Spiderman 2 is even better than the first excellent installment.
This is a summer popcorn movie. It has something for everyone; action for kids and men, comic book references for comic book geeks and romance for women. This is what a great blockbuster should always do bring in broad audiences. Watching this film brings me back to the time when I was a child seeing Superman fly for the first time on the big screen or small screen. We need more films like it to make us awestruck and bring out our inner child.
It starts off two years after the end of Spiderman 1. This film upped the ante with spectacular action scenes and even more developed characters especially a new villain, Dr. Octopus.
Writing a review of Spiderman 2 required a second viewing to catch what I missed. There are a lot of spectacular fight scenes especially the train scene (which you have to see for yourself) it may take you a second time to catch all the eye candy and enjoy as I did. When I want to see a movie more than once it is definitely a dynamite film.
The biggest message of this film is that we all have choices. We all have gifts and sometimes we must choose to use our special gifts to help others even though it may involve self-sacrifice and pain. We can always turn our backs and selfishly keep our gifts from the world, which is a terrible loss. Spiderman 2 explorers what happens when we make these choices. The film ends with a happy and satisfying ending. We need more films with happy endings in these times of turmoil.
This film stays true to the comic book. The scene where Peter throws his Spiderman costumes in the trashcan and walks away is straight out of a panel from the Spiderman comic book. The movie also includes a few surprises that may reopen an opportunity for Spiderman 3. So far Spiderman 2 is proving to be a blockbuster smash, just as I expected.
Director: Sam Raimi
Starring: Tobey Maguire (Spider-Man/Peter Parker), Kirsten Dunst (Mary Jane Watson) James Franco Harry Osborn, Alfred Molina (Doc Ock/Dr. Otto Octavius)
Rosemary Harris (May Parker), J.K. Simmons (J. Jonah Jameson)
Title Sequence Illustrated by Comic Book Artist: Alex Ross
Composer: Danny Elfman
Writing Credits
Comic Book co-creators: Stan Lee & Steve Ditko
Screen story: Alford Gough, Miles Millar and Michael Chabon
Screenplay: Alvin Sargent
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