Spider-Man 3-The Cleverschmever Review
Here be SPOILERS!!!
After watching Spider-Man 2, I realized that one could compare the first 2 films to the first 2 installments of the Superman franchise. Before going into Spider-Man 3, I hoped like hell that Sam Raimi and company wouldn't go the way of Superman III in this installment. I was partially disappointed.
In the first films, both heroes come to grips with the loss of a parental figure after they failed to save them, both heroes introduce themselves to the world and they both face off against their most iconic threats. In the second films, both heroes loose their powers in order to get in touch with humanity. However, a threat arises (a threat that was LAME in the comics but AMAZING in the movies) and the heroes regain their battles and win the day. Oh, and the love interests learn the heroes' secret identities. The third installments follow the same threads, at least partially.
Substitute Bootleg Kryptonite for an alien symbiote (and later, Eddie Brock), replace Richard Pryor with Harry Osborne, trade Lana Lang for Gwen Stacey, shake well, and you have Superman III The Redux…I mean Spider-Man 3. Maybe they should have called this movie "Bad" Spider-Man?
When the Alien Symbiote first appears (in a scene similar to the openings of Night of the Creeps and Slither), it takes its time before attaching itself to Peter, but when it does, Spidey gets aggressive, very aggressive. As the film goes on, Peter becomes darker and darker, culminating in a sequence where he becomes a jealous, spiteful horndog. The whole sequence is played for laughs, much like another 3rd installment of a super hero franchise. After all that, Spidey frees himself only to later face Venom, his dark side made flesh…again, hmm…very familiar.
All that said, I did enjoy the bulk of Spidey 3 (though don't get me started on the Sandman, as the only way to explain his character inconsistencies is mental retardation). The effects were good, James Franco stole the show as Harry Osborne (I haven't seen such villainy in a café since the beginning of The Untouchables) and the fight sequences were pure cinematic candy! Overall, I enjoyed the film and recommend it, just remember, it's not Spider-Man 2.
