Why Do We Hate 'The Amazing Spider-Man 2'?

My hopes weren't the highest for The Amazing Spider-Man 2, the second installment in Sony's totally unnecessary reboot of the Spider-Man movie franchise. I wasn't in love with the first movie, and I was already under the impression that Marc Webb's web-slinging sequel was buckling under the weight of its super-villains based on the trailers. 

Then I saw The Amazing Spider-Man 2 on opening weekend. Twice. So yeah, I dug it.

The relationship between Andrew Garfield's Peter Parker and Emma Stone's Gwen Stacy captivated me, and Jamie Foxx's  transformation from socially awkward nerd to electricity-spewing bad guy was a lot of fun, if a tad on the hammy side. Dane DeHaan was convincing as Peter's estranged buddy Harry Osborn, who plays a critical role in the film's pull-no-punches finale that changes our hero forever.

Although The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is unquestionably the best Spider-Man film in a decade (and if you go back and watch Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 2, it doesn't age all that well), it's already become popular to bash it. The film received a dismal 55 percent rating on RottenTomatoes.com, and Twitter has been equally unkind.

Are we bitter that Spider-Man remains in the clutches of Sony, preventing The Wall-Crawler from joining Marvel Studios' interlocking series of films? Are we longing for Raimi's vision of Spider-Man? Or are we perhaps suffering from Spidey fatigue after five films in 12 years? Let me know what you think on Twitter using #TheWortReport.

Gwen Stacy Plummets in New 'Amazing Spider-Man 2' Preview

Not to be outdone by Marvel Studios’ Captain America: The Winter Soldier this weekend, Sony has released this preview of their The Amazing Spider-Man 2 trailer that will air Sunday during the Super Bowl. I’m still convinced that Marc Webb & Co. have crammed too many villains into this sequel (they should know better after Spider-Man 3), but this still looks like it could be a lot of fun. Well, it’s probably less fun for Emma Stone’s Gwen Stacy, who is falling at breakneck speed at the end of this clip. That usually doesn’t end well for her.

Villains Abound in 'The Amazing Spider-Man 2'

Remember how Spider-Man 3 mucked up the blockbuster Marvel franchise so badly that Sony needed to reboot the series entirely just 10 years after it began? Most folks attribute Sam Raimi’s baffling narrative misstep to the film’s surplus of supervillains, forcing Sandman, Green Goblin II (or “New Goblin”) and Venom into a single, overwrought story due to studio mandates. It didn’t work, making it all the more refreshing when Marc Webb’s 2012 reboot, The Amazing Spider-Man, stuck with one baddie — The Lizard — and helped us all forget that Spider-Man 3 had more scenes featuring Tobey Maguire’s scrunched-up boo boo face than genuine superheroic spectacle.

Now, Sony is preparing to unleash The Amazing Spider-Man 2 upon the moviegoing populace next summer, putting Andrew Garfield back in the tights as Peter Parker uncovers new truths about his parents’ mysterious past while furthering his relationship with doomed high school sweetheart Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone). Oh, and he also has to deal with Electro (Jamie Foxx), The Rhino (Paul Giamatti) and an already-evil Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan). So yeah, we’re back with three villains … because that worked so well for these movies last time.

Skepticism aside, this movie looks pretty damned entertaining, and I’m looking forward to seeing where Webb takes the story this time around. This series is clearly borrowing a great deal from Brian Michael Bendis’ Ultimate Spider-Man, which is what got me back into comics in a major way in the early 2000s. There’s promise here, let’s just hope Sony’s learned from their previous mistakes.

Check out the first official trailer for The Amazing Spider-Man 2 below.