Erik: Good actors can’t save bad writing
On paper, this cast looks amazing: Jamie Foxx, Emma Stone, Andrew Garfield, James DeHaan and Paul Giamatti. On screen, the characters they portray just donot work. Electro is a strange mashup of Jim Carrey’s Riddler, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Mr. Freeze and Dr. Manhattan from The Watchmen and his motivation for killing Spider-Man is flippant at best. The Green Goblin shows up just in time to have the big final fight with the web-head, and Rhino just basically gets shoe-horned in for a Sinister Six movie set-up. Garfield is serviceable as Spider-Man, with quick quips and snarky comebacks, and Stone dazzles as the charismatic Gwen Stacy. Unfortunately, they can’t out-act bad writing, and the screenwriters give them nothing but soapy angst to explore.
Angel: They woke up like this: Flawless
The cast, particularly Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, and Jamie Foxx, did an outstanding job. Just like the first film, Garfield nails his role with his natural charisma, wit, and charm (how amazing is his American accent?). Stone perfects her character by portraying independence, intelligence, and sincerity – and most importantly, not your typical “damsel in distress.” I ha
ve always admired Foxx as an actor with the variety of roles he has played, but he really impressed me this time. Yes, his character definitely creeped me out with his Spidey obsession, but that was clearly the goal.