Reel Advice: Numbers

The Amazing Spider-Man 2

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (Columbia/Marvel), in IMAX 3D, is closer to amazing than its predecessor. To begin with the filmmakers were considerate enough to provide enough of a recap from the previous film so as to make what follows more accessible to a wider audience. The useful footage of Oscorp research scientist Richard Parker (Campbell Scott), forced to leave young son Peter (Max Charles) behind with his Aunt May (Sally Field) and Uncle Ben (Martin Sheen), while he and wife Mary (Embeth Davitz) go on the lam for everyone's good, doesn't just fill in the blanks at the beginning of the movie, but also provides important plot points for later.

In present day NYC, new high school grads Peter (a delightful, and often shirtless and spandex-adorned, Andrew Garfield) and Gwen (an equally wonderful Emma Stone) are charting their paths. Gwen's may, in fact, take her to school in England at Oxford, but for now she's just putting in time at massive conglomerate Oscorp. Oscorp, where Peter's father worked, is about to undergo a changing of the guard with the death of founder Norman (Chris Cooper), who passes the reigns to young Harry (Dane DeHaan), who not only inherits the company, but also the genetic disease, known as the Osborn Curse, that killed his father.

Peter, meanwhile continues to be a newspaper photog when he's not swinging from buildings and lampposts making NYC safe as his vigilante alter-ego Spider-Man. Public opinion on Spider-Man fluctuates, but has, as of late, been more favorable. One of his biggest fans is the socially awkward and often overlooked and mistreated Max (Jamie Foxx who feasted on all of the CGI scenery), an electrician also employed by Oscorp. Following a bad accident in an Oscorp lab, Max is endowed with the ability to do terrible things with electricity.

At this point, the major conflicts have been laid out before us. Peter and Gwen are trying to navigate the post-high school landscape of their relationship. Peter is trying to honor Gwen's dead father's request not to put her life in danger while not breaking her heart. Aunt May is trying to keep Peter's home life stable. Oscorp is trying to avoid any responsibility for the condition in which Max, now known as Electro, finds himself. Max simply wants someone to pay attention to him and poor Harry is looking for a cure for his condition which may be found in Spider-Man's blood. All of these elements combine in great action sequences featuring breathtaking special effects, many of which are imbued with humor.

Be warned, however, that there is great tragedy ahead, followed by lengthy brooding. There is also the birth of the next great villain – Harry's transformation into Green Goblin – and the promise of at least one more sequel. At more than two hours and 20 minutes, the amazement threatens to wane. But for the most part, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, isn't just a fantastic sequel, it's also one of the most entertaining super-hero movies of this century.

Four (Wolfe)

The full-length feature film debut by writer/director Joshua Sanchez, Four (Wolfe) is an adaptation of award-winning gay playwright Christopher Shinn's first play. An intimate portrait of four characters' lives intersecting on the fourth of July, Four features solid performances, but feel too self-conscious on the whole.

Restless gay teen June (Emory Cohen), who is hoping to make his own fireworks, has arranged an online hook-up with bisexual, African-American married man Joe (Wendell Pierce). They meet up near a payphone (remember those) and drive off in Joe's BMW convertible. June, an only son, is reserved and admits to not being out to his parents. Joe, who is outgoing and fatherly, appears to be genuinely interested in the boy, although it could be motivated by the promise of sex.

Across town, Joe's obedient and responsible daughter Abigayle (Aja Naomi King) is at home taking care of her un-well mother. Abigayle has been led to believe that Joe is out of town at a work-related conference. Abigayle and Dexter (E.J. Bonilla), an athletic classmate with bad grades and a police record, talk on the phone, and eventually meet at a nearby basketball court.

A portrait of "the myths of first love, first sex," one of Four's strengths is the way that the characters can't seem to say the right things to each other, giving the dialogue a natural authenticity. Both couples eventually end up having sex with their respective partners, but instead of making them more comfortable with each other, it has the opposite effect. Everything comes to a head in a diner parking lot when Abigayle sees her father, who she thinks is away at a conference, getting into his car with June in the passenger seat.

Following an uncomfortable scene in a gay bar, where June bumps into former best friend Todd (Liam Benzvi), June declares, as he does throughout the movie when pressed by Joe, that he doesn't know what he wants. Unfortunately, the same can be said about Four. Issues of race, class and sexuality collide with the prospect of living an authentic life, but Four feels unauthentic and stagey, in spite of being set in various locations. DVD bonus features include commentary by Sanchez and Cohen, as well as a behind-the-scenes featurette.

Chicago (Blu-ray+DVD+Digital HD/Ultraviolet Diamond Edition)

When Kander & Ebb's Tony Award-winning musical Chicago finally hit the big screen in 2002 after a few failed attempts to do so (including versions rumored to star Liza Minnelli and Goldie Hawn), it was a massive success. The winner of six Oscars, including Best Picture, Chicago seemed to signal the return of the big-screen movie musical. While there have been a few 21^st century exceptions (Sweeney Todd and Dreamgirls), for the most part audiences got stuck with stinkers such as Mamma Mia!, Rent, The Phantom of the Opera, Nine and Les Miserables (be warned, the Jersey Boys movie is waiting in the wings).

What made Chicago even more impressive is that neither of the lead actresses, Renée Zellweger and Catherine Zeta-Jones, was known for their Broadway musical fire power (although Zeta-Jones did eventually make her mark in a 2009 Broadway revival of A Little Night Music). Nevertheless, under the direction of Rob Marshall, the duo glittered as murderous jazz-age mamas Roxie Hart and Velma Kelly, respectively (and Zeta-Jones even won an Oscar).

Now available in a Blu-ray+DVD+Digital HD/Ultraviolet Diamond Edition, with more than two hours (!) of new content, Chicago (Miramax/Lionsgate) holds up well (better than the city itself). Bill Condon's inspired Oscar-nominated screenplay transforms wannabe performer Roxie's musical numbers into her own overactive fantasy life. As inmates Roxie and Velma compete for the spotlight and the sympathies of the public and the press, they sing and dance to their (and our) hearts' content.

Supporting players John C. Reilly (as Roxie's "invisible" husband Amos), Queen Latifah (as warden Mama Morton), Christine Baranski (as newspaper columnist Mary Sunshine) and Richard Gere (as unscrupulous lawyer Billy Flynn) all make the most of the Kander & Ebb songs, including "The Cellblock Tango," "All That Jazz," "Mr. Cellophane," "Razzle Dazzle" and "Nowadays," to name a few. Special features include commentary by Marshall and Condon, which is one of the few worth listening to as it is fascinating and offers incredible insights into the film. You will also find the deleted "Class" scene, and much more.