The Amazing Spider-Man 2

Andrew Garfield returns in this superhero sequel as photojournalist/vigilante Peter Parker, who battles crime in New York City, while also coping with a) the mysterious death of his parents (Campbell Scott, Embeth Davidtz), and b) a complicated relationship with his high-school valedictorian, Oxford-bound girlfriend, Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone), whose late father (Denis Leary) warned Peter to stay away. Meanwhile, Peter's old frenemy, Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan), heir to the secretive, mega-billion-dollar Oscorp, discovers that an unfortunate industrial accident involving electric eels turned mild-mannered engineer Max Dillon (Jamie Foxx) into the villainous, high-voltage Electro. In addition, the wiry webslinger must fend off both Osborn's Green Goblin, who believes his genetic anomaly can only be cured by absorbing some Spidey blood, and a superfluous Russian mobster, Aleksei Sytsevich (Paul Giamatti), known as the Rhino. Sally Field is back as supportive Aunt May, Colm Feore embodies a duplicitous Oscorp exec, and the ubiquitous Stan Lee can be spotted in a cameo. Based on Lee and Steve Ditko's Marvel comic, filmmaker Marc Webb's The Amazing Spider-Man 2 soars primarily due to its charming romantic chemistry, along with several stunning acrobatic-action sequences. Recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by screenwriters Alex Kurtzman and Jeff Pinkner and producers Matt Tolmach and Avi Arad, deleted scenes, and the “It's On Again” music video by Alicia Keys. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are “The Wages of Heroism” multi-part “making-of” documentary (104 min.), additional deleted scenes (23 min.), a music featurette (8 min.), and bonus DVD and UltraViolet copies of the film. Bottom line: a fine extras package for a solid sequel.] (S. Granger)