Spider-Man
Sam Raimi, director
2002
I love it! I really do. Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) is so nerdishly cute, and so sweet, and I like that he has his superpowers but is also very humanly vulnerable, physically and emotionally, in ways that superheroes weren't always portrayed before that (the recent run of Batman, Superman, Avengers, etc. movies have continued this trend, but Spider-Man was the first I'd seen). The friendship between MJ and Peter is sweet, with just the right edge of something more hovering on the edges, and I think Kirsten Dunst is an underappreciated actor.
I love that Spider-Man is a poor kid from a working-class family in a crappy suburb, that he has to work terrible jobs to get by, that he lives in a terrible little apartment and nobody takes him seriously, that he has to fight for everything he gets honestly. Comparing that with Ironman or Batman can be uncomfortable in what the latter two say about our social values, as much as I enjoy them.
It was also cool to see the movie again in 2005 after getting to know NYC a little better.
Spider-Man 2
Sam Raimi, director
2004
Middling rating. I did really enjoy watching the combined strain of being poor and exploited and miserable, and of being a superhero responsible for the welfare and safety of all these people, tear Peter down. (Call me a sadist, but you know you enjoyed it too.) It was real and believable that his emotional stamina would finally wear out. Being a hero is damn hard work if you do it right, and he didn't have all those support systems that, say, Batman does. Like a butler and regular meals and no day job or other career goals.
But I felt the overall story didn't hold together quite so tightly, and the whole wedding storyline was odd and felt forced in there. I liked Doc Ock but there was some very awkward dialogue and predictable plot that could have been avoided, I felt.
Generally, it was a decent movie, some scenes were very enjoyable, but I'm not exactly running out to buy it.
Spider-Man 3
Sam Raimi, director
2007
The third of the trilogy, on the other hand, was shallow, obnoxious, and way too chaotic. They had three more villains in there than they needed, and the plots were completely ramshackle and unsupported. Even with the power going to his head, Peter seemed totally out of character, and his decisions didn't really make sense. There was also NO chemistry left between Peter and MJ, leaving that whole dramatic plot completely flat.
It's a shame they wasted the Venom storyline in a poorly constructed movie, because I think that could have been a really fantastic topper to the trilogy. Yes, deal with his growing ego and sense of importance; yes, deal with temptation, and the corruption of power; yes, deal with revenge and anger and jealousy.
Couldn't they have just done it better?
Lousy movie. Don't freaking bother.
IMDB Link: Spider-Man
IMDB Link: Spider-Man 2
IMDB Link: Spider-Man 3
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