Spider-Man 2 (DVD)

...his skill and reputation as Spider-Man have improved, his personal life still leaves much to be desired. Still estranged from the love of his life, Peter will not allow himself to get close to MJ for fear of putting her in danger. His best friend Harry hates Peter’s alter ego Spider-Man for killing his father in cold blood. Not only does Harry not know that his father was the Green Goblin, but he’s also oblivious to the fact his best friend and arch ...
...Octavius (Alfred Molina) and without Spider-Man New York is defenceless…

There’s something hugely comforting about all Marvel Superheroes, it’s the overwhelming evidence they provide that having super powers sucks. It alienates you from the world at large, puts those you love in danger and leaves you with a choice between a life of self sacrifice and near constant misery or one of maniacal super villainy (I know which one I’d go for). ... more

Two years ago Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) was bitten by a genetically modified super spider which turned him overnight from high school geek to, well, a high school geek with super powers. In the first movie we saw Peter losing an uncle through his own apathy and arrogance (an event which finally put him on the road to becoming the Spidey we know and love), witnessed his blossoming romance with Mary-Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst) and beheld his epic battle with The Green Goblin who turned out to be the scientist father of his best friend Harry Osbourn (James Franco).

In 2004 Peter is attending Empire State University in his beloved New York City and earning money by taking pictures of Spidey for the Daily Bugle, though his skill and reputation as Spider-Man have improved, his personal life still leaves much to be desired. Still estranged from the love of his life, Peter will not allow himself to get close to MJ for fear of putting her in danger. His best friend Harry hates Peter’s alter ego Spider-Man for killing his father in cold blood. Not only does Harry not know that his father was the Green Goblin, but he’s also oblivious to the fact his best friend and arch nemesis are in fact the same man. Due to his obligations as the masked protector of the City, Peter has no money, is flunking school and can’t be with the woman he loves. Just as Pete decides to hang up the suit for good a new enemy arrives on the scene in the shape of newly mad scientist Dr Otto Octavius (Alfred Molina) and without Spider-Man New York is defenceless…

There’s something hugely comforting about all Marvel Superheroes, it’s the overwhelming evidence they provide that having super powers sucks. It alienates you from the world at large, puts those you love in danger and leaves you with a choice between a life of self sacrifice and near constant misery or one of maniacal super villainy (I know which one I’d go for). ‘Spider-Man 2’ is the perfect example of this, poor Peter spends most of the film either desperately unhappy or getting the crap kicked out of him with little recompense. It’s a fantastic choice of plot, taking most of its inspiration from The Amazing Spider-Man #50 ‘Spider-Man no More’, throwing in one of the series’ best villains and moving Peter and MJ’s romance to the fore. There are a huge list of credited writers and even more uncredited according to the film’s director Sam Raimi (including Raimi’s brother Ivan), but whatever the combination is it’s a hugely successful one. The screenplay is brilliant with the dialogue feeling like it’s come off the pages of the comic yet 90% of the time managing to avoid the schmaltz (Aunt May can sometimes let the side down). The film is well structured and balanced between action, romance and comedy without ever feeling disjointed or the tone confused. Simply put it’s a great script.

The first Spider-Man was far from perfect, whether you were a comic book fan disappointed that the story went straight into Peter’s almost endless romance with MJ at the expense of the doomed Gwen Stacey or a Sam Raimi fan who was hoping for a little more visual dynamism, you were left with plenty to pick at. Of course the most widely heard criticism was on the film’s villain, The Green Goblin. Willem Dafoe was stuck behind that unmoving, plastic monstrosity of a mask unable to exert any real sense of menace or inspire sympathy in an unimpressed audience. Doc Ock is another matter altogether, from his tragic and brilliant transformation to his ultimate redemption Ock is a brilliant villain with an engaging storyline separate from Spider-Man’s personal problems. Many of the problems with Mary-Jane’s character have also been cleared up in this second outing. MJ’s character development has finally got going and although she’s not quite the kick ass, wisecracking icon of the comics she’s no longer a screaming sack of meat (and finally gets to call Peter ‘tiger’). As for Sam Raimi fans, I’m sure there will be far more to delight them here than in the first movie.

With the huge success of the first film (it’s now the eleventh highest grossing film of all time) Raimi no doubt felt less need to play safe when directing Spider-Man 2 (already the thirty fourth highest grossing film of all time). What it means for us is that the film is better on every conceivable level. For the ‘Evil Dead’ fans amongst us Raimi’s flair for horror is apparent in a fantastically frightening operating room scene in which Doc Ock’s newly attached mechanical arms go on a rampage. There are even a couple of nods to the ‘Evil Dead’ series thanks to shots from the tentacles POV, a completely unnecessary surgical chainsaw, Scott Speigel (Evil Dead 2's Writer) trying to steal Spidey's pizza and the now mandatory Bruce Campbell cameo (he’s the ‘Snooty Usher’). Though the film is rated PG, thanks to Raimi’s talent for the terrifying the film is quite scary in places. I noticed a few kids slightly disturbed by some scenes in the film and would be cautious when taking very young children along.

The comedy is also more successful than in the first film, Spidey’s irreverence has been pushed to the forefront and there are more gags for your buck in almost every scene. Apart from Bruce’s cameo there’s a great scene with Hal Sparks and Spidey in a lift which really heightens the sense that Raimi is embracing the comedy of this character being a part of the real world (as opposed to the fictional Metropolis or Gotham City) there’s even a reference to that most current of popular obsessions eBay. By far the most brilliantly comic scene of the film is the dramatic shift from serious superhero film undercut with sweeping orchestral score to Peter strutting down the street in almost Technicolor to ‘Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on my Head’ if that doesn’t prove Raimi’s willing to take more risks with this film, nothing will!

Of course the two main themes Raimi is dealing with are action and romance, two genres not as present in his back catalogue as horror and comedy and arguably not his strongest as a director. In Spider-Man 2 both are impeccably handled. The action sequences are thrilling and inventive and for me there was certainly more evidence of Raimi’s visual flair thanks to fast moving cameras, jumpy zooms and sudden changes of angle (the shaky zooms onto Pete and MJ’s faces when Ock is approaching the café are a particular highlight). Credit has to go to ‘Matrix’ Cinematographer Bill Pope for handling Raimi’s vision so beautifully and ensuring the film is as visually impressive as it is unusual. The set pieces are brilliant, no doubt the ‘train scene’ will be remembered most as both emotionally and as a piece of thrilling action it’s superb, a balance few blockbusters achieve. Raimi’s direction is supported by special effects that don’t disappoint on any level and Spider-Man’s swinging through New York certainly seems to have more weight than the slightly over CG original. Though I’m sure for many these fabulous pieces of choreographed mayhem will only serve as an unwelcome distraction from the love story which drives this picture. MJ and Peter’s story is told with sensitivity and a sense of humour and has a conclusion which will hopefully satisfy a post-feminist audience (it certainly redeemed MJ for me).

Things could have been very different in Spider-Man 2, because of back problems Tobey Maguire nearly had to pull out altogether due to fears that the physical demands of a second film could leave him permanently disabled (there's a nice little reference to this in the film). Dunst’s real life squeeze Jake Gyllenhaal was even lined up to don the spandex suit in his absence. Thankfully Maguire managed to prove his fitness and returns as Peter Parker and the 29 year old is becoming more Peter Parker by the day. Though I’d still like to see the web slinger crack a few more gags and get a few more girls (Betty Brant for example, Jameson’s secretary, is one of Spidey’s many conquests in the comics). Maguire has the essence of Peter down to a fine art and looking into those big soulful blue eyes you can feel the weight of the world. Dunst delivers her usual girl next door good looks combined with a likeable performance and manages to elicit a lot more empathy than through her histrionics in the first film. Alfred Molina is wonderful, genuinely scary and sympathetic is not an easy combination to pull off, but he manages it with ease. Thanks to his performance Doc Ock is one of cinemas more rounded baddies and perhaps the most successful screen super villain. I should perhaps also mention ‘The New James Dean’ TM James Franco who gives us a fine line in brooding and should certainly liven things up for the more hormonal ladies in the audience.

My favourite thing in the first film remains just that in the second. JK Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson (Peter’s boss at the Bugle) could have literally stepped out of the pages of the comic book. It’s a performance so brilliant I struggle to comprehend there’s an actor involved, he is J. Jonah Jameson. He gets all the best lines in the film and doesn’t waste one of them

(For a picture of Spider-Man)
J. Jonah Jameson: I'll give you $150.00 for it!
Peter Parker: $300.00
J. Jonah Jameson: That's Outrageous! Done...

Hysterical, hammy, hypnotic it’s a comic performance worthy of huge recognition. He steals every scene he’s in and has the rare gift of being able to deliver dialogue so you’re laughing almost constantly.

The film’s score is by the only man who should ever be allowed to score a superhero flick the unparalleled Danny Elfman. His opening theme combined with some of the best opening credits I’ve ever seen (Alex Ross' stunning artwork provides a handy recap of the first film) sets the stage for the film perfectly and throughout his trademark gothic and haunting style helps to set this film apart from the more brash blockbusters and place it in the same category as that other Elfman scored superhero masterpiece ‘Batman’.

Of course the film isn’t perfect (I could have done without Maroon 5 on the soundtrack for a start), but what Raimi has give us is a truly superior blockbuster. Character development is as important as big explosions and a sense of humour is as much the dominant voice as a sentimental moral message. I don’t think there was any call for Mary Jane to get wet again, nor for us to have to suffer through another example of how in New York when you mess with one of ‘em, you mess with all of ‘em, but these are minor flaws when compared with the hugely successful whole.

So as not to end on a down note and to recognise the film’s brilliant ending I’m happy to say we’re now assured of a Spider-Man 3 and Harry’s discovery in the films finale certainly gives a big hint for comic book fans as to where the films might be going next. With characters like Dr. Curt Connors (The Lizard) and John Jameson (Man-Wolf) already putting in appearances it seems that the filmmakers are really embracing the expansiveness of Spidey’s universe and hence this series of films is likely to run and run, and that’s something for us all to look forward to.

 

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