10 Changes That Would Have Improved The Amazing Spider-Man 2

The web-slinger's new effort is good but flawed. Here's how it could have been great...

By Edward Owen /

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is a frustratingly flawed film, and in that adverb lies all the difference. It's not so badly off the rails that you'll consign it the dustbin without a second thought, but in its own special way, it's more galling than that. There's just an indelible feeling watching Marc Webb's latest effort that this could be so much better if only they'd tweak it slightly, and that's an unfortunate, albeit interesting place in which a movie can find itself. Maybe we should've expected it. What with Marvel already setting up their Cinematic Universe with a run of good movies, they've left Spidey having to sprint to catch up, and it's only natural he'll fall over once or twice. But while it might be natural, it's still disappointing €“ for a budget somewhere between $200-255 million, we don't really want a work-in-progress. We want something that can stand on its own two feet, competing blockbusters be damned. Yet we are where we are, and with Sony enthusiastic to get this plane in the air and flying toward the shangri-la of established franchise-dom, it's more prudent than ever for them to sit down, do a once-over on the finished product and see where they've gone wrong. Everyone involved clearly wants something similar to The Avengers' critical adulation, but unless they sand off this film's more problematic edges for future efforts, they'll always be stuck playing a mediocre second fiddle to the MCU. Clearly no-one €“ least of all the fans €“ wants that, but that's the fate this franchise is setting up for itself by continuing down this road. So with that in mind, here's a run-down of ten things they could probably fix in time for The Amazing Spider-Man 3.