You would think a sequel to one of the highest grossing films of all time, sixth on the list once Shrek 2 swings past it sometime this summer, would have an easier road to completion but what kind of challenge would that be for the Amazing Spider-Man? As the original film was racking in nearly $115 million in cash at the box office and smashing every box office record in the book, the ink was drying on the deal to develop two sequels for the comic-book superhero, with more to come gathering that the profit margin was still worth the high production price for Columbia Pictures. Unfortunately production for the highly anticipated sequel didn't start off on the right foot with Tobey Maguire, fresh off his new horse-racing drama, Seabiscuit, holding up the film's start date due to complaints about back problems. It didn't take long for the rumors to start churning out possible replacements, among which was the boyfriend of Kirsten Dunst, Jake Gyllenhaal. But, like the web-slinger he plays on the big screen, Tobey bounced back and in a small way, though inadvertently, he demonstrated one of the film's prominent themes.

The story picks up near where the last film left off, only several months in difference, with Peter Parker balancing his personal life and the life of New York's favorite web crawler, Spider-Man. No one said the life of a superhero was going to be easy, though no one said it was going to be quite this hard either. Peter Parker tries as hard as he can to live a normal life but every time he's handed the opportunity to keep his promises, whether it be showing up to Mary Jane's performances, performing his job correctly or paying the rent, the role of Spider-Man gets in the way, thus allowing the one's that depend on him to suffer. As Peter does all he can to balance his two lives, those in the real world are moving on with theirs  Mary Jane, tired of waiting for Peter to admit his true feelings for her, plans to marry the son of J.J. Jameson, a handsome and successful astronaut. Aunt May, struggling after the death of her husband, falls behind on her house payments and faces eviction from the bank if the late payments are met. Even his best friend, Harry Osborne, has moved on and taken over operations at Oscorp  but the anger left by the death of his father at the hands of Spider-Man still remains and threatens to push him over the edge. The family business is all that keeps him on the level of sanity and Harry has big plans for Dr. Otto Octavius' new device to create and control fusion power, which, in essence, puts the power of the stars in the hands of mankind. But in a freak accident which results in the death of Octavius' wife and the fusion of the mechanical arms to his spine, Octavius goes on a rampage to finish his work, possibly taking half the city with him if he fails again. Just as he is beginning to enjoy the retirement he has taken from the superhero life, Peter Parker must again put on the suit and fulfill the promise he made to protect the innocent and bring justice to those who deserve it.

The story for Spider-Man 2, though flawed, is without a doubt one of the best comic-book adaptations ever put on screen and excels beyond the expectations set not only by the original but every comic-book franchise that has come before it, including that of the winged one himself, Batman. As was said previously, the storyline is far from perfect and there are some noticeable flaws. Among them, the whole discussion of fusion power between Doctor Otto Octavius and Peter Parker in which they use strange and complex scientific vocabulary and theories is lost on the majority the movie-going public, unless you happen to be on the same level as these individuals but to be sure such people would be few and far between. Granted these individuals are meant to be in sync with the subject of science but since the discussion is so obscure, the audience is just meant to trust what they say, which takes away some of the attachment they are meant to have with the story. And there are moments within the film that seem to last a little longer then some would like them to, and, in part, seem to drag the film a bit, but they are easily forgivable.

Most, if not all, of the cast from the original film are back for another go-around and there is substantial improvement in their performances from the last time we saw them, though that can not be said of everyone. One performance that fails to disappoint is once again given by Tobey Maguire in the lead role of Peter Parker, or better known as Spider-Man. The non-superhero side of the character appears to get more screen time then in the original which isn't a bad thing. Maguire is given a lot more room to demonstrate emotionally what the character of Peter Parker is going through; at one end attempting to fulfill the promise he made to his Uncle Ben in the role of Spider-Man while at the same time trying to lead the life of a normal human being. Kirsten Dunst, returning to the role of Mary Jane Watson, gives another wonderful performance by maintaining the 'girl next door' charm she had in the original film but at the same time demonstrating a character that is desperately yearning for something more. Crafted in such the perfect manner, Mary Jane is not another dimwitted damsel in distress as the connection between Spider-Man and Peter Parker slowly begins to develop in her mind. It's hard to say who's the better villain, the Green Goblin (who could forget that terrible costume) or Doc Ock, but even if Doctor Octavius' performance wasn't quite what everyone may have wanted it to be, Alfred Molina fits properly into the role. The only truly bad mark out of the entire cast belongs to James Franco, who drops the ball with his over the top and, at times, flat-out ridiculous performances as Harry Osborne. Rather the see the slow transformation of his impeding insanity, the audience notices the unbalanced behavior of Harry right off the bat and don't really sympathize with his situation, though the understanding of who his father really was may be also to blame. And just when you thought he was gone for good  don't miss the quick, though wonderfully developed, cameo of William Dafoe as Norman Osborn, which, in turn, hints at the possible villain for the third film.

Overall, Spider-Man 2 delivers most of what the hype and promotion promise, not only in the areas of spectacular special effects and an emotionally driven storyline, but in the film's enduring message of heroism and self-sacrifice. Before rounding off what made this sequel the fulfilling feature it was, let's focus on items that failed to live up to the rest of the film. First, the random shots of normal civilians, though some well placed, were mainly an annoyance. There is one specific shot, when Spider-Man (costume and all) makes his first appearance, where a woman shouts, 'You go, Spidey!'  this was humorous for the wrong reason and should have been left out, along with the several long focus shots of people screaming and running in terror. Not that they weren't needed but it was the amount of time Raimi used to focus on them that was the problem. Secondly, as was said earlier, it hard to determine whether the Green Goblin or Doctor Octavius is the better villain as Doc Ock isn't nearly as menacing as Goblin was, though he does offer up more action packed fight sequences in return. Depending on how you felt with the first film, this feature's villain could go either way. Third, some of the sequel's more subtle jokes, namely the homage to Butch Casidy and the Sundance Kid, are lost on the majority of the film's target audience, though they are quite humorous to those that know what they are referring to. And finally, the film's final sequence, in which the audience sees Spider-Man swinging between two helicopters over the rooftops of Manhattan on his way to another crime scene, is quite possibly one of the worse computer animated sequences presented this year and is a severe disappointment considering the sensational sequence the last film ended with. The problem is that the computer graphics are way too obvious and ends the film on quite a sour note considering most of the effects presented in the film were spectacular.

Though the problems of Spider-Man 2 seem to significantly out weigh the good, the film's emotionally driven messages of self-sacrifice and heroism are what truly set this one apart from all the rest. Where the first film hammers the idea that even the most unlikely of individuals in this world can be heroes, the sequel drills home the belief that there is a hero is every one of us  we just have to make the choice listen to the voice that lets it shine through if it means we have to give up on the things we want the most in life. It's easy to relate the idea of self-sacrifice with the fire and police departments of this country after the tragic events of September 11th but there is another aspect that many of us as Americans fail to respect or even recognize. Right now thousands of American troops are deployed overseas, either in Afghanistan or Iraq, bringing about freedom and opportunity in parts of the world that have not experienced such fundamental principles for over three decades  they are risking their lives not only for the protection of the American people but to further the causes our founding fathers endowed upon us nearly three centuries ago. It is obvious that there are polarizing views in this country on the conflicts we find ourselves in but there once was a time in America's history where the people of this land looked upon the self-sacrificing men and women of the armed forces with respect and admiration, and, in a slightly smaller way, they still do today. But there are also the people who view these true 'heroes' with anger and hatred, not understanding nor having the will to accept the good they are doing in the world, despite what many may say. Symbolism of this can be found in Spider-Man 2 and, like in the comic book adaptation, we believe that a time will come when frustration and hatred can be washed away to fully understand the reasoning behind their sacrifice, as well as the sacrifice of every 'superhero' in this world  to bring justice to those that deserve it.

My Rating: **** ½ out of 5 (Grade: A)