10 Overlooked Positives Of The Amazing Spider-Man Films
4. Harry Seemed Like A Genuine Threat
One of the irritants of The Amazing Spider-Man movies is that their best villains are the ones that we see least of. The Lizard looks rubbish but gets a whole movie to himself, and the overly cheesy Electro gobbles up most of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 while, on the side-lines, something far more interesting is going on with Dane DeHaan and Chris Cooper as the Osborns. The idea of Peters long lost friend being the heir to the evil corporation plotting against Spider-Man is solid. Theres a cool story to be told there, and in the brief scenes that Webb finds time for it plays out quite well on screen. In killing Gwen, you can't say that Harry doesn't establish himself as a genuine threat. DeHaan is perfectly cast as this smarmy supervillain-in-waiting, and he even manages to be convincing as an estranged friend to Peter (despite chumminess being quite far from his usual wheelhouse). And, in his cameo-length appearance, Cooper is plenty creepy enough to play his dad. If Webb had learnt the lessons of Spider-Man 3 and stuck to one villain per film, the story of an evil father handing a legacy to his slimy son could have made for a brilliant Amazing Spider-Man 2. As is stands, though, the Osborns feel like an enjoyable distraction in a worse villains film.
