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Roomie wanted to see Spiderman 3 today. He rarely asks for anything in return for cooking my meals, giving me snuggums, and washing the poop out of my buttcrack, so off we went to a morning showing.
I'm a casual Spidey fan; I know who he is, and I know that underneath the suit, he's Peter Parker, geek extraordinaire. I know he was raised by Uncle Ben and Aunt May, and I know Mary Jane is his love. That's about it. Everything else, I learned from the movies.
The third installment was flashy, but it also suffered from plotline overload. We had The Sandman, The Green Goblin Redux, and Venom all at once, not to mention scads of Peter Parker/MJ/Harry Osborn drama. Not to mention the Peter versus Eddie Brock drama. The glut of drama weighed down the film. The first ninety minutes are largely setup for the last thirty minutes, and while those thirty minutes are immensely satisfying and powerful, I'm not sure they were worth the effort to get there.
Once again, I'm boggled as to what Peter sees in MJ, who is the most self-absorbed, insecure woman I've had the misfortune to see. She's so busy navel-gazing and hand-wringing after getting fired from the play that she brushes aside Peter's clumsy efforts to cheer her up, and later flounces off in a strop when Peter tries to assure her that she'll adjust to the fame of being a Broadway star. He has no idea that she's been fired because, oh, hey, she never told him, but his insensitivity is still his fault. Good God. She's got her head shoved so far up her ass that she doesn't even notice that he's trying to propose.
I should like to point out to the oblivious Miss Watson that if she wants to garner audience sympathy, maybe she oughtn't to toy with Harry, who is clearly besotted with her. She's whiny and self-indulgent in extremis, and certainly not worth the life of poor Harry, who dies while teaming up with Spidey to rescue her from Sandman and Venom.
Speaking of Harry, there is an adorable scene with him and MJ doing the Twist in his kitchen. It highlights Harry's goodness, which is all too often subsumed by the Green Goblin persona. It's sweet, and I can't help but think he would have made someone a fabulous husband or lover someday.
One of my favorite aspects of the Spiderman universe is its ability to create sympathetic villains. With the exception of Eddie Brock/Venom, who is a lying, scheming, vengeful titbag, the assorted villainy of Superman were often thrust into that role by accident-Norman Osborn with his serum, Doc Ock with his fusion accident, and The Sandman with his encounter with the molecular diffuser. Granted, he was a criminal who killed Uncle Ben, but he became a criminal to save his ill daughter and never had the intention of killing. The moral ambiguity in the villains alleviates some of the cack-handed preachiness.
I loved Aunt May and Bernard the butler, who served as the moral compasses for their respective charges. Bernard in particular broke my heart with his admission of love for Harry, and it pains me to think that he is now left with nothing. His beloved Osborns are gone.
B because of the plotline overkill and insipid acting of Kirsten Dunst, who hasn't the talent to justify her arrogance. Fans of Bruce Campbell will enjoy his cameo, and Tobey Maguire has a hilarious "Stayin' Alive" moment in front of a Manhattan boutique.
I'm a casual Spidey fan; I know who he is, and I know that underneath the suit, he's Peter Parker, geek extraordinaire. I know he was raised by Uncle Ben and Aunt May, and I know Mary Jane is his love. That's about it. Everything else, I learned from the movies.
The third installment was flashy, but it also suffered from plotline overload. We had The Sandman, The Green Goblin Redux, and Venom all at once, not to mention scads of Peter Parker/MJ/Harry Osborn drama. Not to mention the Peter versus Eddie Brock drama. The glut of drama weighed down the film. The first ninety minutes are largely setup for the last thirty minutes, and while those thirty minutes are immensely satisfying and powerful, I'm not sure they were worth the effort to get there.
Once again, I'm boggled as to what Peter sees in MJ, who is the most self-absorbed, insecure woman I've had the misfortune to see. She's so busy navel-gazing and hand-wringing after getting fired from the play that she brushes aside Peter's clumsy efforts to cheer her up, and later flounces off in a strop when Peter tries to assure her that she'll adjust to the fame of being a Broadway star. He has no idea that she's been fired because, oh, hey, she never told him, but his insensitivity is still his fault. Good God. She's got her head shoved so far up her ass that she doesn't even notice that he's trying to propose.
I should like to point out to the oblivious Miss Watson that if she wants to garner audience sympathy, maybe she oughtn't to toy with Harry, who is clearly besotted with her. She's whiny and self-indulgent in extremis, and certainly not worth the life of poor Harry, who dies while teaming up with Spidey to rescue her from Sandman and Venom.
Speaking of Harry, there is an adorable scene with him and MJ doing the Twist in his kitchen. It highlights Harry's goodness, which is all too often subsumed by the Green Goblin persona. It's sweet, and I can't help but think he would have made someone a fabulous husband or lover someday.
One of my favorite aspects of the Spiderman universe is its ability to create sympathetic villains. With the exception of Eddie Brock/Venom, who is a lying, scheming, vengeful titbag, the assorted villainy of Superman were often thrust into that role by accident-Norman Osborn with his serum, Doc Ock with his fusion accident, and The Sandman with his encounter with the molecular diffuser. Granted, he was a criminal who killed Uncle Ben, but he became a criminal to save his ill daughter and never had the intention of killing. The moral ambiguity in the villains alleviates some of the cack-handed preachiness.
I loved Aunt May and Bernard the butler, who served as the moral compasses for their respective charges. Bernard in particular broke my heart with his admission of love for Harry, and it pains me to think that he is now left with nothing. His beloved Osborns are gone.
B because of the plotline overkill and insipid acting of Kirsten Dunst, who hasn't the talent to justify her arrogance. Fans of Bruce Campbell will enjoy his cameo, and Tobey Maguire has a hilarious "Stayin' Alive" moment in front of a Manhattan boutique.
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