Spiderman 3
I went to see Spiderman 3 last night. The movie was sold out all weekend long and the only time we could get was at 8:55 Sunday evening. My opinion of the movie is this: it wasn't too bad, but it wasn't worth all the hype. I did a brief stint as the Movie Reviewer for my college newspaper. (The editor and I had some creative differences. I was of the opinion that humor in opinion columns is good. He had his sense of humor surgically removed as a child.) Anyway, I'm going to see if I can't write a decent review of the movie and not give too much away.
Spiderman 3 was ostensibly the recap of Spiderman's darkest period. His best friend has become his worst enemy, the love of his life is drifting away, his relationship with his dear aunt is strained, and an alien symbiote is trying to become his new most special friend. This second Spiderman sequel is all about free will, as the original Spiderman was about power and responsibility.
In Spiderman 2 , we saw the beginnings of this concept, with Dr. Octavius's final words, "I will not die a monster." Through Spiderman 3, we see Peter Parker battling the dark side of his nature, symbolized by the evil, inky-black slime that wants to take control. We can see this mirrored in Harry Osborn's battle against his own insanity, and in The Sandman's struggle to justify his crimes as "necessary" to save his daughter.
I had some serious issues with this film. The first and largest was the relationship between Mary Jane and Peter Parker. They should have been engaged, or better yet, MARRIED, by the third movie. In my opinion, to build up another round of tension about Peter and MJ's relationship was wasted time.
Perhaps comic book fans would be unhappy with me for saying this, but the movie could have been served better by allowing the Venom arc to wind through the early days of MJ and Peter's marriage. The tension, the pain and loneliness as the Venom symbiote took hold would have been more interesting. As it was, it felt like a rehash of the back-and-forth relationship they had during the first two movies.
The pacing of Spiderman 3 also left something to be desired. The movie skipped and dragged. The first two Spiderman's had a clear sense of time passing, a feeling of culmination at the climax of the film that this latest Spiderman lacked.
There were some things very right with Spiderman 3. The casting of the new characters was fantastic. Topher Grace, about whom I had some serious doubts, turned out an excellent Eddie Brock. Grace's natural humor and personality were perfect in the role. Thomas Haden performed admirably as The Sandman and Bryce Howard was a surprisingly good Gwen. It's too bad none of them had a chance to be developed as actual characters. They were far more one-dimensional than either The Green Goblin or Doc Ock.
Overall, I think that while it was fun to get to finally see Venom, something I'd been waiting for since they announced the first Spiderman, it should have waited until Spiderman 4. Were I in charge, I would have left Spiderman-cum-Venom that way. Knowing that Number 4 is on its way, I would have ended the movie with the beginnings of Peter's turn to the dark side and brought Venom and Carnage in as the new baddies for Spiderman 4.
The New Goblin and The Sandman could have been a fantastic pair of villains working against Spiderman and could have been explored much more fully as characters. Harry Osborn's amnesia could have been accomplished during the final fight, and his awakening in the hospital to look up at his good friends would have been a wonderful way to end the movie. It would have also meant that for once, MJ might not have been bait in a trap.
Was it worth it? The best part of my experience was the previews for the new Pirates, Harry Potter, and Shrek movies. Venom was fun to watch, but he didn't last long enough. I spent most of my time being slightly irritated. Overall, wait for the DVD.
A Rebuttal to Reviews I've Read Since Writing This:
Yes, there were problems with the movie, but you people seem to have missed the whole "it's a comic book" thing.
*Harry Osborn's amnesia was accomplished by a blow to the head. That's comic books for you.
*The Sandman was also comic book logic. Shut up.
*Kirsten Dunst was NOT actually singing. She can't. They should have gotten someone better to do her voice, but that wasn't Kirsten.
*Eddie Brock was SUPPOSED to look that way. He was a geek. Kind of like Peter Parker. Did you honestly not see the mirror image aspect? Come on!
*OK, yes, Peter with the black emo hair was really silly. It could have been done better.
Spiderman 3 was ostensibly the recap of Spiderman's darkest period. His best friend has become his worst enemy, the love of his life is drifting away, his relationship with his dear aunt is strained, and an alien symbiote is trying to become his new most special friend. This second Spiderman sequel is all about free will, as the original Spiderman was about power and responsibility.
In Spiderman 2 , we saw the beginnings of this concept, with Dr. Octavius's final words, "I will not die a monster." Through Spiderman 3, we see Peter Parker battling the dark side of his nature, symbolized by the evil, inky-black slime that wants to take control. We can see this mirrored in Harry Osborn's battle against his own insanity, and in The Sandman's struggle to justify his crimes as "necessary" to save his daughter.
I had some serious issues with this film. The first and largest was the relationship between Mary Jane and Peter Parker. They should have been engaged, or better yet, MARRIED, by the third movie. In my opinion, to build up another round of tension about Peter and MJ's relationship was wasted time.
Perhaps comic book fans would be unhappy with me for saying this, but the movie could have been served better by allowing the Venom arc to wind through the early days of MJ and Peter's marriage. The tension, the pain and loneliness as the Venom symbiote took hold would have been more interesting. As it was, it felt like a rehash of the back-and-forth relationship they had during the first two movies.
The pacing of Spiderman 3 also left something to be desired. The movie skipped and dragged. The first two Spiderman's had a clear sense of time passing, a feeling of culmination at the climax of the film that this latest Spiderman lacked.
There were some things very right with Spiderman 3. The casting of the new characters was fantastic. Topher Grace, about whom I had some serious doubts, turned out an excellent Eddie Brock. Grace's natural humor and personality were perfect in the role. Thomas Haden performed admirably as The Sandman and Bryce Howard was a surprisingly good Gwen. It's too bad none of them had a chance to be developed as actual characters. They were far more one-dimensional than either The Green Goblin or Doc Ock.
Overall, I think that while it was fun to get to finally see Venom, something I'd been waiting for since they announced the first Spiderman, it should have waited until Spiderman 4. Were I in charge, I would have left Spiderman-cum-Venom that way. Knowing that Number 4 is on its way, I would have ended the movie with the beginnings of Peter's turn to the dark side and brought Venom and Carnage in as the new baddies for Spiderman 4.
The New Goblin and The Sandman could have been a fantastic pair of villains working against Spiderman and could have been explored much more fully as characters. Harry Osborn's amnesia could have been accomplished during the final fight, and his awakening in the hospital to look up at his good friends would have been a wonderful way to end the movie. It would have also meant that for once, MJ might not have been bait in a trap.
Was it worth it? The best part of my experience was the previews for the new Pirates, Harry Potter, and Shrek movies. Venom was fun to watch, but he didn't last long enough. I spent most of my time being slightly irritated. Overall, wait for the DVD.
A Rebuttal to Reviews I've Read Since Writing This:
Yes, there were problems with the movie, but you people seem to have missed the whole "it's a comic book" thing.
*Harry Osborn's amnesia was accomplished by a blow to the head. That's comic books for you.
*The Sandman was also comic book logic. Shut up.
*Kirsten Dunst was NOT actually singing. She can't. They should have gotten someone better to do her voice, but that wasn't Kirsten.
*Eddie Brock was SUPPOSED to look that way. He was a geek. Kind of like Peter Parker. Did you honestly not see the mirror image aspect? Come on!
*OK, yes, Peter with the black emo hair was really silly. It could have been done better.