Monday, May 7, 2007
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My brother Eric, a fanboy who favors Batman, has weighed in with HIS review of "Spider-Man 3."
It's a good review and he makes this interesting observation:
"This film was cluttered, but it was NOT a mess like Batman II and III and IV. To be fair, however, we truly were given a bit of Spider-Man III and Spider-Man IV here as there was more than enough material for two films."
Again, better to be ambitious than to be stupid.
Anyway, check out his wise views here:
Spider-Man III and IV Have Arrived
posted by Mark M. Sweetwood @ 6:33 PM
Sunday, May 6, 2007
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posted by Mark M. Sweetwood @ 6:17 PM
The opening for "Spider-Man 3" established the third film as the No. 1, all-time, box office champion, in terms of premieres!
Check it out:
'Spider-Man 3' Smashes Box Office Records
posted by Mark M. Sweetwood @ 3:15 PM
Thursday, May 3, 2007
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Hey, I'm just back from the midnight showing of "Spider-Man 3" and boy are my, uh, webs tired.
And so is everything else. But a few folks from the office and I just enjoyed about 140 minutes of pure octane and before I put my Web head to bed, I thought I'd tell you: Run, don't walk, to Spider-Man 3! It is worth the hype. Not as perfect of a movie as "Spider-Man 2," but damn great entertainment. There are effects that just aren't special; they are breathtaking.
If director Sam Raimi and crew erred, it was that they tried to do too much. But when it comes to the third course of a delicious movie trilogy, better to be ambitious than stupid ("Superman 3," "Batman & Robin," "Godfather III," et al).
Now, I am going to bed but fellow fanboy, former colleague (I've got to come up with a different phrase this week) and all-around film fanatic Jeff Westhoff shared his review with me earlier this week – but I did not read it until just a couple minutes ago! It's pretty damned good and I thank him for the permission to post it here!
Thanks, Jeff!
“Spider-Man 3”
*** (three stars)
Rated PG-13 for sequences of intense action violence
Running time: 2 hours, 19 minutes
Written by Sam Raimi, Ivan Raimi and Alvin Sargent
Directed by Sam Raimi
Rated PG-13 for sequences of intense action violence
Running time: 2 hours, 19 minutes
Who’s in it: Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco, Thomas
Haden Church, Topher Grace
What it’s about: Just when things are going Spider-Man’s (Maguire)
way, a mysterious black costume arrives that enhances his powers
while magnifying his negative impulses. Meanwhile, Harry Osborn
(Franco) finally decides to become a second-generation Goblin just
as two new villains, Sandman (Church) and Venom (Grace), appear.
By JEFFREY WESTHOFF
“Spider-Man 3,” to revive a Victorian phrase, is a much of muchness.
With two amazing blockbusters (not to mention terrific films) to
follow, Sam Raimi and company try too hard to cram too many
elements into the third film. More villains! More supporting
characters! More Spidey angst! More Aunt May pep talks!
But unfortunately, less satisfaction.
In no way is “Spider-Man 3” a debacle along the lines of “Batman &
Robin,” even if it also succumbs to multiple-villain syndrome.
Raimi, working from a script he co-wrote with his brother, Ivan
Raimi, and Alvin Sargent, still tells an entertaining, coherent and
poignant story despite the bloated production.
The trouble is that “Spider-Man 3” is merely good where the first
two films were great. Once you’ve tasted greatness, it’s tough to
settle for goodness.
As the third movie opens, things are going uncharacteristically
well for Spider-Man and his alter ego, Peter Parker (Tobey
Maguire). In his civilian life, Peter and Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten
Dunst) are deeply in love. With Aunt May’s (Rosemary Harris)
blessing, Peter decides to propose.
Meanwhile, New York City is now gaga over Spider-Man. After Spidey
saves the life of Gwen Stacy (Bryce Dallas Howard), the daughter of
a police captain (James Cromwell), the city stages an official
Spider-Man celebration.
“I guess I’ve become something of an icon,” Peter tells Mary Jane,
not realizing that while his career is on an upswing, hers is on a
downswing. She just lost a major Broadway role because her singing
voice is weak.
Anyone who has ever read a Marvel comic knows good fortunes can’t
last for Spider-Man. First, best friend Harry Osborn (James Franco)
finally decides to follow his father’s path and become a second
generation Goblin (publicity materials refer to him as the New
Goblin, but the only nickname used in the film is a sarcastic
“Goblin Jr.”).
Then, mysterious inky goo from outer space crashes to Earth inside
a meteorite and follows Peter home. While he sleeps, the goo
transforms into a new black costume that enhances Spider-Man’s
powers while channeling Peter’s darkest impulses.
All this should have been enough plot for the third chapter. But a
rule of superhero movies is that every sequel must feature new
villains. No filmmaker has yet paused to question that this might
not be such a good rule.
After the second film, Raimi had his heart set on using the Sandman
(Thomas Haden Church), a classic Spider-Man villain whose molecules
become fused with sand, in the third. Under orders from Avi Arad,
who was head of Marvel Studios during preproduction but since quit
to form his own company, Raimi also added a contemporary villain
known to comic fans as Venom, although the name is not mentioned in
the film.
The man who will become Venom is Eddie Brock (Topher Grace), an
ambitious photographer who is Peter’s rival at the Daily Bugle. J.
Jonah Jameson still runs the Bugle and J.K. Simmons still plays the
old skinflint hilariously, but for some warped reason Jameson is
the only returning character to get less screen time in the third
film.
The decision to use three villains (four if you count the black
costume) makes the script awkward. Essentially, there is a
first-act villain (Harry), a second-act villain (Sandman) and a
third-act villain (Venom). The latter villains don’t get their due.
Sandman is introduced with a conflicted motivation – he steals
money to pay his daughter’s medical bills – that goes undeveloped.
Venom’s story ends almost as soon as it starts.
Nostalgia may explain why Raimi also added Gwen Stacy and her
father to the cast. They were important characters in 1960s
Spider-Man comics, but both died in the early 1970s. All they add
to the film is about 10 minutes.
Even the action sequences suffer from excess. The fight scenes are
cluttered with foreground objects – steam pipes, subway tracks,
girders, etc – that obscure our view of Spidey trading blows with
the bad guys. Nothing matches the beautifully staged and cleanly
plotted El train battle with Doctor Octopus from “Spider-Man 2”
that remains the snazziest big-screen translation of comic book
panels.
Plus, after three movies you would think the writers would come up
with a better climax than having the villain kidnap Mary Jane and
dangle her from a high place.
Nevertheless, while it is easy to become preoccupied with all the
mistakes made in “Spider-Man 3,” it is just as easy to take for
granted the heartfelt performances of Maguire, Dunst, Harris,
Church and Grace (not to mention Stan Lee’s best cameo yet).
The strongest aspect of the story is the one established in the
earliest scenes of the first film, and that is the friendship Peter
Parker shares with Mary Jane Watson and Harry Osborn. The
continuation of their story is the backbone of “Spider-Man 3,” and
Franco responds by giving the film a complex and tragic performance.
“Spider-Man 3” may swirl with distractions, but its center holds.
posted by Mark M. Sweetwood @ 11:54 PM
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
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posted by Mark M. Sweetwood @ 4:26 PM
posted by Mark M. Sweetwood @ 4:24 PM
posted by Mark M. Sweetwood @ 4:12 PM
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MARVEL and SPIDER-MAN: TM & © 2007 Marvel Characters, Inc. Motion Picture © 2007 Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. All Rights Reserved. © 2007 Sony Pictures Digital Inc. All rights reserved.
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