I repeat, spoilers. I feel that anyone who know's me also know's I have kind of a vested interest in the franchise due to the fact that at some point and time during my youth (And...cough cough...partly into adulthood) I believed myself to be the friendly neighborhood hombre' arana. Going so far as to carrying my "mask" in my backpack to school and concealing my costume (re: Underoo's) under my school clothes. Although unless it's a movie quality costume do not, I repeat, do NOT buy me Spider Man schwag. I don't want it. Seriously now. Put back the pen.
That being said, I love the franchise. And even the 3rd installment which most folks/critics/fans alike agree is probably the weakest still holds a place in my heart, and a future spot on my DVD rack. (And Sony wants 3 more movies? I'm a big fan of saying enough is enough. And that they really need to re-examine the series to avoid future mis-steps. For real)
I'd also like to warn you that this post is going to explore my thoughts on what went wrong, what coulda been done better, and moments that really endeared me to the movie.
Ergo, it's going to be long. (Kiped from another thread I'm part of)
So there was some fumbling etc. It was IMHO still an entertaining franchise movie. Not perfect, but entertaining if you dug the first two. (Unlike X3 where you really, REALLY hadda like the franchise to even glom a modicum of enjoyment out of it.) Ignoreg the hokey dialogue (Which, to be sure, can and should be forgiven. Why? Like Dorajar says, it's a comic book movie. You want meat in your characterizations rent "Notes on a Scandal" or some shit.) The comic book film industry has started making strides since it's original "death" (A cancer that started around the Schumacher mis-managing of the "Batman" franchise and ended with Bat-nippled Clooney in "Batman and Throbbin") It re-started (after Horror/Sci-fi movies were experiencing a resurgence) with a mix of horror-sci fi-comic: Blade.
Then X-Men (A film that we all were hope hope hoping would work...and did) Employed a director with some cred (Bryan Singer) mad actors/unknowns (McKellan, Stewart, Jackman, et.al) And came across as all right. When "Spidey 1" came out (Originally James Cameron was attached with DiCaprio and a reported Winslet as Peter and MJ respectively. I like DiCaprio...somewhat...as an actor...but that woulda been way horseshit. My choice for Parker was the younger brother of Eliza Dushku in "Bring it On", Jesse what's his butt. He woulda worked.) It was a great hero "origin" story. Really great. The biggest nut-rub was taking an iconoclastic villain (Green Goblin) and making him a Might Morphin Power Ranger. Now, I love me some Raimi. I do. Even "The Quick and The Dead". And I can buy trying to ground the characters in more of a "reality" by giving them something that resembles a "practical" explanation to their costuming rather than a rubber mask or make-up, but come on. Power. Rangers. Bad-guy. Still. A good flick, with decent box-office/effects/ACTING...guaranteeing a sequel
Part 2- Great film. From the beginning to the end, and again IMHO the best in the franchise. More great seasoned actor's (Molina, Dylan Baker, Donna MURPHY in a supporting role...etc.) And some top-shelf Academy Award winning effects work (Um. Hello? The "El" fight? Oof.) There of course, were a few quibbles. I thought that the whole "psychological" problem of Spidey's powers disappearing was akin to a case of a guy who can't get a boner 'cause he's "psyching himself out" ("Oh. What Pete? Can't 'Shoot' The old web shooters during crunch time???" Yeah.) And lastly...do you have to show your secret identity to everyone and their cat? 20+ train commuters. The main bad guy. And lastly...your future g/f? Didn't you have the whole mask bit to keep your loved ones safe? Dude...SECRET identity, yo. Call Bruce Wayne, line 2. The blinking red phone next to the inconspicuous bust that flips up to reveal the switch to the bat cave. Shhhhhh) Regardless, my favorite. Still a good movie, that has great memories of my first Spidey midnight showing with Lattery, Kaiser, Jabas, et.al.
Now part 3...Okay, so I bogarted some comments from other reviews (i.e. Too many villains/supporting characters to explore which watered down the entirety of the experience). Overall, not a bad bad film. There were GREAT action sequences, even from the 1st shots of him swinging in the city. I dug that it was Peter Parker fighting the Goblin and not in his costume. His character in the black suit (Chris Gaines..btw...Emo Pete...btw. You guys rule) was cool... So was his bar fight (C'mon. Little Peter tossing the big bad bouncers? And tell me that hearing everyone in the theatre gasp when he hit MJ wasn't kinda like "Whoa...that came outta no where") The only things they explored in a little detail was his decent from arrogance, to evil with any degree of thought. (Or Eddie. More on that later) There were Great villains too! As. Stand alones. See, I can see multiple "costumed" villains. Like, as Spidey's world opens up so does his Rogues Gallery. (Ex: What if it opened with "rash of crazy criminals stalk NYC" and there's a quick fight of Spidey fighting, oh, the Beetle. Or the Vulture. Just 2-3 minutes of action. Nothing to detract from the main plot/villain. Just enough to say that his problems exist outside of bank robbers, fires, and kids crossing the street too soon) Let's look at this for a sec in the order they clashed:
Goblin, Goblin jr, Lil' Gobby buck buck. Okay. Cool. I dig it. Sooooo, Harry coming out ala' an Abercrombie model from the green gas tube was...a little homo-erotice. But whatever. They established he's doing what he's doing. So. Is he a "Goblin"? Sure, comic Harry took up his dad's mantle. But this one is a clear departure from the "Green Goblin" (A nickname JJJ gave him in the first movie.) To a guy wearing a removable ski-mask and SWAT suit with a katana and an amalgamation of Batman/Predator's glove. Okay, he's got the bombs and the razor bats...cool. But he can't be Goblin jr. He doesn't look like the Goblin. He didn't take his dad's glider. (Um...hey. That's a skateboard, right? How did you make that again, Harry? Weren't you the durp-durp who schlepped with Peter for study-help? Just take your dad's fucking glider and we'll believe you can ride the stoopid thing) And maybe, if we're keeping in alignment with the first movie, a similar...mask? Maybe you found a prototype (As we had hoped seeing the old mask, a silvery one, and then...your paintball mask. Nope. Get your guns, we're spuh-LATballing.) Your fights were made of awesome, I won't lie. Just keep in line with the canon, okay? Moving on.
Sandman. A good villain. One who the comic Spidey beat with...wait for it...a vaccuum. So, cool creation/effects (Although I commented that when he was "re-created" with the sand it looked more like clumping cat-litter. Oops. There goes my suspension of disbelief) Soooooo, Okay. Mo and I frassed about this today. Enough is enough with the sympathetic villain. (Or, conflicted villain like the last two movies. We get it. Bad guys aren't all bad...they're MADE...right Mr. Raimi?) Redemption is a great selling point in these movies: Spidey in the first, Doc Ock in the 2nd...and Gob...whoever in the 3rd. Sooooo having Tiny Tim as his kid and the (Where have you been Theresa Russell? You still look great for...what...102?) wife be bitchy, he's auto-sympth. This is a case where he coulda been left out entirely. En. Tirely. Make him the aforementioned small-villain. Or another movie. Or a tv show. This was the effects team bogarting shit from everyone's favorite "The Mummy" to put in their own movie. And I'm sorry...as cool as the fight scenes and effects were? They shoulda made way for this guy...right here:
Venom. I think that Topher did some good shit here. He played his part, and he played it well. Arrogant (W/Peter et.al) 'Smarmy (W/Betty Brant) Delusional (W/ Gwen) and unethical. Showing him periodically through the movie then showhorning his villain in (A very well done...again...IMHO...effects job. His crawling on the wall conversation w/Sandman was top-shelf) This character has become HUGE w/in the last 22 years of the 1st introduction of the symbiote during "Secret Wars". Powerful. A match for Spider-Man. Undetectable by his Spider-Sense (Oh. Where was that, btw, when Har-Gob knocked you on your ass?) He woulda been his own, complete, movie.
Instead, we get Peter's repentence...Topher's transforming...and we has to sit through some honky bullshit for 20 minutes (Ham-fisted "Peter is bad" or "Peter is Denny Terrio"...or "Peter is this..." Btw. Why didn't they go into what Harry said to MJ before she lied to Peter and said "I wanna break up with you"? I mean it'll be on the DVD, but a quick "I will kill Peter, Aunt May, and your family if you say anything..."blah blah villain dialogue. Demasking. Oh. Right. ) In keeping with the theme of "everybody knows Spidey", we're left with a VILLAIN fluffing off into the night. Who know's his secret. Grrrr. I mean, DRAMA would have been Venom dumping a maskless Peter at the feet of JJJ. (Or close to him) but no. Double Grrrrr.
Real quick-like...I love Bruce Campbell. That is all. Okay. The sub-characters I'll try and keep short.
MJ? Meh. I never agreed with the casting, but accepted and embraced that it would be the Kristen Dunce. Okay. Betty Brant was always great as the far-away flirt (Um...quick. "40 year old Virgin" reference: "What's wrong with her underwear?"/"Ummm...They aren't in my mouth!") But Gwen. Gwen Stacy. I read a review that Dunce is fine. Cute. What ev. But MJ is supposed to be a super-model pretty, and no-nonsense. Having Gwen, um, "glow"? Is that right? And to also be super smart. And she's the super-model? BEEP! Wrong answer. They could just as easily done a Pete and MJ break up, Pete hooks up with her to see what's great in the world when BOOM! She's killed. Why? She's killed in the comics, yo. Not graphically. She's killed when Pete is doing what he does best to save people. And it was such a BIG DEAL in the comics because unlike other Marvel properties- She didn't come back. (Well, clones don't count.) It was what worked about the last one: Parker was freaked out because no one like him and all he wanted to do was help. This time it was such an abrupt 180 that he had to make the choice himself when her death would have had such a greater dramatic catalyst. But no. She lived. To be pretty. And Howard. And PP went back to MJ...even though after staring at Jessica Biel (Sorry...went back to the preview for "I now pronounce you Chuck and Larry") Gwen Stacy. A character never fully realized. Even though he went back to the girl couldn't even be honest that she was shit-canned for not being able to sing. (And. Um. Stick with Theatre. No reputable Jazz Club would put a failed B'Way star to work. They would, just not one who couldn't sing.)
And then? Peter.
Peter Peter Peter. Well, you got to wear the ab-airbrushed costume more, sans mask. Which in my mind brings back seeing a half-nude Kenneth Brannagh in "Frankenstein" with his air-brushed abs on his bare-body. We get that it's hard to stay in the shape like you were in the first two. We do. But do you, James Franco, and Topher Grace all need to spend so much time out of the things that hide your secret identities? Does everything HAVE to be a great reveal. Parker (And subsequent villains) losing their masks was a big deal in the comics...(See the current story line "Civil War"). Hell, in Mexico if you are a Lucha Libre fighter and your mask is removed it's the HUGEST insult you can endure. And gah...Yes. Okay. I'll admit, and I'm a staunch defender of mainstream movies that a majority think are bad because I find a few good bits and cling on like my life depends on it. (The Star Wars Prequel franchise, X3, etc...) But. Fuck. Dancing? Musicals? In this? Weren't we frassin' about what a joke a Spider Man musical would in fact be? The musical numbers were what I began referring to as my "pee breaks". I knew I wouldn't miss much. And how you came across the Venom suit was kinda lame. Oh, a meteor hitches a ride on your mo-ped? Lets keep the film moving folks. Again, if they did a "VENOM" and "Venom" alone movie they probably could have done a better back story. Instead, they bogart an installment of "Creepshow" ("The Lonesome Death of Jordy Verrill") as the genesis of the symbiote. (btw- I think that it was also a little "pat" how he magically figured out how to remove it...no?) So yeah. I liked it. I'll by the DVD. You should see it on a big screen (matinee) really. And yes, I'm tired and invested way too much time into thinking about this. xo
ps: I was interviewed by Fox 9 news immediately after the movie. Let's just say that I'm not at my most...articulate...at 3am.
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