15), Peter Visits Harry (4:21), Oxford Acceptance (1:04), Is Peter Home? (0:49), Chasing Gwen (1:48), Birth of the Goblin (1:27), Felicia Sees Her Boss (0:46), and Goblin Kills Menken (0:30). With optional commentary from Director Marc Webb.
• The Wages of Heroism: Making The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (1080p, 1:43:42 total runtime): A superb, engaging six-part feature that's much better than the film. Each segment is outlined below.
• Lessons Learned: Development and Direction (18:59): A look at the Peter Parker character dynamics, building on story themes from the first film, a character's death, Dane DeHaan's character and performance, working with the Electro character and Jamie Foxx's performance in the film, Paul Giamatti's bookend character, Spider-Man suit redesign, shooting in New York, shooting on film rather than digital, and more.
• Heart of the City: Shooting in New York (12:34): As the title suggests, this segment focuses on the challenges and benefits of filming in New York, including work in exteriors and on sound stages alike and the making of several scenes.
• Triple Threat: Attack of the Villains (20:56): A look at the specifics of filming various scenes and sequences, reconstructing Times Square, shooting the clock tower sequence, Garfield's performance in a key final shot, and making the epilogue action scene.
• A More Dangerous World: Transforming Goblin and Electro (10:10): A detailed look at Electro makeup, Jamie Foxx's performance, Green Goblin's vehicle construction and the blend of digital and practical effects that bring it to life, and Goblin makeup.
• Bolt from the Blue: Visual Effects (17:42): A piece that details a number of practical and digital visual effects from throughout the film, including those involved in making the Times Square, the clock tower, and the epilogue sequences. This piece covers a good bit of ground already detailed in previous parts of this supplement.
• Spidey Gets His Groove Back: Music and Editing (24:09): An exploration of music as a building block for story themes, Hans Zimmer's contribution and style, molding the score, creating character-specific theme music, and the details of the film editing process and how quality editing can further enhance key and core story elements. The piece takes viewers into musician jam sessions and takes a look at a few deleted scenes.


• The Music of Amazing Spider-Man 2 with Director Marc Webb (1080i, 8:09): Webb discusses what he wanted out of the score, the way it carries and conveys themes, and Hans Zimmer's work on it.
• Music Video (1080p, 3:49): It's On Again by Alicia Keys.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 3D Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 should have been so much more. Even if it was two hours of the same song-and-dance but punctuated with the first end rather than ruined by the second end, it would have made every last oozing bit of repetition worthwhile in hopes that the next movie might have been the truly spectacular one, not another clone. Granted, it's way too early to dismiss whatever may be awaiting in The Amazing Spider-Man 3, but it's not hard to predict, particularly not after this film did that film's job in five minutes, when this film's end shot battle should have been that film's end shot. But at least The Amazing Spider-Man 2 does everything else to baseline satisfaction. The movie is exceptionally well-done from a technical perspective. The action is terrific, the editing faultless, the music great, and so on and so forth. It's everything fans expect, but is it everything they want?. High scores and lots of money say "yes," so expect more of the same next time. Sony's Blu-ray 3D release of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 delivers perfect video, solid 3D elements, and exceptional audio, just as expected (and, in this case, "predictable" is a good thing). A plethora of high quality bonus content is included. Fans can't go wrong with a purchase, and 3D-enabled fans should find the 3D presentation satisfactory at worst and sometimes exhilarating at best.