REVIEW
Recommended for Spider-Man 3 – IMAX and Low Expectations

I was not going to see Spider-Man 3.  It didn’t matter that it was the number one movie in the country and was setting box office records galore - I had no desire to watch a suited up Tobey Maguire swinging through the air, fighting with multiple villains and eventually rescuing the woman he loves.  Why you ask?  Because I’ve seen that movie.  Twice in fact.  It was called Spider-Man 1 and Spider-Man 2. 

However, I found myself in the theater anyway, dazzled by over two hours worth of amazing special effects, breathtaking fight sequences and . . . superb acting?

Maybe not.

In this third (but perhaps not final) installment of the Spider Man saga, Director Sam Raimi delivers a perfect world . . . a world destined for destruction.  For the first time, the bumbling Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) has it all – the girl of his dreams, a superhero alter-ego that brings more than a little flavor to his simple day job at the Daily Bugle and a public that has moved past mere acceptance to full fledged adoration of his life-saving talents.  Relishing his newfound fame and status, Parker’s involvement in the lives of those around him begins to wane . . . for there isn’t room for much in his brain besides his swelling ego.

Appropriately enough, Spider-Man 3 delivers three different villains for Peter Parker to battle, each neatly wrapped in a sympathy-inducing or eliminating back story.  First, there’s escaped convict Flint Marko (an energetic Thomas Hayden Church) who transforms into the Sandman after stumbling onto a molecular experiment that just happens to be counting down in the middle of the field he’s running through (all sarcasm intended). He terrorizes the city of New York in a quest to secure enough money to save his ailing daughter.

Then, there is Edward Brock Jr. a.k.a Venom (Topher Grace).  Brock is a cocky, quick-talking photographer looking to secure the promotion Parker’s looking for at the Daily Bugle.  One interaction however with the oozy black substance from outer space that has already put Spidey in touch with his dark side and Brock has ambitions far beyond photography.  

Not only does Parker do battle with the epic Sandman and the truly frightening Venom but he continues to square off with his best-friend turned enemy, Harry Osborn (James Franco).  After an impressively choreographed mid-air fight, Harry looses his short-term memory which conveniently gives Parker a short respite from fighting a battle on yet another front.

Sandman, Venom, New Goblin, a black oozing substance from outer space – oh and let’s not forget to mention his ever-present struggle with frustrated girlfriend Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst).  It seems Spidey is fighting a few more battles than he can handle.  The result is a sprawling, drawn out chapter in the life of the humble Spider Man in which superficiality is key and ultimately satisfying conclusions are non-existent.
 
Tobey Maguire is destined to be remembered as Spider-Man for the rest of his life because, by all accounts, he IS Spider-Man – nerdy but buff, sensitive but powerful, goofily endearing but utterly enigmatic when the mask goes on. While this role was no doubt a lucrative career move, it will not bring the all important creative freedom that actors crave.

Kirsten Dunst is good enough as the ever-frustrated MJ.  As opposed to the previous films, this Mary Jane is actually vulnerable and (at times) sympathetic . . . but there is still the sensation that Dunst is really ready to move on.  James Franco earned the “Most Improved Performance” in this installment . . . but that might be because he had lost his mind for half the film.  He still has an awkwardness on screen that can’t seem to be stamped out.  Oh and the exquisite Bryce Dallas Howard?  What on earth are you doing in this film?

Bill Pope provides some stunning cinematography – His rich colors, evocative lighting and invasive angles are all exploited to perfection by Editor Bob Murawski.  With quick cuts and seamless transitions, he has you jumping on more than one occasion.  And credit must be given where credit is due – James Acheson and Katina Le Kerr have done an excellent job with the Spidey suits.

The film is ultimately entertaining, pulling you into its web of a story despite the sometimes lame script.  In one of the opening scenes when we first meet the Sandman, we are practically pounded over the head with the first of the film’s many morals - “I’m not a bad person.  I’ve just had bad luck.” It may come as a shock but the vast majority of movie audience viewers are reasonably intelligent human beings.  They don’t need everything spelled out in black and white.  They can figure things out on our own without being told point blank.

But it would seem that point blank is the superhero way.

All in all, you are much more like to enjoy Spider-Man 3 trilogy if you are a) a boy between the ages of 4 and 10 (even if just at heart) and b) if you go into the film expecting it to be cheesy.  Because there is so much cheese here you will be begging for a little wine.